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Documentary Aspects of the International Transport of Dangerous Goods

1Recommendation 11

DOCUMENTARY ASPECTS OF THEINTERNATIONAL TRANSPORT OF DANGEROUS GOODS

Recommendation 11

At its fourth session in September 1975 the UN/ECEWorking Party on Facilitation of International TradeProcedures included in its list of priorities project 057from its programme of work: “ study of the possibility ofestablishing an ECE-aligned document for transport ofdangerous goods and suitable for multimodal application”.An informal team convened by the United Kingdom wasset up in 1976 and submitted its Report and the draftRecommendation on documentary aspects of theinternational transport of dangerous goods at the end of1977. The matter was considered by the Group of Expertson Data Requirements and Documentation at its seven-teenth session in February 1978 when it was agreed tosubmit the Report and the Recommendation for adoptionby the Working Party.

The Working Party, at its seventh session in February1978, agreed to recommend to Governments and tointernational organizations entrusted with the establish-ment and/or administration of conventions and regula-tions affecting the transport of dangerous goods thataction should be taken to harmonize information require-ments and to simplify documentary procedures in accord-ance with the proposed Recommendation.

The Working Party recognized the valuable contributionsmade by many organizations towards safe and efficientconditions for the international transport of dangerousgoods. Safety provisions and cargo-handling techniques,especially, were considered to be well developed whereassome procedural and documentary requirements werefound in some instances to be unnecessarily costly andcomplex.

With a view to the facilitation of international tradeprocedures, the Working Party examined the documen-tary and procedural requirements for the transport ofdangerous goods laid down in various national andinternational regulations. Bearing in mind the require-ments of different modes of transport, of combined andmultimodal transport, the Working Party concluded thataction could be taken to simplify such documents andprocedures and that all parties would benefit from theconsequent decrease in complexity and increase in accu-racy and efficiency. The following advantages could thusbe achieved:

– increased safety for those handling the goods;– less risk of damage to goods and equipment;– fewer delays in the movement of goods and in the

preparation and receipt of documents– reduced costs for paperwork and administration.

The Working Party agreed to review, at regular intervals,national and international measures for the implementa-tion of the approved Recommendation No. 11 “Documen-tary Aspects of the International Transport of DangerousGoods”.

At its forty-sixth session in September 1992, the Meetingof Experts on Procedures and Documentation, a subsidi-ary body to the Working Party, agreed to set up an ad hocgroup on the trade facilitation aspects of the transport ofdangerous goods with a task for the future update ofRecommendation No.11 as most of the instruments appli-cable to the sea, air, road or rail transport of dangerousgoods have been widely amended since the publication ofthis Recommendation. A member of the United Kingdomdelegation was nominated as Convenor of the ad hocgroup.

The Working Party, at its forty-second session in Septem-ber 1995, agreed to approve the final draft revision ofRecommendation No.11, submitted by the ad hoc groupon the subject, for publication.

At the forty-second session of the Working Party repre-sentatives attended from:

Austria; Belgium; Bulgaria; Canada; Czech Republic;Denmark; Estonia; Finland; France; Germany; Hungary;Iceland; Ireland; Italy; Luxemburg; Malta; the Nether-lands; Norway; Romania; Russian Federation; SlovakRepublic; Spain; Sweden; Switzerland; United Kingdomof Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the UnitedStates of America. Representatives from Australia, Bra-zil, Gabon, Japan, Korea, Nigeria and Senegal partici-pated under Article 11 of the Commission' s terms ofreference.

The session was attended by representatives of the secre-tariats of the United Nations Conference on Trade andDevelopment (UNCTAD), the United Nations Commis-sion on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), as well asby representatives of the following intergovernmentaland non-governmental organizations: Central Office forInternational Railway Transport (OCTI), the World Cus-

Recommendation No.11, adopted by the Working Party on Facilitationof International Trade Procedures, Geneva, January 1996 ECE/TRADE/204 [Edition 96.1].


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toms Organization (WCO), International Air TransportAssociation (IATA), International Article NumberingAssociation (EAN), European Electronic Messaging As-sociation (EEMA), International Federation of FreightForwarders Associations (FIATA), International Chamberof Commerce (ICC), International Express Carrier's Confer-ence (IECC), International Organization for Standardiza-tion (ISO), Society for World Wide Interbank FinancialTransfers (S.W.I.F.T), International Union of Railways(UIC), International Federation of Inspection Agencies(IFIA).

