Shipping Papers: Basic Description, Emergency Response, and Retention
Shipping Papers is the paperwork domain: the exam checks whether you can read, build, and correct the shipping paper that must travel with a hazardous materials load. You are tested on the basic description sequence, emergency response information, the shipper's certification, and where the paper must be kept.
The basic description
The core of the shipping paper is the basic description. It must appear in this order: UN or NA identification number, proper shipping name, hazard class or division, subsidiary hazard in parentheses (if any), and packing group. A correct entry is "UN1203, Gasoline, 3, PG II." The identification number may not be moved after the name. For a material with a subsidiary hazard, the subsidiary class goes in parentheses immediately after the primary hazard class, for example "UN2031, Nitric acid, 8, (5.1), PG II." If the proper shipping name is an n.o.s. entry, the technical name must follow in parentheses. "RQ" goes before the proper shipping name when the package contains a hazardous substance at or above its reportable quantity, and "Waste" goes before the name for waste shipments.
Emergency response and certification
The paper must include an emergency response telephone number that is monitored at all times while the material is in transportation, including the area code. Emergency response information must also accompany the paper; it can be on the paper itself or on a separate sheet. The shipper signs a certification declaring that the shipment is fully and accurately described by the proper shipping name and is classified, packaged, marked, labeled or placarded, and in proper condition for transport. Shippers must retain a copy for two years.
Worked example
A driver receives a paper reading "Gasoline, UN1203, 3, PG II, 200 gal, 4 drums." The order is wrong: the identification number must come first, so it should read "UN1203, Gasoline, 3, PG II." The quantity and package count are present, which is good, but the driver should also confirm that an emergency response number and emergency response information are attached and that the shipper's certification is signed.
Traps
Common errors are putting the packing group before the hazard class, dropping the parentheses around a subsidiary hazard, leaving the technical name off an n.o.s. entry, using a phone number that is not answered during transport, and treating a bill of lading as sufficient without the hazmat description. Keep the paper within reach while driving and in a secure place in the vehicle when you are out.