Changes to the New 2016 Emergency Response Guidebook

If you’re a first responder, or involved with Hazardous Materials in any way, you should be familiar with the Emergency Response Guidebook (also known as the ERG or Orange Book). The 2016 edition was released this year with some significant from the previous 2012 version. The current changes are:

-The addition of a flow chart the describes “How to use the Guidebook”

-A area has been included for local emergency response numbers to be written in.

-A section has been added for the Global Harmonization System (GHS) of classification and labeling of chemicals.

-Addition of all new dangerous goods listed in the UN Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods up to the 19th revised edition.

-In the table of initial isolation and protective action distances (Green Pages) there is the addition to table 3 of “Estimating wind speed from environmental clues”.

These changes definitely improve the ERG and make initial responses actions safer. I highly recommend any user of this manual pick up the latest copy and flip through it for familiarization or review.