New ADR 2019-2021
ADR Agreement 2019-2021 - Amendments to the legislation
The European Agreement on the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR) 2019-2021 has been in effect since 1 January 2019.
In Poland, the agreement came into force after its publication in the Journal of Laws, i.e. on 26 April.
The following is a list of basic amendments to the ADR Agreement 2019-2021
General provisions
In the currently applicable full exemption resulting from the nature of transport operations, the subsection relating to the carriage of machinery or equipment containing dangerous goods in subassemblies or equipment has been deleted. They should now be classified under UN 3363 Dangerous goods in machinery or Dangerous goods in apparatus. Their carriage shall be organised in accordance with the conditions laid down in Special Provisions 301 and 672. It is also possible to classify them to UN numbers from UN 3537 to UN 3548. A transitional period has been agreed for the introduction of this provision until 31.12.2022.
In case of exemptions related to transport units (1.1.3.6), several UN numbers have been added to the table of transport categories for category 4 and it has been specified that the sum of individual goods should not exceed the calculation value of "1000". Beneficiaries of this exemption shall indicate in the transport document the total quantity and the calculated value of the goods for each transport category. In the clarification of the concept of 'maximum total quantity per transport unit' for goods, the wording has been changed from 'gross mass in kilograms' to 'total mass in kilograms of the articles without their packagings'.
The carrier's obligations have been clarified meaning that in the case of loading a container onto a vehicle, when it comes to the checking the condition of the cargo, the carrier may rely on the information contained in the container packing certificate.
It has been added that an undertaking participating in the carriage whose activity involves consignment (A CONSIGNOR) of dangerous goods should appoint a Dangerous Goods Safety Adviser - DGSA, however, according to the deadline of the transition period introduced, this obligation may be postponed until 31.12.2022.
Classification
In Section 2.1, a new classification has been introduced for articles containing dangerous goods, i.e. machinery, apparatus or other equipment fitted with integral parts containing one or more dangerous goods necessary for the functioning of the article and which cannot be removed during carriage.
The chapter on Class 8 - Corrosive substances - has been restructured quite substantially. According to the new definition, corrosive substances are substances which, by chemical action, will cause irreversible damage to the skin, or, in the case of leakage, will materially damage, or even destroy, other goods or the means of transport.
The criteria for assignment to the appropriate packaging group, based on the observation of undamaged skin necrosis, remain unchanged. However, alternative methods of classification have been introduced: bridging principle and calculation method.
Where a mixture has not been tested to determine its skin corrosion potential, but there are sufficient data on both the individual ingredients and similar tested mixtures to adequately classify and assign a packing group for the mixture, this will be sufficient for the bridging classification process.
The calculation method is based primarily on the percentage of individual components in the mixture and their concentration limit values.
The new method of classifying corrosive materials may give rise to differences, in particular in terms of packing groups, in relation to the previous provisions.
For lithium batteries that cannot be recharged externally, new requirements have been added to the general requirements and it has been stipulated that producers and distributors of batteries should make available the results of the tests carried out in accordance with the 'Manual of Tests and Criteria'. A provision has also been added on the need to label packaging containing lithium batteries transported under the conditions of Special Provision 188.
List of dangerous goods
For goods which have two or more transport names on the list (Table A) to choose from (about 200 UN positions), only one, most appropriate name shall be chosen and included in the transport document and on the label.
If dangerous goods are transported under controlled temperature conditions, the term "TEMPERATURE CONTROLLED" should be included in the transport name entered in the transport document, unless it is already included in the list (Table A)
In Table A, 15 new entries numbered UN 3535 to UN 3548 have been added to the Dangerous Goods List. Most of the new items include items containing dangerous goods.
Provisions on the use of packaging and tanks
Cosmetic changes were introduced in several Packing Instructions and 6 new instructions were added, describing, among others, the way of packing items containing dangerous goods and damaged batteries.
Two new provisions have been added to the special provisions on the use of tanks: TU42 and TU43.
Consignment procedures
The requirements for unit labelling and warning stickers state that GHS pictograms not required by ADR should only appear in carriage as part of a complete GHS label and not independently
If items containing liquid hazardous materials are to be included in the newly added UN entries and are to remain in the intended orientation, they shall be marked with visible orientation arrows displayed on at least two sides of the package or directly on the unpacked article.
In the description of the appearance of warning stickers with class numbers, the provision concerning the minimum 2mm width of the line inside the edge inside the sticker forming the diamond has been removed, and the inner line parallel to the edge of the sticker can run at a distance of about 5mm (previously: equal to 5mm). The size of the stickers can be reduced proportionally.
Patterns and descriptions of stickers are presented in the form of a clear table.
Warning stickers on containers, MEGCs, MEMUs, tank containers and vehicles should be weatherproof and maintain permanent marking throughout the journey.
The provisions concerning the transport document shall remain unchanged except in the case of exemption related to transport units, where the value of the calculated goods shall be provided for each transport category.
The previous model of ADR-compliant written instructions for drivers has not been changed.
Tank construction requirements
Several changes have been made in Section 6.8 relating to, among others, weld joints, flame arresters and safety valves.
Provisions concerning carriage conditions
The new Chapter 7.1.7 sets out the conditions for the organisation of carriage for substances requiring controlled temperature which are now a combination of the special provisions V8(1) and S4 deleted from the new edition of the ADR. These rules apply to Class 4.1 self-reactive substances, Class 5.2 organic peroxides and substances stabilised by temperature control.
Additional requirements concerning fixed tanks
The fastening provision of Chapter 9.7.3 is also extended to all supporting frames used for the attachment of the structural equipment. It also describes what static forces applied under the maximum permissible load such a fastening should be able to absorb.