Safety and Security Plans for Class 3 Hazardous Materials Transported by Rail, 69745-69746 [2013-27785]
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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 224 / Wednesday, November 20, 2013 / Notices
techniques or other forms of information
technology.
David Bonelli,
Attorney Advisor, Legislation and General
Law.
[FR Doc. 2013–27805 Filed 11–19–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–59–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
Safety Administration
[Docket No. PHMSA–2013–0254; Notice No.
13–09]
Federal Railroad Administration
[Safety Advisory 2013–07]
Safety and Security Plans for Class 3
Hazardous Materials Transported by
Rail
Pipeline and Hazardous
Materials Safety Administration
(PHMSA) and Federal Railroad
Administration (FRA), Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of Safety Advisory.
AGENCY:
PHMSA and FRA are issuing
this safety advisory as a follow-up to the
agencies’ joint safety advisory published
on August 7, 2013 and FRA’s
Emergency Order No. 28 published that
same day, both of which relate to the
July 6, 2013, catastrophic accident in
´
Lac-Megantic, Quebec. In this safety
advisory, PHMSA and FRA are
reinforcing the importance of proper
characterization, classification, and
selection of a packing group for Class 3
materials, and the corresponding
requirements in the Federal hazardous
materials regulations for safety and
security planning. In addition, we are
reinforcing that we expect offerors by
rail and rail carriers to revise their safety
and security plans required by the
Federal hazardous materials regulations,
including the required risk assessments,
to address the safety and security issues
identified in FRA’s Emergency Order
No. 28 and the August 7, 2013, joint
Safety Advisory.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ben
Supko, Standards and Rulemaking
Division, PHMSA, 1200 New Jersey
Ave. SE., Washington, DC 20590–0001,
telephone (202) 366–8553; or Karl
Alexy, Staff Director, FRA Hazardous
Materials Division, 1200 New Jersey
Ave. SE., Washington, DC 20590–0001,
telephone (202) 493–6245.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July 6,
2013, a catastrophic railroad accident
´
occurred in Lac-Megantic, Quebec,
Canada when an unattended freight
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
16:04 Nov 19, 2013
Jkt 232001
train containing hazardous materials
rolled down a descending grade and
subsequently derailed. The derailment
resulted in multiple explosions and
subsequent fires, which caused the
confirmed death of forty-two people and
presumed death of five more, extensive
damage to the town center, clean-up
costs, and the evacuation of
approximately 2,000 people from the
surrounding area. While the
Transportation Safety Board of Canada
(TSB) is still investigating the cause of
´
the Lac-Megantic accident, the
catastrophic consequences of the
accident and the known increase over
the last several years in the rail
transportation of Class 3 hazardous
materials has made clear the need to
review existing regulations and industry
practices related to such transportation.
PHMSA and FRA have worked closely
to take a number of actions intended to
prevent similar incidents from occurring
in the United States and the agencies
will continue to do so.
This Safety Advisory is intended to
follow-up on PHMSA and FRA’s actions
to date to address the safety and security
of the rail transportation of Class 3
hazardous materials, including FRA’s
Emergency Order No. 28 (78 FR 48218
(EO 28)); the agencies’ Joint Safety
Advisory published on August 7, 2013
(78 FR 48224) (First Joint Advisory); the
initiation of a comprehensive review of
operational factors that affect the
transportation of hazardous materials by
rail (78 FR 42998); the referral of safety
issues related to EO 28 and the First
Joint Advisory to FRA’s Railroad Safety
Advisory Committee (78 FR 48931); and
the publication of an advance notice of
proposed rulemaking responding to
eight petitions for rulemaking related to
the transportation of hazardous
materials by rail (78 FR 54849). In this
Safety Advisory, PHMSA and FRA are
once again reinforcing the importance of
proper characterization, classification,
and selection of a hazardous materials
packing group as required by the
Federal hazardous materials law (49
U.S.C. 5101–5128) and Hazardous
Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR
parts 171–180). The agencies are also
emphasizing that offerors of hazardous
materials by rail and rail carriers should
have reviewed and revised, as
appropriate, their safety and security
plans required under Subpart I of Part
172 of the HMR, including the required
risk assessments, to address the safety
and security issues identified in EO 28
and the First Joint Advisory.
