Department of Defense
Instruction
October 29, 1990
Change 1, May 6,1996
NUMBER 6050.5
USD(A&T)
SUBJECT: DoD Hazard Communication Program,
References: (a) DoD Instruction 6050.5, "Hazardous Materials
Information System," January 25, 1978 (hereby
canceled)
(b) Title 29, Code of Federal Regulations, Section
1910.1200, "Hazard Communication," August 24, 1987,
Section 1910.120, "Hazardous Waste Operations and
Emergency Response," May 4, 1987 and Section
1910.1450, "Occupational Exposure to Hazardous
Chemicals in Laboratories," January 31, 1990.
(c) DoD Safety and Occupational Health Program Policy
Memorandum 88-1, "Hazard Communication," February
9, 1988 (hereby canceled).
(d) Federal Standard 313, "Material Safety Data Sheets,
Transportation Data, and Disposal Data for
Hazardous Materials furnished to Government
Activities," latest revision
(e) Through (q), see enclosure 1
A. REISSUANCE AND PURPOSE
This Instruction reissues reference (a); fulfills the
requirements of reference (b); updates DoD policy
responsibilities and procedures for a Comprehensive Hazard
Communication Program that:
1. Prescribes training for DoD personnel to ensure that
they are:
a. Aware of the potential health hazards associated
with their occupation.
b. Informed of safe work practices and proper use of
engineering controls.
c. Trained in the selection, use, add availability of
appropriate personal protective equipment to prevent chemically
related injuries and illnesses.
2. Requires the DoD Components to comply with the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) under 29
C.F.R. 1910.120, 1910.1200 and 1900.1450 hazard communication
standards (HCS) reference (b).
3. Updates policy on hazard communication, DoD Policy
Memorandum 88-1, (reference (c)) and policy on the DoD Hazardous
Materials Information System (HMIS) data system under this
Instruction. The HMIS is used to acquire, review, store, and
disseminate selected information on hazardous materials as they
are defined in Federal Standard 313 and FARS subparagraph 22.3
and DFARS 252.223-7004 (references (d) and (e)). The HMIS
provides reference information required at all levels of DoD
management to:
a. Develop procedures to prevent injuries and
occupational illness in the handling, storage, use,
transportation, and disposal of hazardous materials and wastes.
b. Apprise DoD and contractor personnel of the
potential hazards of materials encountered in the DoD
workplaces.
c. Devise environmentally acceptable disposal
procedures.
d. Assist in hazardous materials and hazardous waste
minimization programs under DoD Directive 4210.15 (reference
(f)).
e. Comply with Federal safety and health regulations
(reference (b)).
4. Authorizes the continued publication of the following
documents, consistent with DoD 5025.1-M (reference (h)).
a. DoD 6050.5-M (reference (i)).
b. DoD 6050.5-G, (reference (j)).
c. DoD 6050.5-G-1, (reference (k)).
d. DoD 6050.5-H, (reference (l)).
e. DoD 6050.5-W, (reference (m)).
B. APPLICABILITY AND SCOPE
1. This Instruction applies to:
a. The Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD); the
Military Departments; the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff and
the Joint Staff; the Unified and Specified Commands; the
Inspector General, Department of Defense (IG, DoD); the
Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS);
the Defense Agencies; and the DoD Field Activities (hereafter
referred to collectively as "DoD Components"). The term
"Military Services," as used herein, refers to the Army, Navy,
Air Force, and Marine Corps.
b. All DoD personnel who use, handle or may be
potentially exposed to hazardous materials and waste, including
those working in contractor facilities. Where feasible, such
DoD personnel may be included in the contractor's hazard
communication program. In those cases, DoD Components retain
ultimate responsibility for program oversight, adequacy, and DoD
worker participation.
c. All DoD Components in the acquisition and processing
of material safety data sheets (MSDS), in their roles as:
(1) Employers of personnel potentially exposed to
hazardous materials in the workplace.
(2) Distributors of hazardous materials to
downstream DoD personnel and/or customers, as defined in
accordance with (IAW) the requirements of Section 1900.1200 of
reference (b).
2. This Instruction applies to all hazardous materials used
within the Department of Defense, whether centrally or locally
managed and procured.
3. Contractor employees, who are employed at a DoD-owned or
-operated facilities may be included in the DoD Components'
Hazard Communication Program on a space available and
reimbursable basis, as determined by the contracting officer.
In those cases, contractors must assume ultimate responsibility
that their employees have received appropriate training, and
ensure that all required records for their employees are
maintained. Nothing in this Instruction alleviates Government
contractors from full compliance with reference (b) and
comparable state and local requirements.
4. The training and labeling requirements of 29 CFR
1910.1200, DoD 6050.5-H (reference (b) and (1)) and the
requirements of this Instruction apply to all DoD Components.