RECOMMENDATIONThe Working Party on Facilitation of International TradeProcedures, at its forty-ninth session in September 1995,agreed to recommend to Governments and internationalorganizations involved in the transport of dangerous goodsthat action should be taken to harmonize informationrequirements in accordance with the recommendations asset out below.

The Working Party requested the Executive Secretary ofthe Economic Commission for Europe to transmit thisRecommendation to ECE Governments and other inter-ested Governments through the Executive Secretaries ofthe other United Nations regional economic commissions.He was also requested to transmit the text to relevantinternational organizations.

In doing so, the Executive Secretary of the EconomicCommission for Europe draws attention to the 9th revisededtion of the United Nations Recommendations on theTransport of Dangerous Goods, prepared by the Commit-tee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods of theEconomic and Social Council, Chapter 13 of which containsdetailed recommendations on consignment procedures forthe transport of dangerous goods.

The following recommendations for action, as set outbelow, are divided into two parts : those concerning theinformation requirements (the actual data shown on theDangerous Goods Form) and the actual means of transfer-ring the data, either by paper document or Electronic DataInterchange (EDI).

Information RequirementsI. The harmonisation of the overall information require-ments of dangerous goods documents between the differ-ent modes of transport should be pursued as a matter ofpriority. This should be carried out according to Chapter13 of the United Nations Recommendations on the Trans-port of Dangerous Goods (“Orange Book”) in its latestamended version.

II. The actual data elements required to identify the goodsshould be standardised throughout the different modes oftransport. It is recommended that these should be: ProperShipping Name, Class Division, UN Number and PackingGroup, as recommended in the “Orange Book”.

III. The single form of words held in the “Orange Book”should be adopted as the text for the legal declaration byall regulations and conventions governing different modesof transport: “I hereby declare that the contents of this consignmentare fully and accurately described above by the propershipping name, and are classified, packaged, marked andlabelled/placarded, and are in all respects in proper condi-tion for transport according to applicable international andnational governmental regulations.”

IV. It should be possible to derive the emergency informa-tion from the UN Number to ensure that no additionalinformation is required. (Where there is no UN Numberavailable this information can be derived from the propershipping name). The manual entry of additional relatedinformation or codes on documents should not be required.As an example transport emergency information can beprovided in the form of standard, pre-printed tables for eachsubstance or group of substances, each table bearing as akey reference the United Nations number for thatsubstance(s). (It should be noted however, that thisinformation is not required for the rail mode).

Data Transfer by paper document or EDIV. A dangerous goods form supplied for one mode oftransport, irrespective of whether it is an EDI message ora paper document, should be valid for subsequent modesof transport in multimodal movement;

VI. Whenever possible, the dangerous goods declara-tion should be incorporated in, or combined with, anexisting transport or cargo handling document;

VII. Where special separate forms are used for dangerousgoods forms (including standard forms contained in Rec-ommendations, regulations, international Conventions andannexes thereto), they should be designed in accordancewith the aligned recommended layout contained in thisRecommendation;

VIII. Regulations and Conventions should not precludethe transmission of dangerous goods information by elec-tronic data interchange (EDI) and any legal barriers whichexist, whether they be national or international, should beremoved. Where possible this method of transfer ofinformation should be actively encouraged;

IX. Where special additional documentary requirementsexist, such as for radioactive substances or governmentexemption, regulations and conventions should permitincorporation of the necessary data in the dangerousgoods declaration itself, as an optional alternative to aseparate document.

I. BACKGROUND

1. In international trade, documents and electronic mes-sages are used as a means of transferring information


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relevant to the trade transaction. Unfortunately, the qual-ity of data and information flows are often unsatisfactory.The objective should be to ensure that whatever is trans-mitted is accurate, reliable and where applicable, conformsto statute. For consignments which involve the movementof dangerous goods, and in fact, with the added safety andenvironmental issues, it is doubly important that accurateinformation is available.

2. This Recommendation is designed to rationalise thedocumentation for dangerous goods generally and thedangerous goods form in particular. The necessity forreliability and precision of data passing between partiesresponsible for documenting, packing and handling suchgoods ensures the safe and efficient movement of thegoods. The documents therefore should be prepared sothey comply with legislation, facilitate the movement, andabove all provide information which enables the goods tobe handled safely.

3. The initial aim of this part of the Recommendation isthat the design and information content of dangerousgoods forms should be standardised and harmonised onthe aligned recommended layout shown in Annex II.

