Shipping Hazardous Materials

The U.S. Department of Transportation (US DOT) requires you be trained and certified before shipping hazardous materials. Even if someone else handles your shipment for you, you are responsible for packaging and labeling hazardous materials correctly, and providing the required documentation. Fines for non-compliance and potential legal action can occur if you are found to have willfully ignored hazardous materials shipping regulations.

Notes:

Review the regulation changes for shipping hazardous materials by air in the frequently asked questions below.

As of July 28, 2023, EH&S is no longer responsible for reporting UW shipments of “chemicals of interest” to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Warning labels are no longer required for shipping chemicals of interest.

 

Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) provides online and classroom training courses for UW personnel who ship hazardous materials (refer to the Training section below).

We also ship radioactive material; contact EH&S's Radiation Safety team for more information.

International shipments may also be subject to import/export requirements. Information on these requirements and contact information can be found on the UW’s Export Controls website.

Refer to the List of Hazardous Substances and Reportable Quantities when shipping hazardous materials.

Training for shipping hazardous materials

EH&S offers a Shipping Hazardous Materials training class, which meets US DOT requirements. You must be re-certified every two years.

We also offer online classes for those who only ship certain dangerous goods such as dry ice, Biological Substances Category B or dangerous goods in excepted quantities.

These materials are referred to in our online shipping training classes:

How you can get help

Assistance with shipping hazardous materials

EH&S, in coordination with several other University units, offers assistance for trained UW students and personnel who need to ship hazardous materials.

For assistance in shipping radioactive materials, contact EH&S's Radiation Safety team at 206.543.6328 or radsaf@uw.edu.

For assistance with all other hazardous materials, contact the Hazardous Materials Shipping Coordinator at 206.685.2849 or email hazmat@uw.edu.

Services available

EH&S provides the following services:

  • Training on shipping hazardous materials

  • Hazardous materials shipping consultation and assistance, including hazardous materials classification, labels, assessment and regulatory interpretations

  • Regulatory liaison between Federal agencies and the shippers, in the event of an audit or investigation

Frequently asked questions

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