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PRIME MOVER REGULATIONS • CANADA IS SET TO BECOME THE FIRST COUNTRY TO APPLY COMPETENCY-BASED TRAINING REQUIREMENTS IN ITS DOMESTIC DANGEROUS GOODS TRANSPORT RULES TRANSPORT CANADA has opened a consultation on its proposals to amend Part 6 of the Transportation of Dangerous Goods (TDG) Regulations, which sets out training requirements. The proposals, published in Canada Gazette Part 1 on 11 December 2021, aim to provide a stronger framework for the oversight of training by removing the phrase “adequately trained” from the TDG Regulations and inserting references to the new standard CAN/CGSB-192.3-2020, ‘Transportation of dangerous goods training, assessment and competency’. The move comes as a result of increasing
awareness that the existing provisions do not provide a robust set of rules and that, while most stakeholders meet or exceed the current training requirements, Transport Canada (TC) inspectors have identified that some employees lack the knowledge and skills required to conduct their dangerous goods tasks despite possessing a valid training certificate. TC’s TDG monitoring programme revealed that, of the 409 dangerous goods incidents resulting in injury or death reported between 2014 and 2019, approximately 55 were attributed to improper or insufficient training. TC has been working for some years on the
issue. It began a targeted consultation in 2016, involving more than 100 representatives from federal, provincial and local authorities, companies, industry associations and training providers, followed by a more tightly targeted consultation with 35 of these stakeholders; this was followed by a public online consultation and then the development of standards and proposals for regulatory amendment. QUESTIONS RAISED In that consultation process, most stakeholders who provided comments agreed that the term “adequately trained” is subjective and should be clarified, by identifying the specific responsibilities regarding the training and the maintenance of knowledge and skills for persons who handle and transport dangerous goods. It was also clear that cost is an issue and that any changes to the current requirements that resulted in added costs would be unwelcome. TC had already raised the idea of moving to a competency-based training and assessment (CBTA) approach, which some stakeholders felt could be costly. The general view was that any new provisions should allow for flexibility, with the option to use costeffective methods such as in-house and online training, where these methods meet TC’s standards, rather than on the sole option of off-site, in-person training. Indeed, if TC were to certify trainers, this could result in a reduction in available training capacity and an increase in costs to employers. Those concerns were carried through into the development of the new standard under the direction of the Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB), with work carried out by industry, training organisations and governmental departments. CAN/CGSB192.3-2020 was published online in November 2020. One aim of its approach was that there should be no policy change for those employers that are already complying with
THOSE SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THE TDG REGULATION WILL HAVE TO DEMONSTRATE THAT THEY ARE COMPETENT TO PERFORM THE ACTIONS REQUIRED BY THEIR ROLE IN THE TRANSPORT OF DANGEROUS GOODS
HCB MONTHLY | JANUARY 2022