4. However, the subsequent and more important aim isthat a single form could be used for any mode of transport,and also between any of the parties engaged in the move-ment of the goods. It should be possible for the shipper, forexample, to supply a dangerous goods declaration in theapproved form to the freight forwarder, who could pass iton to the carrier, be it an airline, sea carrier, road haulagecompany or railway, without documentary transcription.The document should also be acceptable for any cargohandling authority in the countries of export, transit andimport.

5. Practical difficulties are acute in the field of multimodaltransport when separate documentation has to be used foreach leg of the journey, bringing duplication, complica-tions, extra cost and risk of accident through clerical errorto what is otherwise a highly advanced transportationprocedure.

6. Recommended and mandatory documentary practiceshave been developed as part of the Conventions dealingwith the international movement of dangerous goods. Theprimary documentary requirement in such Conventions isthat the goods should be properly described and classified,and a declaration made as to their nature, marking, labellingand packing. This is either done by means of an annotationto an existing transport or cargo handling document orthrough the use of a separate document. The internationalcarriage of dangerous goods is subject to Conventionsapplicable to international transport in general, such as theConvention on the Conctract for the International Carriageof Goods by Road (CMR) for international road transportwhich may contain specific documentary regulations. Thiscan result in the need for different documents to cover eachstage of the journey. Although in recent years a great deal

of work has been carried out in aligning the requirementsfor the different modes of transport, the transport Conven-tions covering road, rail, sea and air still have variations intheir requirements for data content, order of presentationand the format of the declaration document for dangerousgoods. It must however be noted that these recommendedformats are not always produced by the Conventionsthemselves and the design may be left to other organisa-tions, for example in the rail mode, the format is producedby the International Rail Transport Committee (CIT).

7. Safety of life and health and protection of equipmentagainst damage must be paramount in the transport ofdangerous goods and demand meticulous attention todetail in the documentation. The more complicated andnumerous the documents, the more likely the possibilityexists for errors or omissions. It is therefore essential thatproliferation of documents and differences in informationrequirements should be avoided. Documentary require-ments should be as simple as possible, containing a mini-mum of essential information from which other informationcan be derived quickly, by reference, if necessary.

8. Information on dangerous goods is transmitted byvarious means, of which some (for instance telephonecalls) do not constitute legal effect, and need to be con-firmed by other means. Recommended means of confirma-tion are:

(a) a suitable annotation on a transport or cargo handlingdocument;

(b) a dangerous goods declaration form;

(c) electronic means – telex, facsimile transmitter orcomputer readable media, i.e. EDI.

9. Transmission of information should not be limitednecessarily to a paper document. Electronic and otheradvanced means of communication between shipper, freightforwarder, carrier and other parties are being used morefrequently as technology progresses. When dangerousgoods are being declared for shipment, legal and practicalproblems may be of particular importance and the resolu-tion of these (for example, the need for an original signature)should be a matter of priority for the Working party. Earlyaction should be taken internationally to improve theacceptance of EDI regarding the transport of dangerousgoods, through amendment where necessary of interna-tional Conventions and national regulations. A separateWorking Party No.4 document TRADE/WP.4/R.998/Rev.1gives a description of the situation with regard to the legalbarriers to the use of EDI for dangerous goods movements.However, it must also be recognised that there will be a needfor a paper document to provide information on actionrequired in an emergency and for controls en route.


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II. THE CURRENT SITUATION

10. The United Nations Economic and Social Council’sCommittee of Experts on the Transport of DangerousGoods is the central point of reference for bringing aboutuniformity in the overall requirements for all the modes oftransport.

11. The Committee is responsible for the United NationsRecommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods– the Orange Book. This is the foundation upon which allthe modes should base their legislation and is the primaryforce by which the alignment of the regulations can and isto be achieved.

12. For maritime transport the International Maritime Or-ganisation (IMO) has followed the United Nations Recom-mendations in almost every respect and has regularlyadopted the revisions agreed by the United Nations Com-mittee of Experts. For air freight the International CivilAviation Organisation (ICAO) Technical Instructions areequally aligned to the United Nations provisions. TheInternational Air Transport Association (IATA) Danger-ous Goods Regulations (DGR), which are based on theICAO provisions are also aligned to the United NationsRecommendations.

