CHAPTER 7

REGULATIONS FOR TRANSPORTING HAZARDOUS MATERIALS IN FRANCE Michel Marchand Rue Alain Colas, BP 20 413, 29604 BREST (France)

7.1

INTRODUCTION Each year about 115 million tons of hazardous materials are transported in France, 78 million tons of gasoline and 37 million tons of chemical products (Sari, 1990). In 1997, the total port traffic in most metropolitan ports amounted to an annual sum of 324 million tons, with 150 million tons of petroleum products and 12 million tons of chemical products (Babillot and Marchand, 1999). When the industrial age began in the second half of the 19th century, public authorities began to control the transport of hazardous materials by water and road (Law of June 18, 1870) and by rail (Regulation of November 12, 1897). French legislation has changed since then. These regulations were abolished on April 15, 1945, when a Regulation for the Transport of Hazardous Materials came into force, still called the TMD or RTMD Regulation. The common regulations for ground transport come from the Law of February 5, 1942, which regulates loading, unloading, packing, storing, and handling conditions. The regulations and ensuing changes have been developed by the Interministerial Commission for the Transport of Hazardous Materials (CIMITD), whose mission is to adapt regulations to technical changes in the context of international regulations. The Commission is based on work done by the Mission of Transport of Hazardous Materials, which depends directly on the TABLE 7.1 Annual Transport of Hazardous Materials in

France (million tons / year)

䡲 䡲 䡲 䡲

Ports Road Rail Waterways

Petroleum products

Chemical products

150 62 12 4

12 24 11 2

Source: Sari, 1990 and Babillot and Marchand, 1999.

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Ministry of Equipment and Transport. French regulations concerning the transport of hazardous materials are RTMDR for road transport and RTMDF for rail transport. Regulations for the transport of hazardous materials (RTMD) do not apply to rigid transport (gas pipelines, oil pipelines), which are treated according to specific laws concerning the type of materials (petroleum products, gas, or chemical products). Nuclear material falls under a special category with special measures; all major transport of radioactive materials is directed by the Ministry of the Interior’s Direction of Defence and Civil Safety. French regulations on transporting hazardous materials are classified into two large groups, depending on whether transport is domestic or international.

7.2

DOMESTIC TRANSPORT When the view of the interministerial commission for transporting hazardous materials (CITMD) was adopted in December 1998, it was decided to adopt the same rules for transporting hazardous materials in France, whether national or international (J.O., 1999). These new conditions apply to road, rail, and domestic transport. French regulations, therefore, comply with international road (ADR), rail (RID), and waterway (ADNR) regulations.

7.2.1

International Road Transport

This is subject to an international Convention, the European Agreement concerning International Road Transport of Hazardous Materials (ADR), developed under the auspices of the United Nations’ European Economic Commission (EEC / UNO) and signed in Geneva in 1957. The ADR, which came into force in France on January 29, 1968, contains the text of the agreement and two annexes. The text of the agreement outlines the measures that apply to the transport of hazardous goods: materials and packing, transport materials, loading and unloading, information concerning transport, and transport and parking. Annex A, concerning hazardous materials and objects, gives the categories and particular instructions according to the nine transport classifications: packing conditions, registration and hazard labeling, notification in the transport documents, and instructions for empty packaging. Annex B concerns the material transported and the transport itself, including general and particular conditions according to transport classification, as well as a number of technical appendices concerning transport (tanks, tank containers, electric equipment, approved vehicle certificate, and driver training).

7.2.2

Rail Transport

This is subject to the Regulation concerning International Rail Transport (RID), dating from 1883. Thirty-six countries have joined the RID (UIC, 1995). The RID is made up of three distinct sections relating to both general and particular conditions according to transport classifications and the technical appendix. General instructions of the RID provide a certain number of essential guidelines concerning various operators and carriers, materials and packing, loading and unloading, and information about transport and parking. The second part of the RID is devoted to the study of various hazard classifications, according to the same classification of materials and transport conditions applicable to packs, inscriptions and labeling, material and means of transport, and the illegality of collective loading and empty packages. Finally, the RID contains 11 technical appendices covering a variety of aspects. The RID edition, published by the French Rail Company (SNCF), contains an alphabetical list of the materials, giving the hazard identification number for each product, its material identification

REGULATIONS FOR TRANSPORTING HAZARDOUS MATERIALS IN FRANCE

7.3

number (UN number), its classification, hazard label, and the NHM code (Nomenclature Harmonise´e Marchandises). 7.2.3

Waterway Transport

Rules for domestic transport are subject to regulations concerning the transport of hazardous materials on the Rhine, the ADNR Law, which was adopted by the Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine (CNNR) on December 1, 1993.