Those requirements should not be duplicated for DoD personnel
regulated by other Federal Agencies exercising statutory
authority under Section 1910.1200, Section (b) (6), of reference
(b); e.g., pest control and nuclear facility workers.
5. This Instruction applies only to the occupational uses
and exposures to hazardous chemicals.
C. POLICY
It is DoD policy to:
1. Protect DoD personnel from adverse effects of workplace
hazardous materials and waste in order to reduce chemically
related injuries and illnesses.
2. Have a standardized HMIS established, maintained, and
used by all the DoD Components.
D. RESPONSIBILITIES
1. The Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Environmental
Security (DUSD(ES)), shall provide policy guidance,
coordination, and oversight of the DoD Hazard Communication
Program.
2. The Head of DoD Components shall:
a. Establish and maintain hazard communication programs
that conform to the requirements of this Instruction.
b. Designate an office or agency as office of primary
responsibility (OPR) to issue policy and guidance for that
Component's role in the HMIS. If appropriate, designate a
separate office or agency to serve as that DoD Component's
focal point for obtaining reviewing, entering, and providing
information to the HMIS data bank IAW the DoD Component's
guidance.
c. Inform Headquarters, Defense Logistics Agency (DLA)
(Attn: DLA-CAAE), of changes in focal points.
d. Ensure that purchase requests for applicable supply
items include a requirement for contracting activities to obtain
from offerors/suppliers MSDS and OSHA HCS compliant hazard
warning label, IAW MIL-STD-129K, Federal Standard 313 and DFARS
252.223-7004, (references (n), (d) and (e)). The MSDS must be
available for worker training and reference prior to the
material being released for use in the workplace.
e. Establish health education programs IAW with this
Instruction and DoD Instructions 6055.1 and 6055.5 (references
(o) and (p)) to ensure that all personnel who work with
hazardous materials or wastes are notified of the following:
(1) Hazards to which they are potentially exposed.
(2) Exposure symptoms and emergency first aid
treatment.
(3) Precautions for safe use.
(4) Personal protective equipment and control
devices.
(5) Waste disposal instructions.
f. Develop procedures to ensure that any proprietary
formulary and/or trade secret information in a MSDS is protected
and used only as a management tool for exposure and accident
prevention and health hazard education. Trade secret
information shall be treated IAW the requirements and
restrictions of the 29 C.F.R. 1910.1200, (reference (b)).
Disclosure of any information outside of the Department of
Defense shall be IAW DoD Directive 5400.7 (reference (q)).
g. Provide guidance to its contracting officers to
include in contracts for the purchase of hazardous materials; a
notice that the MSDS and manufacturer's labels are to be
forwarded to the designated office of the contracting activity,
who shall be responsible for forwarding the MSDS and
manufacturers label to the DoD Components' HMIS focal point.
h. Ensure that MSDS and label information in any of the
Component's local level reference systems is forwarded to their
designated focal point for review and submission to the DoD
HMIS, as appropriate.
i. If requested, provide the Director, DLA, with
information for the semiannual management report on status of
HMIS implementation.
3. The Director, Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) is hereby
designated executive agent for the HMIS and publication of DoD
Manual 6050.5-M, "DoD Hazardous Materials Information System
Procedures" and shall administer the HMIS IAW the policies
established by the Assistant Deputy Under Secretary of Defense
(Safety and Occupational Health Policy) (ADUSD(SH)), under the
direction of the DUSD(ES), and specifically shall:
a. Establish and operate the DoD HMIS data bank for the
storage and retrieval of data IAW the following minimum
provisions:
(1) Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS),
transportation, disposal, and label information shall be
accessible by National Item Identification Number (NIIN), focal
point assigned stock number (in the absence of NIIN), trade name
and/or part number, hazard characteristic code, hazardous
ingredients, and manufacturer/distributor commercial and
government entity (CAGE) code.
(2) The data bank shall be open-ended to allow for
expansion, as required by future safety, health, environmental,
or transportation legislation or regulation.
(3) MSDS records shall be retained for at least 40
years. Data may be centrally archived as the system grows.
b. Receive and process hazardous materials information
from DoD Component's focal points, the General Services
Administration (GSA) and other Federal Agencies as specified in
the DoD 6050.5-M (reference (i)).
c. Publish and distribute the HMIS in both restricted
and non-restricted versions and the data in media (microfiche
and/or electronic data interchange technologies), appropriate to
the needs and/or technology availabilities of the DoD customer
on a quarterly basis IAW standard practices for the media
involved.
d. Issue guidance to all DoD Components, as required to
establish, operate, and improve the DoD HMIS data bank.
e. Provide a semiannual management report to the
DUSD(ES) on the status of the implementation of the HMIS for
all of the Department of Defense. Include the operational
content and use statistics of the data-base. This report is due
May 15 and November 15 of each year. DoD Component input must
be requested through the Component OPR.
f. Negotiate agreements with Federal agencies
establishing OPRs and focal points and for interaction with
HMIS.
g. Negotiate agreements with industry to exchange
hazardous material data.