13. Although the agreements for road transport, Euro-pean Agreement Concerning the International Carriage ofDangerous Goods by Road (ADR), and rail transport,Regulations Concerning the International Carriage of Dan-gerous Goods by Rail (RID) are not yet completely in linewith the UN Recommendations on the Transport of Dan-gerous Goods, considerable progress has been achievedover the few past years, especially as regard classification,allocation of proper shipping names and identificationnumbers and labelling. The technical revisions of AORshould also become applicable to domestic trafic in Mem-ber States of the European Union as from 1.1.1997 (Direc-tive 94/55/EC).

14. The fact remains, however, that the measures set outin this Recommendation to simplify documentary proce-dures and to provide a model for multimodal dangerousgoods declaration can only be accomplished once theharmonisation of the modal regulations has been achieved.

15. It should be noted that the Committee of Experts on theTransport of Dangerous Goods is in the process ofreformatting the UN Recommendations on the Transport ofDangerous Goods into a Model Regulation that could bedirectly integrated into national or international instru-ments. At the same time, and in cooperation with theCommittee, the Joint Meeting of the RID Safety Committeeand the UN/ECE Working Party on the Transport of Dan-gerous Goods ar in the process of restructering RID andADR with a view of making ADR and RID more “user -friendly” and to facilitate their implementation in domestictrafic

III. THE MULTIMODAL DANGEROUSGOODS FORM

16. The primary aim of the Recommendation in simplifyingdangerous goods documentation is to reduce the numberof documents required and the duplication of information,with the understanding that the Dangerous Goods Decla-ration might be included (when it is required) in existingtransport documents, where possible. However, when,because of modal requirements this is not possible or formultimodal movements, the use of a document of the formshown in Annex II to this Recommendation is highlyrecommended. However, the Dangerous Goods Form canalso be used in a single modal movement.

17. It is recognised, by both the regulator bodies andusers, that it would be beneficial to use a standard interna-tionally agreed multimodal document aligned to the UnitedNations Layout Key or, where possible, the equivalent EDImessage. The two internationally accepted regulationswhich give examples of a format for a document (the IMDGcode for maritime transport and the IATA regulations forair transport) do not agree on the layout and only the IATAversion complies with the United Nation Layout Key. Withregard to the order of the data required, while the IATA andIMDG requirements are aligned to the United NationsRecommendations - the Orange Book, the regulationsconcerning the movement of goods by road and rail - ADRand RID, require different data and in a different order ofpresentation, although there are aligned formats available,for example the CIM Consignment Note.

18. The proposed layout is fully aligned with the UnitedNations Layout Key for Trade Documents and meet thedata requirements in the individual modal regulations asshown in Annex II.

19. The recommended layout for a multimodal dangerousgoods form leaves the central body of the document as a“free area” allow the layout of the hazardous informationto be as flexible as possible.

20. A short notation is shown in the left hand margin of thedraft (front sheet) which draws attention to the additionalinformation and the need to comply with the applicablemodal regulations. As well as the information shown,further advice on completion of the form could also beincluded.

IV. MULTIMODAL DANGEROUS GOODSDECLARATION (DGD) – PROCEDURES

21. The basic procedure under which the document mightbe used is considered with three parameters in mind:


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(a) the current requirements for “original signatures”in the individual modal regulations should be ful-filled;

(b) as many scenarios as possible should be cateredfor;

(c) the number of original copies produced/requiredshould be kept to a minimum and must allow forcompletion of the document from systems.

22. It is recommended that no more than six original copiesof the DGD should be required. This decision was basedon the assumption that no more than four modes of trans-port were likely to be used for a single shipment and, whilsta mode could be reused at a later stage in the transportchain, it would not be feasible or realistic to recommendmore copies. If further copies of the document wererequired to be retained by the consignee or any other partyother than the authority, then photocopies should bemade. This should also be the case where the authoritydoes not require an original signature.

23. Also linked to the use and destination of the individualcopies of the DGD is the question of the data that willchange with the mode of transport. This includes informa-tion in the “carrier” box, “Vessel/flight no. and date”, “Port/airport of loading” and “Port/airport of discharge” boxes.With subsequent changes in the mode of transport thereis likely to be a change of carrier etc. and therefore theseboxes may have to cope with a different name and addresson each copy of the form. To cater for this possibility it isnecessary that this box, when the document is used in acarbonized set, is desensitised so that the information onlyappears on the top sheet.

