IATA's Dangerous Goods Regulations
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) establishes and maintains a set of regulations called the Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR). This set of regulations is used as a standard, harmonized approach to manage the transportation of dangerous goods by air.
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History
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According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), founded in Havana, Cuba in 1945, the IATA represented in its inception 57 members from 31 countries, primarily from North America and Europe. Currently, as reported on its website, IATA has 230 members worldwide.
Since its founding, IATA's purpose has been focused on "promoting safe, reliable, secure and economical air services." As a backbone to this service, IATA has stewarded the Dangerous Goods Regulations for more than 50 years. Its provisions cover the classification, marking, packing, labeling and documentation of dangerous goods shipped by air.
"Dangerous Goods" Definition
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According to the 42nd edition of the IATA DGR, as reported by EMO Trans (a company specializing in specializing in international freight forwarding), dangerous goods are "articles or substances which are capable of posing a significant risk to health, safety or to property when transported by air and which are classified according to Section 3." Section 3 of the DGR provides a set of criteria used to determine if the term "Dangerous Goods" applies.
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Application of the DGR
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Shippers sending articles or substances meeting the definition of dangerous must comply with the requirements set out under the DGR in order to ensure the safety of the shipment, provide an adequate level of protection for workers exposed to the shipment, and enable the best practices in preventing events which may harm the environment. These requirements include provisions for classification, identification, marking and packaging of the substances or articles contained in the shipment of dangerous goods, as well as provisions on adequate training for all personnel involved in the shipping process.
The IATA DGR also bans certain substances from shipping by air, including explosives, toxic gases, substances that may spontaneously combust, water-reactive substances, oxidizing substances and organic peroxides, poisonous infectious substances, and radioactive materials.
The DGR further requires that all aspects of compliance be documented, prompting shippers to maintain records on their efforts in training staff, properly identifying and classifying substances and articles, and choosing proper marking, labeling, and packaging for their shipments.
IATA Dangerous Goods Support
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The heavy training requirement under the DGR, for individuals involved in preparing goods for shipment by air, excludes novices from classifying dangerous goods. To assist shippers in classifying their goods, IATA has developed a set of training and consulting services for industry professionals. In addition, IATA makes available for purchase a number of books, CDs and training courses in every major language.
New Provisions in the 2009 IATA DGR
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In fulfilling one of its chief responsibilities, IATA updates the Dangerous Goods Regulations every year based on changes in United Nations recommendations on shipping dangerous goods by air, and on any amendments to regulations developed by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). In the 2009 IATA DGR, 50th edition, IATA reports several significant changes to the DGR, including revisions of the list of dangerous goods in order to harmonize the list with UN transport numbers; new metrics for fuel cell cartridges and lithium ion batteries; substantial amendments to the "special provisions"; new and revised packing instructions; alignment with UN exceptions on limited quantities; and several formatting upgrades including the electronic version, eDGR, with advanced searching capabilities.
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