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Legislative amendments which seek to implement the latest requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) for the safe transport of dangerous goods (DGs) by air will be gazetted on Friday (June 10). The amendments will be tabled in the Legislative Council on June 15.
A spokesperson for the Transport and Housing Bureau said today (June 8) that the Air Navigation (Hong Kong) Order 1995 (Amendment of Schedule 16) Order 2016 and the Dangerous Goods (Consignment by Air) (Safety) Regulations (Amendment of Schedule) Order 2016 serve to incorporate the ICAO's latest requirements in the local legislation. Such requirements are set out in a new edition (i.e. the 2015-16 edition) of the ICAO's Technical Instructions for the Safe Transport of Dangerous Goods by Air.
The major changes introduced by the new edition of the Technical Instructions include:
(a) exempting lamps containing small amounts of DGs or those containing only certain kinds of DGs from the regulation of the Technical Instructions, provided that such lamps meet the conditions specified in the Technical Instructions to ensure their safe transport by air;
(b) where an air cargo consignment of DGs is carried in a series of journeys, aircraft operators are required to verify the compliance of the air cargo consignment of DGs with the Technical Instructions by using a checklist only if the consignment is accepted for carriage in Hong Kong for the first of those journeys by air; and
(c) requiring aircraft operators to clearly present the information on DGs forbidden to be carried aboard an aircraft to passengers at the point of ticket purchase and at the point of check-in.
"The new measures will enable passengers to be better informed on DGs forbidden on aircraft in order to enhance aviation security and facilitate trade," the spokesperson said.
The target commencement date of the above legislative amendments is November 1, 2016.
DGs, in the context of air transport, include explosives, compressed gas, flammable liquids, flammable solids, oxidising substances, toxic substances, infectious substances, radioactive materials and corrosives.
Ends/Wednesday, June 8, 2016
Issued at HKT 15:33
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