24. The recommended layout fulfils not only the functionas a dangerous goods form, but also a packing certificateand receiving organisation receipt. The requirements forother documents, where no separate form is needed, suchas the CMR- and the CIM-Consignment Notes are fullyintegrated in the Consignment Notes themselves, whichare for the purposes of ensuring carriage under the termsof the respective Conventions as well as for dangerousgoods purposes.

25. Once the consignor has completed the DGD and otherappropriate documentation it should not be necessary forthe technical data to be re-written, amended or transferredon to another document by any party. Where there is achange of carrier or mode of transport during the movementof a consignment it will be the responsibility of the carrierundertaking the onward movement of the goods to com-plete the “Carrier” box giving his name and address details.

26. Study of the information requirements of dangerousgoods declarations reveals that, where a separate form isnecessary, a recommended layout can be put forward as adetailed design guide for organisations drawing up

declarations for different modes of transport, or formultimodal and combined transport. A recommended lay-out is set out in Annex II. The information requirements ofthe various international instruments applicable to thetransport of dangerous goods by various modes in Europeare listed in Annex I. The distinctive marking shown in theleft and right margins of the format in Annex can besimulated on documents prepared by Electronic DataProcessing (EDP) or telex methods by entering a series ofoblique strokes (/) down both margins. It is clear that all theinformation is not always needed for all modes of transport.Unnecessary data can be omitted from individual forms,which should otherwise be designed according to therecommended layout, taking into consideration the provi-sions of the Working Party’s recommendation of June1973, “United Nations Layout Key for International TradeDocuments”.

27. It will be seen that the hazard classifications are laid outin the central “Goods Description” area without any at-tempt at sub-division into separate boxes. This allowsflexibility to cater for different national aligned series ofdocuments, and also ensures that the vital classificationdetails can be reproduced from a Master Document in aone-run system, not only on the dangerous goods form buton all shipping documents including those required by theimporter and importing authorities.

V. COMBINATION WITH OTHERFORMS

28. In order to reduce the number of documents, andthereby minimise both risk and cost, the dangerous goodsdeclaration could be combined whenever possible with anexisting transport or cargo handling document. Regula-tions almost always permit the dangerous goods declara-tion to be combined with the main transport document. Thepossibility of incorporating a declaration within an existingdocument depends on a combination of official regulationsand commercial practices in a particular country.

29. There follows a list of some documents in which it maybe possible to incorporate a dangerous goods declaration:

(a) Application for forwarding/shipment of cargo;

(b) Export Cargo Shipping Instructions or multimo-dal Transport Cargo Booking Form as used bymany multimodal transport companies;

(c) Cargo handling documents for example, ship-ping notes for cargo reservation, dock delivery,and tallying;

(d) Shipowner’s Stowage Order. This can be an ad-ditional copy of the declaration, which is re-turned to the shipper, annotated by the carrierwith dock delivery authorization and instruc-tions;


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(e) The Main Transport Document, i.e. Road/Rail/Sea/Air Waybill or Consignment Note, orMultimodal Transport Document in accordancewith the UNCTAD/ICC Rules for MultimodalTransport Documents.

VI. THE DATA ELEMENTS30. One of the primary requirements of the transportdocument for dangerous goods is to convey the funda-mental information relative to the hazard of the goods beingoffered for transport. To achieve this end, it is necessaryto include certain basic information in the transport docu-ment for the dangerous goods consignment. According tothe Orange Book, the basic items of information considerednecessary for each dangerous substance, material or articleoffered for transport by any mode are:

(a) the proper shipping name, as determined inaccordance with 13.8 of the “Orange Book”;

(b) the class or, when assigned, the division of thegoods; for substances and articles of Class 1, thedivision should be followed immediately by thecompatibility group letter;

(c) the UN Number preceded by the letters “UN” and,where assigned, the packing group for the sub-stance or article; and

(d) the total quantity of dangerous goods covered bythe description (by volume, mass, or net explosivecontent)

31. If waste dangerous goods (other than radioactivewastes) are being transported for disposal, or for process-ing for disposal, the proper shipping name should bepreceded by the word “WASTE”.

32. For self-reactive substances of Division 4.1 and fororganic peroxides that require temperature control duringtransport, the control and emergency temperatures shouldbe included in the transport document.

33. For certain self-reactive and related substances ofDivision 4.1 and organic peroxides of Division 5.2 for whichthe competent authority has permitted the “EXPLOSIVE”subsidiary risk label (model No.01) to be dispensed with forthe specific package, a statement to this effect should beincluded in the transport document.

