83 FR 23996 - Hazardous Materials: Revisions to the Emergency Response Guidebook

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 100 (May 23, 2018)

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) is soliciting input on ways to improve the Emergency Response Guidebook (ERG) as it develops the 2020 edition (ERG2020). PHMSA is particularly interested in input from emergency services personnel who have experience using the ERG to respond to hazardous materials transportation incidents.

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 100 (Wednesday, May 23, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23996-23997]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-11055]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

[Docket No. PHMSA-2018-0055; Notice No. 2018-10]


Hazardous Materials: Revisions to the Emergency Response 
Guidebook

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), 
Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice; request for information.

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SUMMARY: The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration 
(PHMSA) is soliciting input on ways to improve the Emergency Response 
Guidebook (ERG) as it develops the 2020 edition (ERG2020). PHMSA is 
particularly interested in input from emergency services personnel who 
have experience using the ERG to respond to hazardous materials 
transportation incidents.

ADDRESSES: An email address has been established for interested persons 
to submit their input: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Stephen Martinez, Outreach, 
Engagement and Grants Division (PHH-50), Pipeline and Hazardous 
Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 
Washington, DC 20590-0001. Telephone number: (202) 366-4900, email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Paperwork Reduction Act:

    The collection of this information has been approved under OMB 
Control Number 2105-0573, ``Generic Clearance for the Collection of 
Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery.'' PHMSA estimates the 
total burden from this collection to be:
    Number of Respondents: 148.
    Number of Responses: 148.
    Number of Burden Hours: 12.
    Burden Cost: 151.

A. Background and Purpose

    The Federal hazardous materials transportation law, 49 U.S.C. 5101 
et seq., authorizes the Secretary of Transportation (Secretary) to 
issue and enforce regulations deemed necessary to ensure the safe 
transportation of hazardous materials in commerce. In addition, the law 
directs the Secretary to provide law enforcement and fire-fighting 
personnel with technical information and advice for responding to 
emergencies involving the transportation of hazardous materials.
    The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) 
developed the United States version of the Emergency Response Guidebook 
(ERG) for use by emergency services personnel to provide guidance for 
initial response to hazardous materials transportation incidents. Since 
1980, it has been PHMSA's goal that all public emergency response 
personnel (e.g., fire-fighting, police, and rescue squads) have 
immediate access to the ERG. To date and without charge, PHMSA has 
distributed more than 14.5 million copies of the ERG to emergency 
service agencies and developed free online resources and downloadable 
mobile applications to make the ERG more accessible. Since 1996, PHMSA, 
Transport Canada, and the Secretariat of Communication and Transport of 
Mexico have developed the ERG as a joint effort, with the assistance of 
interested parties from government and industry, including Argentina's 
Chemical Information Center for Emergencies (CIQUIME). ERG2020 will be 
published in English, French, and Spanish.
    Publication of ERG2020 will increase public safety by providing 
consistent emergency response procedures for hazardous materials 
transportation incidents in North America. To continually improve the 
ERG, PHMSA is publishing this notice to inform interested parties of an 
open-ended method to relate their experiences using the ERG and 
recommendations on how it could be modified or improved. If PHMSA 
receives comments that it cannot feasibly consider prior to the 
publication of ERG2020, then such comments will be considered for 
subsequent versions of the ERG.
    In addition to this notice, PHMSA will publicize its interest in 
receiving input on ERG2020 through future

[[Page 23997]]

announcements to emergency responder associations, during training and 
education seminars, and during activities with State and local 
government agencies. PHMSA has established an email address for 
interested persons to submit their input (see ADDRESSES).

B. Emergency Response Guidebook Questions

    To assist in the gathering of information, PHMSA solicits input 
from ERG users on experiences using, and concerns with, the 2012 and 
2016 editions. We are interested in any comments stakeholders and users 
wish to provide, but are particularly looking for answers to the 
following questions:
    1. How can we make the ERG more user-friendly for first responders 
during the initial response phase of a hazardous materials 
transportation incident? Please provide examples.
    2. Does ERG2016 effectively emphasize the most useful information 
for the initial response phase?
    3. Have you encountered conflicting or ambiguous guidance messages 
when using the ERG and other sources of technical information?
    4. Are there ways we could improve the White Pages? For example:
     Did you find the ``How to Use this Guidebook'' flow chart 
on page 1 of ERG2016 useful in understanding how to use the ERG? Please 
explain why or why not.
     Do you believe we should reformat the tables, charts, and 
the information they provide (i.e., Table of Placards, Rail 
Identification Chart, and Road Trailer Identification Chart)? What 
changes do you think would make them more useful, clear, and easy to 
read and use?
     What other identification charts should we add, if any? 
What other subject(s) should we address?
     How could we improve the information the ERG provides on 
chemical, biological, and radiological transportation incidents? Can 
you suggest information to include or remove?
     Do you find the terms in the Glossary appropriate and 
current? What terms should we add? What terms should we remove or 
change?
    5. In ERG2016's Yellow or Blue Pages, have you found any 
identification number and/or material name that seems to be assigned to 
an incorrect Guide number? If so, please note the identification 
number, material name, the Guide number, and suggest a new Guide number 
with your reasons why.
    6. Do the Orange Guide Pages contain recommendations and responses 
that are appropriate to the material they are assigned to? If not, 
please explain and recommend a correction.
    7. How could we change/improve the introduction and description of 
the Green Pages, or any of the following tables?
     Table 1--``Initial Isolation and Protective Action 
Distances''
     Table 2--``Water Reactive Materials Which Produce Toxic 
Gases''
     Table 3--``Initial Isolation and Protective Action 
Distances for Different Quantities of Six Common TIH Gases''
    8. When calling any of the Emergency Response Telephone Numbers 
listed in ERG2016, have you experienced a busy telephone line, 
disconnection, or no response? If so, please describe.
    9. What format(s) of the ERG do you use (hardcopy, electronic, 
online, mobile applications, etc.), and why?
    10. How often do you use the ERG in a dangerous goods 
transportation emergency?
    In addition to the specific questions listed in this notice, PHMSA 
is also interested in any supporting data and analyses that will 
enhance the value of the comments submitted.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on May 10, 2018.
William S. Schoonover,
Associate Administrator for Hazardous Materials Safety, Pipeline and 
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
[FR Doc. 2018-11055 Filed 5-22-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-60-P