[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 4 (Monday, January 7, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 1119-1120]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-31244]
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 4 / Monday, January 7, 2013 /
Proposed Rules
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
49 CFR Parts 172, 173, and 175
[Docket No. PHMSA-2009-0095 (HM-224F)]
RIN 2137-AE44
Hazardous Materials: Transportation of Lithium Batteries
AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA),
DOT.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking; request for additional comment.
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SUMMARY: In this document, PHMSA is seeking additional comment on the
impact of changes to the requirements for the air transport of lithium
cells and batteries that have been adopted into the 2013-2014
International Civil Aviation Organization Technical Instructions on the
Transport of Dangerous Goods by Air (ICAO Technical Instructions), and
subsequently incorporated by reference in a final rule published
elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register. PHMSA is considering
the long-term impacts of permitting shippers and carriers to choose
between compliance with the existing HMR, or compliance with the ICAO
Technical Instructions 2013-2014 edition, when transporting batteries
domestically by air. Incorporation by reference of the 2013-2014
Edition of the ICAO Technical Instructions will allow each shipper and
carrier to choose the method of compliance that is most appropriate for
its operation; likewise, each shipper and carrier will have the
responsibility to ensure that the proper method of compliance is chosen
for each shipment, since the chosen method may not comply with the ICAO
Technical Instructions. PHMSA is seeking supplemental comments to our
January 11, 2010, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) and our April
11, 2012, request for additional comment in light of the publication of
the HM-215L final rule. Specifically, PHMSA is seeking comment on
whether to require mandatory compliance with the 2013-2014 ICAO
Technical Instructions for all shipments of lithium batteries by air,
both foreign and domestic. Based on the comments received, PHMSA may
issue a final rule to revise the HMR to reflect the lithium battery
provisions specified in the 2013-2014 Edition of the ICAO Technical
Instructions.
DATES: Comments must be received by March 8, 2013.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by the docket number
PHMSA-2009-0095 (HM-224F) by any of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
Mail: Docket Management System; U.S. Department of
Transportation, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Routing
Symbol M-30, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590.
Hand Delivery: To the Docket Management System; Room W12-
140 on the ground floor of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue
SE., Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except Federal holidays.
Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and
docket number for this notice at the beginning of the comment. To avoid
duplication, please use only one of these four methods. All comments
received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov
and will include any personal information you provide.
Docket: For access to the dockets to read background documents or
comments received, go to http://www.regulations.gov or DOT's Docket
Operations Office (see ADDRESSES).
Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of any
written communications and comments received into any of our dockets by
the name of the individual submitting the document (or signing the
document, if submitted on behalf of an association, business, labor
union, etc.). You may review DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement in
the Federal Register published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477) or you
may visit http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2000-04-11/pdf/00-8505/pdf.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Charles E. Betts or Kevin A. Leary,
Standards and Rulemaking Division, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
Safety Administration, telephone (202) 366-8553; Michael Locke, Program
Development Division, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration, telephone (202) 366-1074.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
HM-224F Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM)
On January 11, 2010, PHMSA, in consultation with the Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA), issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
(NPRM) under Docket HM-224F (75 FR 1302, RIN 2137-AE44) proposing to
amend requirements in the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) on the
transportation of lithium cells and batteries, including lithium cells
and batteries packed with or contained in equipment.
HM-224 Request for Additional Comment
In the spring of 2012, the ICAO Dangerous Goods Panel incorporated
into the 2013-2014 Edition of the ICAO Technical Instructions certain
changes applicable to the air transport of lithium cells and batteries.
Accordingly, on April 11, 2012, PHMSA issued a subsequent notice
requesting additional comment on the expected costs and benefits of
adopting these changes into the HMR (77 FR 21714). While the commenters
supported harmonization of the HMR with the 2013-2014 ICAO Technical
Instructions, several commenters expressed uncertainty whether the
requirements in 2013-2014 ICAO Technical Instructions were replacing
the proposals in PHMSA's January 11, 2010 NPRM.
As a result of changes to the ICAO Technical Instructions over the
past two years, and the statutory prohibition contained within the FAA
Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (Sec. 828, Pub. L. 112-95; 126
Stat. 133 (Feb 14, 2012), PHMSA is no longer considering many of the
provisions in the January 11, 2010 notice of proposed rulemaking.
PHMSA received many comments on issues related to harmonization
with ICAO Technical Instructions in its April 2012 notice; PHMSA will
respond to all of those comments, as well as the comments on the
January 2010 NPRM, in this same docket at a later date. However, in
order to focus the comments in this notice on the few remaining issues
where we would like to receive additional information, we are not
seeking further comment on the following issues at this time:
--Replacing the equivalent lithium content requirements for lithium ion
cells and batteries with Watt-hours consistent with international
standards;
--Provisions for ``small'' and ``medium'' size lithium cells and
batteries;
--Provisions for shipments of prototype lithium ion batteries in
vehicles;
--Provisions for shipments of ``small production'' and prototype
lithium cells and batteries consistent with the IMDG Code and ICAO
Technical Instructions;
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--Provisions for the transport of damaged, defective and recalled
lithium batteries; and
--Harmonization of the relevant lithium battery proper shipping names
and descriptions listed in the Hazardous Materials Table with those
listed in the IMDG Code and ICAO Technical Instructions.
