The Hazardous Materials Transportation International Model Regulations Team has received the Vice-President's Hammer Award, which recognizes teams of federal employees and their partners whose efforts result in a government that works better and costs less. The team was honored for its work to develop internationally recognized model regulations that encourage uniformity in the way hazmat transport is regulated worldwide.
This team is led by the Research and Special Programs Administration with team members from the Hazardous Materials Advisory Council, Federal Aviation Administration, and United States Coast Guard.
Noting deficiencies of existing United Nations Recommendations, on which all global regulations are based, the Hazardous Materials Transportation International Model Regulations team proposed to the UN Committee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods that the UN Recommendations be reformatted into model regulations. It proposed that these regulations be made sufficiently comprehensive to deal with all methods of transportation worldwide.
The UN Model Regulations are becoming a de facto international convention. Beginning July 1, 2001, they will be used worldwide. Many developing nations intend to adopt the regulations, and in North America, the NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) countries are developing a common set of requirements based on these regulations.