PO 00000
Frm 00106
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
69745
I. Safety and Security Plans as They
Pertain to Class 3 Materials
Each person who offers for
transportation in commerce or
transports in commerce certain
hazardous materials, including Class 3,
packing group (PG) I or II materials that
are offered for transportation or
transported in a large bulk quantity,
must develop and adhere to a
transportation safety and security plan
that conforms to the requirements of the
HMR. See 49 CFR part 172, subpart I. A
large bulk quantity, is defined in
§ 172.800(b), for a Class 3, PG I or II
material as a quantity of 792 gallons
(3,000 liters) or more in a single bulk
packaging (e.g., cargo tank motor
vehicle, portable tank, tank car, or other
bulk container).
A safety and security plan must
include components addressing
personnel security, unauthorized access,
and en route security. See 49 CFR
172.802. The HMR set forth general
requirements for a safety and security
plan’s components rather than a
prescriptive list of specific items that
must be included. The HMR establish a
performance standard providing offerors
and rail carriers with the flexibility
necessary to develop safety and security
plans addressing their individual
circumstances and operational
environments. Accordingly, each safety
and security plan may differ because it
will be based on an offeror’s or a
carrier’s individual assessment of the
safety and security risks associated with
the specific hazardous materials it ships
or transports and its unique
circumstances and operational
environment.
II. Responsibilities of Offerors of
Hazardous Materials and Rail Carriers
As stated above, PHMSA and FRA
expect that as a result of EO 28 and the
First Joint Advisory, hazmat offerors by
rail and railroad carriers have reviewed
and revised, as appropriate, their safety
and security plans, including the
required underlying risk assessments, to
address the safety and security issues
identified in FRA’s Emergency Order
No. 28 and the First Joint Advisory.
A. Offerors
As applied to offerors of hazardous
materials by rail, PHMSA and FRA
expect that in light of EO 28 and the
First Joint Advisory, offerors have
reviewed their safety and security plans
to ensure that all materials subject to the
regulatory requirement are, in fact,
properly classified, described, and
packaged in accordance with the HMR.
The HMR require offerors of hazardous
E:\FR\FM\20NON1.SGM
20NON1
69746
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 224 / Wednesday, November 20, 2013 / Notices
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
materials to properly classify and
describe the hazardous material being
offered for transportation. 49 CFR
173.22. As part of this process, proper
characterization of a hazardous material
(considering the material’s underlying
chemical properties, corrosivity, and
other characteristics) is fundamental to
ensuring the selection of proper
packaging and that the hazards of the
materials are properly described in the
required shipping documentation.
Proper characterization will identify
properties that may not affect
classification, but will affect the
integrity of the packaging or present
additional hazards, such as corrosivity,
sulfur content and dissolved gas
content. Ensuring the proper
classification, characterization, and PG
assignment of a hazardous material is a
key building block of the HMR, and is
especially important for assessing risks
and developing a safety and security
plan. To aid in this process, we are
emphasizing key definitions and
information from 49 CFR 173.120 and
173.121 regarding the proper
classification and packing group
assignment for petroleum crude oil,
namely: The definitions of flash point,
flammable liquid, combustible liquid
and packing group. We are also
emphasizing the following applicable
shipping names and packing groups as
they pertain to the transportation of
petroleum products:
i. Crude oil. Petroleum crude oil, UN
1267, is specifically listed in the
Hazardous Materials Table (49 CFR
172.101) as a Class 3 material, in
Packing Groups I, II, or III.
ii. Sour crude. Petroleum sour crude,
oil, flammable, toxic, UN 3494, is
specifically listed in the Hazardous
Materials Table (49 CFR 172.101) as a
Class 3 material, in Packing Groups I, II,
or III.
Offerors of hazardous materials for
transportation by rail must ensure that
their current practices and operations
align with HMR requirements,
especially in regard to existing safety
and security planning requirements for
Class 3 materials.
B. Carriers
EO 28 prohibits railroads from leaving
trains or vehicles transporting certain
types and quantities of hazardous
materials unattended on a mainline
track or a mainline siding outside of a
yard or terminal, until the railroad
develops, adopts, and complies with a
plan that identifies specific locations
and circumstances where the railroad
has determined that such trains or
vehicles may be safely left unattended.
Accordingly, EO 28 requires railroads to
VerDate Mar<15>2010
16:04 Nov 19, 2013
Jkt 232001
implement ‘‘securement plans’’ to leave
unattended any train or vehicle
transporting the identified hazardous
materials on a mainline track or siding
outside of a yard or terminal. FRA and
PHMSA would like to clarify that
although these ‘‘securement plans’’ are
separate and distinct from the safety and
security plans required by the HMR, the
agencies expect rail carriers that have
developed and implemented
‘‘securement plans’’ as provided for in
EO 28 to evaluate the safety and security
risks of leaving the equipment subject to
the plan unattended and review and
revise, as appropriate, their
corresponding safety and security plans,
including the required underlying risk
assessment, required by the HMR to
reflect the increased risk of leaving the
equipment unattended.