HM-215L Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) and Final Rule
On August 15, 2012, PHMSA published an NPRM under Docket HM-215L
(PHMSA-2012-0027; 77 FR 49168) that did not propose any specific
amendments regarding the requirements for the air transportation and
handling of lithium batteries. However, the NPRM did propose the
incorporation by reference of the 2013-2014 Edition of the ICAO
Technical Instructions, which addresses the air transportation of
lithium batteries. In the final rule issued under Docket HM-215L
(PHMSA-2012-0027) published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal
Register, PHMSA incorporated the 2013-2014 Edition of the ICAO
Technical Instructions by reference. Accordingly, for purposes of the
HMR, a shipment of lithium batteries are permitted to be transported by
air in accordance with the 2013-2014 Edition of the ICAO Technical
Instructions (with the exception of primary lithium batteries and cells
aboard passenger carrying aircraft and unapproved prototype lithium
batteries and cells aboard passenger carrying aircraft), or the
applicable requirements currently specified in the HMR (see Sec.
171.24(d)(1)(ii) and (iii)). Incorporation by reference of the 2013-
2014 Edition of the ICAO Technical Instructions provides shippers and
carriers with the flexibility to choose the method of compliance most
appropriate for their operation and transportation scenario. However,
it also places the responsibility to ensure that the proper method is
chosen for each shipment, as domestic requirements may differ from
those contained in the 2012-2014 Edition of the ICAO Technical
Instructions. In the HM-215L final rule, PHMSA noted that it ``is
requesting additional comment on various issues related to the air
transportation and handling of lithium batteries in a separate
Notice.'' This Notice is the notice referenced in the HM-215L final
rule.
Request for Information
Under the Docket HM-215L final rule published elsewhere in this
issue of the Federal Register, shipments of lithium batteries may be
prepared in accordance with the ICAO Technical Instructions, 2013-2014
Edition (subject to the additional conditions specified in Sec.
171.24(d)(1)(ii) and (iii)) or the applicable requirements currently
specified in the HMR. Incorporating the 2013-2014 ICAO Technical
Instructions into the HMR authorizes the use of these standards, but
without additional action, differing domestic standards will remain in
the HMR.
In this document, PHMSA now seeks comments on potential amendments
to the appropriate sections of the HMR consistent with provisions in
the 2013-2014 ICAO Technical Instructions, not to the provisions
proposed in the January 11, 2010, NPRM, as PHMSA is currently
prohibited by the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 from
imposing requirements more stringent than the ICAO standards.
PHMSA seeks qualitative and quantitative information from the
public on the following questions. In your comments please refer to the
specific question number(s) to which you are responding.
1. Do you anticipate any unintended consequences for shippers or
carriers if PHMSA authorizes the use of the 2013-2014 ICAO Technical
Instructions as an optional method of compliance with the HMR, but does
not issue a final rule revising the HMR to require domestic shipments
of lithium batteries to comply with the lithium battery provisions
specified in the 2013-2014 Edition of the ICAO Technical Instructions?
Please note that, HM-215L final rule allows compliance with the current
HMR to be met through voluntary compliance with the ICAO Technical
Instructions.
2. As adopted in the HM-215L final rule, which individuals, and how
many, will chose to comply with the ICAO Technical Instructions 2013-
2014 Edition (except those specified in Sec. Sec. 171.24(d)(1)(ii) and
171.24(d)(1)(iii)) as opposed to the current requirements of the HMR?
3. Do you anticipate confusion and/or inappropriately packaged/
prepared shipments if PHMSA were to authorize the use of the 2013-2014
ICAO Technical Instructions, but does not issue a final rule revising
the HMR to require compliance with the specific lithium battery
provisions with those contained in the 2013-2014 Edition of the ICAO
Technical Instructions? If so, which entities would be confused and
what specifically would cause confusion? If you believe there will be
confusion, under what circumstances and over what period of time would
you expect such confusion or errors to occur? Are there ways to
mitigate such problems without adding additional regulatory burdens?
4. What changes, if any, would be made to shipments and/or
operational processes if PHMSA were to require compliance with the
applicable provisions for lithium batteries specified in the 2013-2014
Edition of the ICAO Technical Instructions? Specifically, what costs
and/or benefits (if any) would result if PHMSA were to publish a final
rule that adopts the lithium battery provisions of the 2013-2014 ICAO
Technical Instructions into the HMR? If there would be any costs or
benefits, if possible, please provide data to support the comments. As
noted above, this final rule would replace the proposals in the January
11, 2010, NPRM.
5. What are the benefits of allowing shippers and carriers the
option to choose between alternative standards, depending on the type
of shipment? How do these benefits from flexibility compare to the
benefits of requiring a single standard? Are there any disadvantages or
costs to allowing domestic shipments to follow a standard specific to
domestic shipments?
Comments should be directed to the docket for the lithium battery
rulemaking, which can be found at http://www.regulations.gov under
docket number PHMSA-2009-0095.
Issued in Washington, DC, on December 21, 2012 under authority
delegated in 49 CFR part 106.
R. Ryan Posten,
Deputy Associate Administrator, Office of Hazardous Materials Safety,
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
[FR Doc. 2012-31244 Filed 12-31-12; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 4910-60-P