34. When organic peroxides and self-reactive substancesare transported under conditions where approval is re-quired, a statement to this effect should be included in thetransport document. A copy of the statement of approvalof the classification and conditions of transport for non-listed organic peroxides and self-reactive substances shouldbe attached to the transport document.

35. When a sample of an organic peroxide or a self-reactivesubstance is transported, a statement to this effect shouldbe included in the transport document.

36. The location and order in which these elements ofinformation appear in the transport document is left op-tional, except that the proper shipping name, class, UNNumber and, where assigned, packing group should ap-pear in that sequence. An example of a dangerous goodsdescription is:

“ALLYL ALCOHOL 6.1 UN 1098 I”

37. The stated sequence of hazard classification shouldbe followed wherever possible to assist proper transcrip-tion and recognition of details. The sequence of informa-tion shown is that used in most modes of transport. Onlyone sequence of hazard classification should be followedfor all modes of transport in multimodal transport.

38. In addition, other elements of information deemednecessary by national authorities or international organisa-tions may also be shown (e.g. flash point or flash pointrange in C c.c.).

VII. CLASSIFICATION OF DANGEROUSGOODS

39. According to the UN Recommendations on the Trans-port of Dangerous Goods, dangerous goods are dividedinto the following classes/divisions:

Class 1 Explosive substances and articles

Class 2 Gases

Class 3 Flammable liquids

Class 4Division 4.1 Flammable solidsDivision 4.2 Susbstances liable to spontaneous

cumbustionDivision 4.3 Substances which, in contact with

water, emit flammable gasesClass 5Division 5.1 Oxidizing substancesDivision 5.2 Organic peroxidesClass 6Division 6.1 Toxic substancesDivision 6.2 Infectious substances

Class 7 Radioactive material

Class 8 Corrosive substances

Class 9 Miscellaneous dangerous sub-stances and articles

40. This classification is implemented world-wide for allmodes of transport, and the lists of substances within eachclassification are globally harmonized for all modes oftransport, with a few exceptions such as the classificationof certain aerosols for maritime transport and in Class 2 inEurope (ADR and RID) which will be aligned as from1.1.1997.


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VIII. PACKING CERTIFICATE41. The UN Orange Book recommends that when danger-ous goods are loaded into a freight container, (for thepurposes of this recommendation the term “freight con-tainer” is limited to transport units meeting the definitionof “container” in the International Conventions for SafeContainers (CSC) signed at Geneva on 2 December 1972)those responsible for supervising this operation shouldprovide a “container packing certificate” identifying theperson signing the certificate and certifying that the opera-tion has been carried out in accordance with the followingconditions:

(a) the container is clean and apparently fit to receivethe goods;

(b) packages which should be segregated, i.e. in differ-ent freight containers, have not been loaded to-gether in the container;

(c) packages have been externally inspected for dam-age, and only sound packages loaded;

(d) all goods have been properly loaded and, wherenecessary, adequately braced with securing mate-rial to suit the mode(s) of transport for the intendedjourney;

(e) goods loaded in bulk have been evenly distributedwithin the container;

(f) for consignments including goods of Class 1 otherthan Division 1.4, the container is structurally serv-iceable in accordance with the “Orange Book”;

(g) the container and packages are properly marked,labelled and placarded in accordance with the “Or-ange Book”;

(h) a certificate or form, as indicated further, in para-graphs 47-49, has been received for each dangerousgoods consignment loaded in the container.

42. Such a certificate may also be required for sea transportof vehicles (including rail wagons, and road vehicles butnot tanks). It is recommended that the functions of thedocument required further in paragraph 50 (the declaration)and of the container packing certificate required in para-graph 41 are incorporated in a single document; if this is notpossible, it may be desirable to attach these documents oneto the other. If these functions are incorporated into a singledocument, the inclusion of a signed declaration that thepacking of the container has been carried out in accordancewith the applicable modal regulations together with theidentification of the person signing the form may suffice.

43. For convenience, this information may also be shownon the back of the multimodal declaration form.

IX. EMERGENCY INFORMATION44. It is necessary to ensure that appropriate informationbe immediately available at all times, for use in emergencyresponse to accidents and incidents involving dangerous

goods in transport. The information should be madeavailable separately from the packages containing thedangerous goods, and immediately accessible in the eventof an accident or incident.