III. PHMSA’s and FRA’s Enforcement
Efforts
PHMSA and FRA are assessing
regulated entities’ compliance with the
expectations outlined in the First Joint
Advisory and this safety advisory to
ensure the safe transportation of
hazardous materials by rail. Recently,
PHMSA initiated ‘‘Operation
Classification.’’ This compliance
investigation initiative involves
unannounced inspections and testing by
PHMSA and FRA to verify the material
classification and packing group
assignments selected and certified by
offerors of petroleum crude oil. In
addition, PHMSA is accompanying FRA
on audits to evaluate safety and security
plans and to determine whether the
plans address vulnerabilities
highlighted in EO 28 and the First Joint
Advisory. FRA is also conducting
additional inspections to determine
compliance with EO 28.
Issued in Washington, DC, on November
14, 2013.
Magdy El-Sibaie,
Associate Administrator for Hazardous
Materials Safety, Pipeline and Hazardous
Materials Safety Administration.
Robert C. Lauby,
Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety/
Chief Safety Officer, Federal Railroad
Adminstration.
[FR Doc. 2013–27785 Filed 11–19–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–60–P
PO 00000
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Surface Transportation Board
[Docket No. FD 35782]
Buckeye Railroad Holdings, LLC—
Continuance in Control—Buckeye
Hammond Railroad, LLC, and Buckeye
East Chicago Railroad, LLC
Buckeye Railroad Holdings, LLC
(BRH), has filed a verified notice of
exemption under 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(2) to
continue in control of Buckeye
Hammond Railroad, LLC (BHRR), and
Buckeye East Chicago Railroad, LLC
(BECRR), both Class III rail carriers.
In November 2012, BECRR filed a
verified notice of exemption under 49
CFR 1150.31 to acquire from Buckeye
Partners, L.P. (Buckeye), a noncarrier,
and to operate approximately 7,065 feet
of track, existing railroad right-of-way,
and bulk liquid transloading facilities in
East Chicago, Ind. Buckeye E. Chi.
R.R.—Acquis. & Operation Exemption—
Buckeye Partners, L.P., FD 35698 (STB
served Nov. 30, 2012). In December
2012, BHRR filed a verified notice of
exemption under 49 CFR 1150.31 to
acquire from Buckeye and to operate
approximately 6,797 feet of track,
existing railroad right-of-way, and bulk
liquid transloading facilities in
Hammond, Ind. Buckeye Hammond
R.R.—Acquis. & Operation Exemption—
Buckeye Partners, L.P., FD 35697 (STB
served Jan. 3, 2013).
According to BRH, it owned and
controlled both BECRR and BHRR
before each became a Class III carrier.
But BRH did not file for continuance in
control authority until it filed this
verified notice of exemption with the
Board on November 4, 2013. Thus, the
effective date of the exemption is
December 4, 2013 (30 days after the
verified notice of exemption was filed).1
BRH represents that: (1) BECRR and
BHRR do not connect with each other or
any railroads in their corporate family;
(2) the continuance in control of BECRR
and BHRR is not part of a series of
anticipated transactions that would
connect the railroads with each other or
any railroads in their corporate family;
and (3) the transaction does not involve
a Class I carrier. Therefore, the
transaction is exempt from the prior
approval requirements of 49 U.S.C.
11323. See 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(2).
Under 49 U.S.C. 10502(g), the Board
may not use its exemption authority to
relieve a rail carrier of its statutory
1 The class exemption invoked by BRH does not
provide for retroactive effectiveness. See DMH Trust
fbo Martha M. Head—Aquis. of Control
Exemption—Red River Valley & W. R.R. & Rutland
Line, Inc., FD 35649 (STB served Aug. 8, 2012).
Frm 00107
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
E:\FR\FM\20NON1.SGM
20NON1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 224 (Wednesday, November 20, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69745-69746]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-27785]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
[Docket No. PHMSA-2013-0254; Notice No. 13-09]
Federal Railroad Administration
[Safety Advisory 2013-07]
Safety and Security Plans for Class 3 Hazardous Materials
Transported by Rail
AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA)
and Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Department of Transportation
(DOT).
