An evaluation of current hazardous material management procedures for the Texas Department of Transportation

Abstract

Dealing with hazardous materials on a day-to-day basis requires a fine--tuned material management system to minimize risk of exposure or injury to workers or to the public. An effective hazardous material management system should also keep up with all current regulatory requirements. This study evaluates the current hazardous material management procedures that the Texas Department of Transportation (TXDOT) is utilizing to ensure that if falls within the legal scope of the law and to provide recommendations for any areas of concern that may need to be improved. To satisfy this objective, a review of all the current and applicable federal regulations is conducted to determine the correct procedures for handling the hazardous materials that TXDOT uses daily. A discussion of the various state regulatory agencies is also included, as well as, a copy of all the applicable forms and documents that TXDOT must complete for these agencies. Since federal compliance is required of all the state transportation agencies, a brief review of several state DOT hazardous material management plans is covered to determine-nine how other agencies are handling their hazardous materials. And finally, TxDOT's current hazardous material handling procedures are discussed, including identification of several problem areas of concern, along with a series of recommendations to help improve TxDOT's current hazardous material management system.