(a) Except as provided in paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section, each person who offers for transportation a bulk packaging which contains a hazardous material, shall affix the placards specified for the material in §§ 172.504 and 172.505.
(b) Each bulk packaging that is required to be placarded when it contains a hazardous material, must remain placarded when it is emptied, unless it -
(1) Is sufficiently cleaned of residue and purged of vapors to remove any potential hazard;
(2) Is refilled, with a material requiring different placards or no placards, to such an extent that any residue remaining in the packaging is no longer hazardous; or
(3) Contains the residue of a hazardous substance in Class 9 in a quantity less than the reportable quantity, and conforms to § 173.29(b)(1) of this subchapter.
(c) Exceptions. The following packagings may be placarded on only two opposite sides or, alternatively, may be labeled instead of placarded in accordance with subpart E of this part:
(1) A portable tank having a capacity of less than 3,785 L (1000 gallons);
(2) A DOT 106 or 110 multi-unit tank car tank;
(3) A bulk packaging other than a portable tank, cargo tank, flexible bulk container, or tank car (e.g., a bulk bag or box) with a volumetric capacity of less than 18 cubic meters (640 cubic feet);
(4) An IBC. For an IBC labeled in accordance with subpart E of this part, the IBC may display the proper shipping name and UN identification number markings in accordance with § 172.301(a)(1) in place of the UN number on an orange panel, placard or white square-on-point configuration as prescribed in § 172.336(d); and
(5) A Large Packaging as defined in § 171.8 of this subchapter.
(d) A flexible bulk container may be placarded in two opposing positions.
[Amdt. 172-136, 59 FR 38064, July 26, 1994; Amdt. 172-148, 61 FR 50255, Sept. 25, 1996, as amended by 66 FR 45379, Aug. 28, 2001; 69 FR 64473, Nov. 4, 2004; 75 FR 5392, Feb. 2, 2010; 76 FR 43528, July 20, 2011; 77 FR 60942, Oct. 5, 2012; 81 FR 35540, June 2, 2016; 85 FR 27878, May 11, 2020]