Hazard Class 6

Class 6 - Poisonous/toxic materials and infectious substances is divided into toxic substances, such as mercury, and infectious substances, such as viruses and bacteria.

Division 6.1 - Poisonous/toxic materials are those that are liable to cause harm, injury, or death through ingestion, inhalation, or skin contact. This includes non-infectious toxins from plants, animals, or bacterial sources. Examples are arsenic, nicotine, and cyanide. Division 6.1 materials are defined in §173.132.

Toxic materials are assigned to a packing group based on their degree of toxic hazards:

• Packing Group I - Very severe toxicity risk
• Packing Group II - Serious toxicity risk
• Packing Group III - Low toxicity risk

Packing group assignments take into account human experience from accidental poisonings, special properties possessed by the individual material, the likelihood of penetration, and any special biological effects. When there is no data based on human experience, the analysis must be based on animal experiments. The toxin must be exposed to the test subject through oral ingestion, skin contact, and inhalation.

To learn more about DOT HAZMAT Awareness visit our DOT HAZMAT General Awareness Online Training web page.