45. The current practice in sea and air transport, and incertain countries for inland transport shows that it is notalways required to specify the emergency information inthe transport document itself, as this information may bederived from the dangerous goods information alreadyincluded (e.g. UN number and proper shipping name) atleast when separate documents cross referencing emergen-cy information to UN numbers and proper shipping namesare available.

46. Such documents have been prepared by ICAO (“Emer-gency Response Guidance for Aircraft Incidents InvolvingDangerous Goods”) and IMO (“Emergency Procedures forShips Carrying Dangerous Goods” and “Medical First AidGuide in Accidents Involving Dangerous Goods”) and bycertain governments for inland transport (e.g. United Statesof America, Canada).

47. In other cases, the provision of that information to thecarrier by the consignor is required. For example, forinternational road transport in Europe (ADR) the instruc-tions corresponding to the dangerous goods carried mustbe supplied in writing, in addition to the transport docu-ment, in all languages of the countries concerned by thevoyage (as from 1.1.1997, only in a language the driver(s)is (are) able to read and undertand). In such a case, it maybe possible to use standard pre-printed cards and safetydata sheets giving transport emergency information for aparticular product or group of products.

48. In some instances it is required that a specific entry isincluded in the transport document (e.g. hazard identifica-tion code for carriage in tank-wagons (RID) and in certainnational regulations, emergency telephone numbers, refer-ence to a safety card number, etc)

49. It is recognised that supplementary data may be re-quired to satisfy certain national or commercial require-ments. However, these reflect practices of limited applica-bility and the above list enumerates generally acceptedrequirements. Any additional data required by nationalorganisations should be kept to an absolute minimum in theinterests of safety.

X. THE FORM50. The wording of the dangerous goods declaration is oflegal and practical importance, whether it appears on aseparate document or is combined with a transport or cargohandling document. In most cases, declarations requiredunder various Conventions and regulations are similar oridentical in meaning but simply use different words. Inorder to overcome the problems of multimodal transport,the wording of the declaration has been standardised inaccordance with the “Orange Book”:


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“I hereby declare that the contents of this consignmentare fully and accurately described above by the propershipping name, and are classified, packaged, marked andlabelled (or placarded), and are in all respects in propercondition for transport according to applicable interna-tional and national governmental regulations.”

51. The text of the above declaration, and the specialinformation relative to the hazards of the goods to betransported (as indicated in paragraph 45) may be incorpo-rated in, or combined with, an existing transport or cargohandling document. The layout of the information in thedocument (or the order of the corresponding data byelectronic data processing (EDP) or electronic data inter-change (EDI) techniques) should be as provided in para-graph 36.

52. The carriage of dangerous goods by rail in Europe orother countries Parties to the COTIF does not require aparticular form because the mandatory details are enteredonto the consignment note by the sender himself. However,if the goods are to be further shipped by air or sea, theparticular declaration could be added to the consignmentnote in the form of an attachment or if the exporter wished

he could use this particular form for rail transport; in thiscase as an additional copy (one copy for each copy of theconsignment note) in the sense of DCU 11 to article 13 ofthe CIM and the consignor could indicate this addition onthe consignment note.

XI. SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS53. In a few cases, special documentary requirements havebeen laid down for certain substances or modes of trans-port. Some of these requirements can be incorporated in thetransport document (e.g. various statements required byRID or ADR). Others have to be provided in addition to thetransport document, such as weathering certificates, state-ments of approved classification by the competent author-ity, approval certificates, exemption certificates.

52. The recommended layout for dangerous goods decla-rations provided in Annex II to this Recommendation drawsthe attention of persons completing the form to the fact thatspecial information is required in the circumstances de-scribed above.


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Annex I

DANGEROUS GOODS INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS ACCORDING TO THEMODAL REGULATIONS APPLICABLE IN EUROPE

– reference information - incorporating commer -cial and official references, i.e. the Air Waybillnumber;

– voyage information - including departure/arrivalpoints, flight numbers, vessel sailings etc;

– consignment information - ranging from marksand numbers and net and gross weights to specificinformation on the nature of the hazard and classi-fication; and,

– declarations and signatory areas - the declarationrequirements have been shown for each mode oftransport as they all differ.

However, for the purposes of the DGD a suggested formof shipper’s declaration and packing certificate is alsogiven.