ACTION: Notice of Safety Advisory.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: PHMSA and FRA are issuing this safety advisory as a follow-up
to the agencies' joint safety advisory published on August 7, 2013 and
FRA's Emergency Order No. 28 published that same day, both of which
relate to the July 6, 2013, catastrophic accident in Lac-
M[eacute]gantic, Quebec. In this safety advisory, PHMSA and FRA are
reinforcing the importance of proper characterization, classification,
and selection of a packing group for Class 3 materials, and the
corresponding requirements in the Federal hazardous materials
regulations for safety and security planning. In addition, we are
reinforcing that we expect offerors by rail and rail carriers to revise
their safety and security plans required by the Federal hazardous
materials regulations, including the required risk assessments, to
address the safety and security issues identified in FRA's Emergency
Order No. 28 and the August 7, 2013, joint Safety Advisory.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ben Supko, Standards and Rulemaking
Division, PHMSA, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001,
telephone (202) 366-8553; or Karl Alexy, Staff Director, FRA Hazardous
Materials Division, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE., Washington, DC 20590-
0001, telephone (202) 493-6245.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July 6, 2013, a catastrophic railroad
accident occurred in Lac-M[eacute]gantic, Quebec, Canada when an
unattended freight train containing hazardous materials rolled down a
descending grade and subsequently derailed. The derailment resulted in
multiple explosions and subsequent fires, which caused the confirmed
death of forty-two people and presumed death of five more, extensive
damage to the town center, clean-up costs, and the evacuation of
approximately 2,000 people from the surrounding area. While the
Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) is still investigating the
cause of the Lac-M[eacute]gantic accident, the catastrophic
consequences of the accident and the known increase over the last
several years in the rail transportation of Class 3 hazardous materials
has made clear the need to review existing regulations and industry
practices related to such transportation. PHMSA and FRA have worked
closely to take a number of actions intended to prevent similar
incidents from occurring in the United States and the agencies will
continue to do so.
This Safety Advisory is intended to follow-up on PHMSA and FRA's
actions to date to address the safety and security of the rail
transportation of Class 3 hazardous materials, including FRA's
Emergency Order No. 28 (78 FR 48218 (EO 28)); the agencies' Joint
Safety Advisory published on August 7, 2013 (78 FR 48224) (First Joint
Advisory); the initiation of a comprehensive review of operational
factors that affect the transportation of hazardous materials by rail
(78 FR 42998); the referral of safety issues related to EO 28 and the
First Joint Advisory to FRA's Railroad Safety Advisory Committee (78 FR
48931); and the publication of an advance notice of proposed rulemaking
responding to eight petitions for rulemaking related to the
transportation of hazardous materials by rail (78 FR 54849). In this
Safety Advisory, PHMSA and FRA are once again reinforcing the
importance of proper characterization, classification, and selection of
a hazardous materials packing group as required by the Federal
hazardous materials law (49 U.S.C. 5101-5128) and Hazardous Materials
Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR parts 171-180). The agencies are also
emphasizing that offerors of hazardous materials by rail and rail
carriers should have reviewed and revised, as appropriate, their safety
and security plans required under Subpart I of Part 172 of the HMR,
including the required risk assessments, to address the safety and
security issues identified in EO 28 and the First Joint Advisory.
I. Safety and Security Plans as They Pertain to Class 3 Materials
Each person who offers for transportation in commerce or transports
in commerce certain hazardous materials, including Class 3, packing
group (PG) I or II materials that are offered for transportation or
transported in a large bulk quantity, must develop and adhere to a
transportation safety and security plan that conforms to the
requirements of the HMR. See 49 CFR part 172, subpart I. A large bulk
quantity, is defined in Sec. 172.800(b), for a Class 3, PG I or II
material as a quantity of 792 gallons (3,000 liters) or more in a
single bulk packaging (e.g., cargo tank motor vehicle, portable tank,
tank car, or other bulk container).
A safety and security plan must include components addressing
personnel security, unauthorized access, and en route security. See 49
CFR 172.802. The HMR set forth general requirements for a safety and
security plan's components rather than a prescriptive list of specific
items that must be included. The HMR establish a performance standard
providing offerors and rail carriers with the flexibility necessary to
develop safety and security plans addressing their individual
circumstances and operational environments. Accordingly, each safety
and security plan may differ because it will be based on an offeror's
or a carrier's individual assessment of the safety and security risks
associated with the specific hazardous materials it ships or transports
and its unique circumstances and operational environment.
