Proposed Changes to TDG Part 6 - Training Requirements

Proposed Changes to TDG Part 6 - Training Requirements

Amending the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations (Part 6 — Training)

The objectives of the proposed amendments are to

  • (i) ensure greater clarity and certainty about training requirements for persons involved in the transportation of dangerous goods; and
  • (ii) align training requirements, to the extent possible, with international standards.

A focus on competency would address existing ambiguity and confusion among employers; improve overall safety in the transportation of dangerous goods by reducing the number of incidents caused by inadequate or inconsistent training; and with the establishment of objectively verifiable criteria, ensure more transparent enforcement.

The proposed amendments removes the term “adequately trained” and instead specify that to be competent for TDG tasks, a person must receive both general awareness and function-specific training and assessment. The assessment would provide a “certificate of competency,” which replaces the current “certificate of training.”

General awareness training and assessment

The proposed amendments and the training standard would require that employers ensure that all employees who handle, offer for transport, or transport dangerous goods are provided with general awareness training and assessed according to the topics outlined in the standard.

Function-specific training and assessment

The proposed amendments and the training standard would require that employers ensure that all employees who handle, offer for transport or transport dangerous goods are provided with function-specific training and assessed according to the competencies outlined in the standard.

Supplementary training and assessment requirements

The proposed amendments and the training standard would require that employers provide supplementary training to employees when there are applicable regulatory changes or changes in the employee’s tasks.

Recurrent training and assessment

The validity period of certificates of competency would remain the same as that of the certificates of training under the current TDGR (i.e., 3 years for employees in the road, rail, and marine and 2 years for employees in the air mode). Employers would be required to reassess employees upon the expiration of their certificate.

In summary the TDGR training changes will require employers to conduct the following;

  • Determine and document the TDG tasks an employee is required to performed
  • Provide training to an employee, both basic TDG regulation awareness and a function specific related to the tasks identified
  • Assess the competency of the employee
  • Provide a certification of competency to the employee
  • Keep and make available to an inspector all training records (i.e., employees tasks description, training material, assessment document)