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Guidelines for the Selection and Use of Plastic Pails:
Hazardous Materials

All transportation requirements for a hazardous material can be found in the Hazardous Materials Table located in Part 172.101 of Title 49 CFR. Before going to hazardous materials table use the guide below to help you understand what the columns are and what they will tell you about the requirements for your product. (Click on the columns in the hazardous materials table example below and the description for that column will be displayed below.) Click here to look up your product in the current hazardous materials table (172.101) available online at the US DOT website.

(f) Column 5: Packing group. Column 5 specifies one or more packing groups assigned to a material corresponding to the proper shipping name and hazard class for that material. Class 2, Class 7, Division 6.2 (other than regulated medical wastes), and ORM-D materials, do not have packing groups. Packing Groups I, II and III indicate the degree of danger presented by the material is either great, medium or minor, respectively. If more than one packing group is indicated for an entry, the packing group for the hazardous material is determined using the criteria for assignment of packing groups specified in subpart D of part 173. When a reevaluation of test data or new data indicates a need to modify the specified packing group(s), the data should be submitted to the Associate Administrator. Each reference in this column to a material which is a hazardous waste or a hazardous substance, and whose proper shipping name is preceded in Column 1 of the Table by the letter ``A'' or ``W'', is modified to read ``III'' on those occasions when the material is offered for transportation or transported by a mode in which its transportation is not otherwise subject to requirements of this subchapter.