UPDATE – Federal: Transport Canada request for cylinder requalification reports: Frustrating for CPA members

Last December, the CPA requested feedback on virtual inspection experiences from members who had undergone the Transport Canada (TC) virtual audit process. (Read previous story: Have you experienced a Transport Canada virtual audit? If yes, we'd like to hear from you!)

The CPA contacted TC after receiving reports from members that TC had been requesting information on whether they were providing 20lb cylinder requalification reports to new owners upon purchase of a container. Members expressed their frustration to this new request from inspectors, indicating that it is beyond reasonable for public to keep a copy of a cylinder requalification report. TC indicated it is not a new requirement, and that the enforcement was never a concern for their audits until recently.

Transportation of Dangerous Goods (TDG) regulations states that:

(6) For the purposes of this section, the following requirements apply in respect of a report of requalification, repair, reheat treatment or that is referred to in clause 24.7 of CSA B339:

(a) the person who prepares the report must give a copy of it to the owner of the means of containment;

(b) the person who prepares the report and the owner must each keep a copy of the report for 10 years; and

(c) the owner must, during the 10-year period, give a copy of the report to any person to whom ownership of the means of containment is transferred.

During an audit, TC inspectors can ask a facility contact if a report is provided to the new owner once the cylinder is recertified.  If the facility contact answers “no”, the facility receives a failure for the documentation portion of the audit. 

The CPA contacted TC to discuss the issues related to this requirement. During the meeting, the CPA mentioned during the discussion that this TDGR Requirement is similar to the cited requirements of C-6 (6) with the exception of a caveat allowing for the “Owner or authorized agent” to be allowed to retain the requalification document. 

While all parties agreed during the meeting that the issue was problematic and a solution would be found, TC has yet to provide an update. Until this issue is addressed, members have to provide a requalification report to an owner upon sale of any requalified container.

For any questions regarding this concern, please contact CPA Vice President of Regulations and Safety Robert Loenhart at robertloenhart@propane.ca.