COSTHA petitions US DOT for Alignment with Global Regulations
To align the US definition of an aerosol with the global definition in the UN Model Regulations, the European regulations, and other US domestic regulations, the Council on the Safe Transportation of Hazardous Articles (COSTHA), has collaborated with the Consumer Specialty Products Association (CSPA), the American Coatings Association (ACA), and the National Aerosol Association (NAA), to petition the US DOT’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) for harmonization of this critical interpretation.
It is estimated that the lack of alignment leaves the US manufacturers and marketers in a precarious disadvantage concerning the $52 billion dollars of sales in the global marketplace.
While the US definition requires an aerosol to expel a “nonpoisonous liquid, paste, or powder,” the UN defines aerosols “with or without a liquid paste or powder”.
UN Model Regulations
Aerosol or aerosol dispenser means an article consisting of a non-refillable receptacle meeting the requirements of 6.2.4, made of metal, glass or plastics and containing a gas, compressed, liquefied or dissolved under pressure, with or without a liquid, paste or powder, and fitted with a release device allowing the contents to be ejected as solid or liquid particles in suspension in a gas, as a foam, paste or powder or in a liquid state or in a gaseous state;
US DOT 49 CFR
Aerosol means an article consisting of any non-refillable receptacle containing a gas compressed, liquefied or dissolved under pressure, the sole purpose of which is to expel a nonpoisonous (other than a Division 6.1 Packing Group III material) liquid, paste, or powder and fitted with a self-closing release device allowing the contents to be ejected by the gas.
Click here to read the petition
The Council on Safe Transportation of Hazardous Articles (COSTHA), founded in 1972, is a not-for-profit industry association devoted to promoting regulatory compliance and safety in the international and domestic transportation of dangerous goods. COSTHA represents over 160 member companies, including shippers, carriers by highway, air, and sea, container manufacturers, chemical manufacturers, pharmaceutical companies, personal care and other consumer product manufacturers, electronics manufacturers, automobile and automobile component manufacturers, and trainers, as well as other businesses and associations involved in all aspects of transportation of dangerous goods, hazardous substances, and hazardous wastes.
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The Council on Safe Transportation of Hazardous Articles (COSTHA), founded in 1972, is a not-for-profit industry association devoted to promoting regulatory compliance and safety in the international and domestic transportation of dangerous goods. COSTHA represents over 160 member companies, including shippers, carriers by highway, air, and sea, container manufacturers, chemical manufacturers, pharmaceutical companies, personal care and other consumer product manufacturers, electronics manufacturers, automobile and automobile component manufacturers, and trainers, as well as other businesses and associations involved in all aspects of transportation of dangerous goods, hazardous substances, and hazardous wastes.
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