II. Responsibilities of Offerors of Hazardous Materials and Rail
Carriers
As stated above, PHMSA and FRA expect that as a result of EO 28 and
the First Joint Advisory, hazmat offerors by rail and railroad carriers
have reviewed and revised, as appropriate, their safety and security
plans, including the required underlying risk assessments, to address
the safety and security issues identified in FRA's Emergency Order No.
28 and the First Joint Advisory.
A. Offerors
As applied to offerors of hazardous materials by rail, PHMSA and
FRA expect that in light of EO 28 and the First Joint Advisory,
offerors have reviewed their safety and security plans to ensure that
all materials subject to the regulatory requirement are, in fact,
properly classified, described, and packaged in accordance with the
HMR. The HMR require offerors of hazardous
[[Page 69746]]
materials to properly classify and describe the hazardous material
being offered for transportation. 49 CFR 173.22. As part of this
process, proper characterization of a hazardous material (considering
the material's underlying chemical properties, corrosivity, and other
characteristics) is fundamental to ensuring the selection of proper
packaging and that the hazards of the materials are properly described
in the required shipping documentation. Proper characterization will
identify properties that may not affect classification, but will affect
the integrity of the packaging or present additional hazards, such as
corrosivity, sulfur content and dissolved gas content. Ensuring the
proper classification, characterization, and PG assignment of a
hazardous material is a key building block of the HMR, and is
especially important for assessing risks and developing a safety and
security plan. To aid in this process, we are emphasizing key
definitions and information from 49 CFR 173.120 and 173.121 regarding
the proper classification and packing group assignment for petroleum
crude oil, namely: The definitions of flash point, flammable liquid,
combustible liquid and packing group. We are also emphasizing the
following applicable shipping names and packing groups as they pertain
to the transportation of petroleum products:
i. Crude oil. Petroleum crude oil, UN 1267, is specifically listed
in the Hazardous Materials Table (49 CFR 172.101) as a Class 3
material, in Packing Groups I, II, or III.
ii. Sour crude. Petroleum sour crude, oil, flammable, toxic, UN
3494, is specifically listed in the Hazardous Materials Table (49 CFR
172.101) as a Class 3 material, in Packing Groups I, II, or III.
Offerors of hazardous materials for transportation by rail must
ensure that their current practices and operations align with HMR
requirements, especially in regard to existing safety and security
planning requirements for Class 3 materials.
B. Carriers
EO 28 prohibits railroads from leaving trains or vehicles
transporting certain types and quantities of hazardous materials
unattended on a mainline track or a mainline siding outside of a yard
or terminal, until the railroad develops, adopts, and complies with a
plan that identifies specific locations and circumstances where the
railroad has determined that such trains or vehicles may be safely left
unattended. Accordingly, EO 28 requires railroads to implement
``securement plans'' to leave unattended any train or vehicle
transporting the identified hazardous materials on a mainline track or
siding outside of a yard or terminal. FRA and PHMSA would like to
clarify that although these ``securement plans'' are separate and
distinct from the safety and security plans required by the HMR, the
agencies expect rail carriers that have developed and implemented
``securement plans'' as provided for in EO 28 to evaluate the safety
and security risks of leaving the equipment subject to the plan
unattended and review and revise, as appropriate, their corresponding
safety and security plans, including the required underlying risk
assessment, required by the HMR to reflect the increased risk of
leaving the equipment unattended.
III. PHMSA's and FRA's Enforcement Efforts
PHMSA and FRA are assessing regulated entities' compliance with the
expectations outlined in the First Joint Advisory and this safety
advisory to ensure the safe transportation of hazardous materials by
rail. Recently, PHMSA initiated ``Operation Classification.'' This
compliance investigation initiative involves unannounced inspections
and testing by PHMSA and FRA to verify the material classification and
packing group assignments selected and certified by offerors of
petroleum crude oil. In addition, PHMSA is accompanying FRA on audits
to evaluate safety and security plans and to determine whether the
plans address vulnerabilities highlighted in EO 28 and the First Joint
Advisory. FRA is also conducting additional inspections to determine
compliance with EO 28.
Issued in Washington, DC, on November 14, 2013.
Magdy El-Sibaie,
Associate Administrator for Hazardous Materials Safety, Pipeline and
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
Robert C. Lauby,
Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety/Chief Safety Officer,
Federal Railroad Adminstration.
[FR Doc. 2013-27785 Filed 11-19-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-60-P