E. Procedures
1. Training
a. Personnel occupationally exposed to hazardous
materials shall be trained IAW the HCS requirements (reference
(b)) prior to being assigned to work with hazardous materials or
wastes.
b. The DoD and Federal Agency Hazard Communication
Training Program DoD 6050.5-G-1, (reference (k)) should be used
as the minimum training for all DoD personnel who handle or use
hazardous materials. The DoD Components are not to develop or
purchase other basic hazard communication training programs.
c. In-depth training on specific chemicals or
operations is required and may be accomplished using commercial
or DoD Component-developed programs. Research activities may
tailor the program in Section 1910.1450 of reference (b) to meet
the special needs of their workers. Copies of DoD
Component-developed programs (base level, major command, or
Component-wide) should be submitted to the ODUSD(ES) for the
purpose of sharing those programs among the DoD Components.
2. Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)
a. Hazard warning information, MSDS and label, shall be
readily accessible to DoD personnel for all hazardous materials
they handle, use or may be potentially exposed.
b. DoD or contractor occupational health and/or safety
personnel shall be available, on request, to provide
explanations or interpretations of MSDS to supervisors and
affected workers and assistance in HCS training.
c. DoD policy is to use the HCS (Section 1910.1200 of
reference (b)) as a basis for hazard communication programs
in-foreign countries. Officials responsible for installations
in foreign countries shall determine requirements for items to
be acquired by contract and shall specify the need for the
contractor to furnish safety and health hazard data. That
requirement shall be stated in each procurement request for each
hazardous chemical to be acquired either as an end-item or as a
component of the material being procured. A copy of the
hazardous material information shall be provided to the DoD
Component's focal point, for transmittal to the DoD HMIS, if the
hazardous chemical is expected to be procured more than once or
will ultimately be turned in to the Defense Reutilization and
Marketing Office.
d. The activity controlling the formulation of
hazardous chemicals produced by DoD Components shall develop
the MSDS and the DoD label (DD Forms 2521 and 2522). The
controlling DoD Component shall supply the MSDS and the DoD
label to subsequent users and to the DoD Component focal point
for entry into the HMIS data bank. Classified MSDSs and DoD
labels shall be maintained and used by the DoD Components, but
will not be sent to the DoD HMIS. Unclassified versions of
this MSDS, adequate for transportation, spill response and
emergency medical treatment, along with emergency telephone
number should be provided to the DoD HMIS.
e. For nationally stock-listed and locally purchased
nonstandard stock hazardous chemicals, MSDS and HCS-compliant
labels shall be contractually required and obtained by the
responsible contracting officer and forwarded to the DoD
Component's focal point for processing to the HMIS data bank.
For locally purchased chemicals, the contracting officer shall
ensure the installation MSDS points of contact (POC) review the
MSDS and label for adequacy before contract award. The
installation POC shall then forward the MSDS and label to the
DoD Component's focal point for processing. (DoD 6050.5-M
reference (i)).
3. DoD Labeling
a. All hazardous chemicals used by DoD Components will
be labeled IAW with HCS (reference (b)).
b. Commercial suppliers shall be required to label all
hazardous materials with HCS-compliant labels (Section 1910.1200
of reference (b)) IAW MIL-STD-129 (reference (n)).
c. DoD activities are not required to relabel, with the
DoD label, hazardous chemicals received from commercial
suppliers when those materials are labeled IAW the HCS (29
C.F.R. 1910.1200, reference (b)).
d. The DoD hazardous chemical warning labeling system
(DoD 6050.5-H, reference (l)) is a method of communicating
standardized hazard warning information to DoD personnel when
manufacturers' labels cannot be used. DoD labeling shall be
based on the information provided on the manufacturers' MSDS and
label, and be IAW the methodology described in reference (1).
The DoD label and data descriptors are to be used to meet the
OSHA labeling requirements within the Department of Defense
for:
(1) Hazardous chemicals manufactured by the
Department of Defense. If required, specific ingredients,
composition, or properties may be protected for national
security reasons. Labels for items with protected information
should contain unclassified information adequate to identify
hazards and protect personnel, including name and address of DoD
activity responsible for developing the MSDS and the DoD label.
Copies of unclassified label information should be provided to
the appropriate HMIS focal point.
(2) Repackaged containers or breakdown quantities
of hazardous chemicals.
(3) Marking tanks, piping, vats, or similar vessels
of hazardous chemicals when other means, such as placards, are
not available.