This Annex contains a list of all the data required in themodal regulations governing the international transportof dangerous goods in Europe. The list has been producedfrom the modal regulations for road, rail, air and sea, thedata being extracted from the ADR, RID, ICAO/IATAand IMDG Code Regulations. The inclusion of furtherdata such as MFAG/EMS numbers and 24 hr telephonenumbers has not been included, because they are notrequired in the UN Orange Book and in the modalregulations although it is recognised that these are reques-ted by some national authorities or shipping companies.

For ease of reference and document design, the list hasbeen divided into five sections, they comprise of thefollowing:

– header information - information such as name andaddress of the consignee/consignor and carrier(where applicable);

Item Box No

Data M/O/C (1)

Mode (2)

Comments

Header Information1 1 Shipper/Consignor/Sender M A,B,C,D2 6 Consignee M A,B,C,D3 7 Carrier C A,C,D

Reference Information4 2 References - i.e. AWB number M A,B Must be declared although not necessarily by shipper

Voyage Information5 10 Vessel/flight number and date O A=ship's

name/voy-age no.

Must be declared although not necessarily by shipper

6 11 Port/place of loading O A Must be declared although not necessarily by shipper7 12 Port/place of discharge O A Must be declared although not necessarily by shipper

Consignment - Hazard Information8 14 Marks and numbers or container numbers O A,B,C,D9 14 Proper Shipping Name M A,B,C,D10 14 Hazard Class/Division M A,B,C,D Class 7: "Radioactive Material" (to be included where

it is not shown in the PSN).11 14 UN Number C A,B,C,D Mandatory when provided12 14 Compatibility Group M A,B,C,D13 14 Packing Group M A,B14 14 Hazard Identification Number M D For tanks and tank containers15 14 Additional information regarding

provisions takenM C,D E.g. for unstable substances

16 14 Item Number together with any letter (equivalent of the packing group for other modes)

M C,D

14 Indication of empty packaging17 a) Air and Sea M "EMPTY UNCLEAN" or "RESIDUE LAST CON-

TAINED" with PSN; very limited usage under ICAO18 b) Road and rail M ADR/RID="EMPTY PACKAGING, LAST LOAD";

specific item in each class for empty packaging

19 14 For waste products show "WASTE" before PSN

M A,B,C,D

20 14 Number and kind of packages (volume and mass of consignment)

M A,B,C,D (Class 1 net explosive) mass of contents

21 14 Minimum flashpoint degree C C A A=61 Deg.C or below22 14 MARINE POLLUTANT C A23 14 The initials "ADR" or "RID" M C,D24 14 Control and Emergency temperatures C A,C Class 4.1 and 5.2 only (self reactive and related

substances)25 8 Aircraft limitations C B Designates "cargo or passenger aircraft" or "cargo

only"

Declarations26 22 Declaration (shipper)

Signatory/name/status,company place,date and signature

M A,B,C,D

27 20 Declaration (packer), name/status, company, place and date, signature

C A Containers and vehicles

(1) = Mandatory/Optional/Conditional(2) A=IMDG B=ICAO C=ADR D=RID

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The signature given overleaf in Box 15 must be that of theperson controlling the container/vehicle operation.

It is certified that:The container/vehicle was clean, dry and apparently fit toreceive the goods.

If the consignments include goods of Class 1, other thandivision 1.4, the container is structurally serviceable inconformity with section 12 of the introduction to Class 1of the IMDG Code.

No incompatible goods have been packed into the con-tainer/vehicle unless specially authorised by the the Com-petent Authority.

All packages have been externally inspected for damageand only sound packages packed.

Drums have been stowed in an upright position, unlessotherwise authorised by the Competent Authority

All packages have been properly packed and secured inthe container/vehicle.

Container/Vehicle Packing Certificate

When materials are transported in bulk packagings thecargo has been evenly distributed in the container/vehi-cle.

The packages and the container/vehicle have been prop-erly marked, labelled and placarded. Any irrevelant marks,labels and placards have been removed.

When solid Carbon Dioxide (CO2 - dry ice) is used forcooling purposes, the vehicle or freight container isexternally marked or labelled in a conspicuous place, e.g.at the door end, with the words: DANGEROUS CO2 -GAS (DRY ICE) INSIDE - VENTILATE THOR-OUGHLY BEFORE ENTERING.

When this Dangerous Goods Form is used as a container/vehicle packing certificate only, not a combined docu-ment, a dangerous goods declaration signed by the ship-per or supplier must have been issued/received to covereach dangerous goods consignment packed in the con-tainer.

Note: The container packing certificate is not requiredfor tanks.

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