Call for central registry of hazardous substances

Press, 17 November 1976, Page 22

Call for central registry of hazardous substances

PA Wellington! A central registry to define and register hazardous substances, and to act as an information centre, has been recommended by the standing advisory committee set up to review the transport of hazardous substances. The committee’s report also recommends the enlarging of the range of hazardous substances covered by the present legislation, and the compulsory use of haz-ard-warning labels on all containers of hazardous substances. The report said the Road Transport Division of the! Ministry of Transport should! develop detailed container design specifications for thei ! transport of such substances by road. All organisations filling! i drums or similar metal receptacles with hazardous subI stances should be held responsible for ensuring that

the drum, its liner (where fitted), or its protective coatings were in good condition and would safely contain the contents for transport and/or storage, the report said.

The contents of all freight containers should be correc 11 y contained and identified, as should all boxes, drums, packages, or bottles in each container. Where large bulk consignments of hazardous substances were to be transported, the report said that consideration should be' given to using rail or sea; transport in preference to road. All substances enclosed in containers for transport should be recorded in a central registry. ! The report said that al! hazardous substances which were transported should be accompanied by transport documents identifying the goods. All these documents should preferably be identifiable by distinctive colour banding or coding.

It is recommended that it be made an offence for transport contractors to carry goods in the absence of the required documentation and labelling. On the spillage of hazardous substances, the report recommended that there should be statutory authority to enable substances salvaged from an accident and no longer wanted by the consignee to be given away to industries prepared to use them in an acceptable way.

Where there is no immediate threat to human life, spilled hazardous substances should be disposed of by recycling them into industry wherever possible, or by controlled incineration where appropriate. In a joint statement accompanying the report, the Minister of Transport (Mr McLachlan) and the Minister of Internal Affairs (Mr Highet) said the recommendations had been studied by the Government, and accepted in principle.