(4) Unlabeled hazardous materials already available
in the DoD inventory. Chemicals in depot storage will be
labeled when shipped or removed for use.
e. The DoD label can be applied with variations. Color
DoD labels may be used. The size of the DoD label may be
locally varied to fit the size and shape of the container being
labeled. Local reproduction is authorized.
f. For efficient and consistent use of DD Forms 2521
and 2522, "Hazardous Chemical Warning Label," the DLA shall
develop the system capability to allow the Military Departments,
DLA, GSA and other organizations the capability to develop a
data base of HCS-compliant labeling information for all
hazardous chemicals in the HMIS. New fields shall be added to
the HMIS, as required to contain DoD labeling information. The
DLA shall provide the DoD Components a labeling file that prints
the DoD Hazardous Chemical Warning label (DD Forms 2521 and
2522) from the HMIS compact disk-read only memory (CD-ROM) disk
within 90 days of publication of this Instruction.
g. DoD Components shall not develop or use other
workplace hazardous materials warning labels, except for Navy
ships which may use alternate HCS compliant labeling for
repackaged or breakdown containers or unlabeled containers
aboard ship.
4. Hazard Communication and Chemical Hygiene Plans
a. All DoD Component installations using hazardous
materials shall develop a written hazard communication plan IAW
29 C.F.R. 1910.1200 (reference (b)). Additionally, DoD
installations with laboratories shall develop a chemical hygiene
plan, IAW Section 1900.1450 of reference (b).
b. The installation plans should be readily available
to all affected personnel and include any installation unique
procedures about the local purchase of hazardous materials.
c. The hazard communication plan must ensure that
contractors bringing hazardous materials onto DoD installations
shall:
(1) Provide advance notification (normally 30 days)
to installation officials of hazardous materials that will be
used in the performance of the work.
(2) Provide copies of MSDS and labels of the
hazardous chemicals and materials to the contracting officer,
who shall forward these documents to installation health and
safety officials 5 working days before the materials are brought
on to the installation.
5. HMIS. The DoD Component's focal points shall input
information to the HMIS data bank as described in the DoD
6050.5-M (reference (i)) and in the following procedures:
a. Receive all MSDS obtained by the DoD Component's
procuring activities.
b. Review MSDS and labels as received to ensure that
data are complete, reasonable, legible, and in conformance with
the requirements of the HCS (29 C.F.R. 1900.1200, reference
(b)). (Laboratory verification of technical elements is not
required.) Add missing data elements and check obvious or
suspected errors with the originator. Return incomplete or
inadequate MSDS and labels to the supplier for correction.
c. Submit data to the DoD system through the media
(hard copy or electronic data interchange technologies)
appropriate to the technological capabilities and/or
availabilities of the DoD Component system users IAW the
procedures of DoD 6050.5-M (reference (i)).
d. Act as the primary POC between the DoD hazardous
material data bank and the Component activities.
F. INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS
The information requirements prescribed herein, including
the establishment and operation of the DLA data base, are
assigned Report Control Symbol DD-(FM&P) (A,Q&AR) 1486.
G. EFFECTIVE DATE
This Instruction is effective immediately.
Christopher Jehn
Assistant Secretary defense
(Force Management and Personnel)
Enclosure:
References
REFERENCES, continued
(e) Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Subpart 23.3, and
52.223-3, "Material Safety Data Sheets: Hazard Materials
Identification and Material Safety Data"
(f) Defense FAR Supplement (DFARS), Subpart 223.72 and clause
252.223-7004, "Material Safety Data Sheets: Hazard
Materials Identification and Material Safety Data"
(g) DoD Directive 4210.15, "Hazardous Materials Pollution
Prevention," July 27, 1989
(h) DoD 5025.1-M, "Department of Defense Directive System
Procedures," April 1981, authorized by DoD Directive
5025.1, December 23, 1988
(i) DoD 6050.5-M, "DoD Hazardous Materials Information System
Procedures," July 1981, authorized by this Instruction
(j) DoD 6050.5-G, "The Hazardous Materials Information System
Users Guide," January 1987, authorized by this Instruction
(k) DoD 6050.5-G-1, "Department of Defense Federal Hazard
Communication, Training Program - Trainer's Guide," April
1988, authorized by this Instruction
(l) DoD 6050.5-H, "Department of Defense Hazardous Chemical
Warning Labeling System," June 1989, authorized by this
Instruction
(m) DoD 6050.5-W, "Department of Defense Federal Hazard
Communication, Training Program - Student's Workbook,"
April 1988, authorized by this Instruction
(n) MIL-STD-129k "Marking for Shipment and Storage," September
15, 1989
(o) DoD Instruction 6055.1, "DoD Occupational Safety and Health
Program," October 26, 1984
(p) DoD Instruction 6055.5, "Industrial Hygiene and
Occupational Health," January 10, 1989
(q) DoD Directive 5400.7, "DoD Freedom of Information Act
Program," May 13, 1988
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