Regulations Amending the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations

Part 8 – Reporting Requirements

Transport Canada is proposing amendments to the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations that would include new security provisions, modify existing reporting requirements, and specify the data to be made available to the department following incidents involving dangerous goods.

New security provisions

The proposed amendments would include reporting requirements for the loss, theft or unlawful interference of dangerous goods. Those incidents would need to be reported to CANUTEC—Transport Canada’s free 24-hour emergency centre for dangerous goods—and, if applicable, to Natural Resources Canada and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission.

Enhanced reporting requirements

The proposed amendments would adopt International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) reporting requirements and include new criteria for reporting dangerous goods transported by aircraft that are either incorrectly declared or undeclared. Most air operators already report undeclared items voluntarily to Transport Canada. The proposed amendments would make reporting mandatory when dangerous good are discovered on an aircraft, at an aerodrome, or at an air cargo facility.

This information would include situations when dangerous goods are shipped without a shipping document or without a proper dangerous goods safety mark (e.g. electronic equipment with a lithium battery shipped in a box without the proper labels). This would help the department better track compliance issues and target awareness efforts.

The proposed amendments would also put in place a new reporting requirement for any release or anticipated release of dangerous goods from a road vehicle. Presently, road incidents are not reported to Transport Canada. This change would fill an important reporting gap, allowing the department to obtain more comprehensive information for all transportation sectors.

Expanded data collection

The proposed amendments would allow the department to collect additional data following an incident involving dangerous goods. This data would help Transport Canada conduct more comprehensive risk analyses and establish more effective regulations in the future.

June 2015