7.3 7.3.1

INTERNATIONAL TRANSPORT Port Transit

Port installations must conform to a certain number of instructions and safety measures during entrance and exit of goods in and out of ports, loading and unloading of ships and traffic circulation, and handling and storing of goods in port zones. These instructions are in the Regulation for the Transport and Handling of Hazardous Materials in Sea Ports, still called the RPM regulation. The RPM is completed by local regulations in the form of bylaws so as to respect the differences of each port. The RPM includes general instructions applicable to all hazardous goods and specific instructions applicable to groups of materials for which similar or identical safety measures are to be taken. The regulation is generally applied to operations carried out off the ships, meaning that it concerns measures to be taken on land or in the port itself. The Port Authority is responsible for controlling the application of port regulation. Safety measures to be taken on board ship must comply with international conventions adopted and put into force in the French merchant navy. They concern the 1974 SOLAS Convention for the Safety of Human Life at Sea (the establishment of an acceptable level of safety onboard ship), the MARPOL 73 / 78 Convention for the Prevention of Sea Pollution by Ships, and the 1972 Container Safety Convention (CSC). The IMDG Code (International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code) establishes international rules for maritime transport of dangerous goods. It is aimed at facilitating the application of the SOLAS Convention for the safety of human life at sea concerning the maritime transport of dangerous goods in packs or in solid form in bulk. It is also designed to provide a basis for national regulations for countries that practice such transport. Annex III of the MARPOL 73 / 78 Convention addresses the prevention of pollution by hazardous substances carried at sea in packages and draws on the recommendations of the IMDG Code. In the framework of the CSC Convention, a certain number of organizations are authorized to carry out controls and to issue CSC approval of international containers transported by sea and land. To avoid discrepancies between national regulations and international measures for maritime transport of dangerous goods, French shipping regulations (RMF) have adopted measures of the IMDG Code, certain points being completed by instructions specific to France. This is the Bureau des Affaires Maritimes (Centre de Se´curite´ des Navires), responsible for verifying that the shipping of dangerous goods conforms to the instructions of the IMDG Code. 7.3.2

Air Traffic

Until 1983, air transport of hazardous materials was controlled by a law dating from August 22, 1957, stating that air companies could not transport hazardous materials without special authorization from the Director General of Civil Aviation. Authorized permission was given

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when companies transported the materials in accordance with the International Air Transport Association (IATA), applicable to almost all air companies. In accordance with work carried out by the IATA in 1981, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), an institution linked to the United Nations, adopted a document entitled Technical Instructions for Safe Air Transport of Hazardous Materials. These technical instructions, which must be respected by professional personnel involved in the air transport of hazardous materials, are applicable in France according to the law of January 14, 1983. The ICAO regulations include nine sections particularly concerned with the classification of dangerous goods, packing instructions, the responsibility of the sender and the user, and required training. The 34th edition of the IATA regulations of 1993, concerning the transport of dangerous goods, covers all the ICAO instructions. Operators are advised to use the IATA text, which is easier to handle.

7.4

REFERENCES Babillot, P., and M. Marchand, Institut Franc¸ais de l’Environnement (IFEN). 1999. ‘‘Traffic maritime et pollution du milieu marin,’’ Les Donne´es de l’Environnement, no. 44, 4 pp, 1999. Journal Officiel (J.O.). 1999. ‘‘Arreˆte´ du 17 de´cembre 1998.’’ no. 1, January 1, pp. 53–75 (road), 75-82 (rail), 82–85 (waterway). Sari, J. C. 1990. ‘‘Risques technologiques majeurs. Sce´narios d’accidents de transport de matie`res dangereuses,’’ in Le Transport des Matie`res Dangereuses,’’ Journe´e d’Etude et de Perfectionnement, CIC Marseille, pp. 49–54, June 6. Union Internationale des chemins de fer (UIC). 1995. ‘‘Le transport ferroviaire des marchandises dangereuses en Europe,’’ UIC, Paris.