You may see other signs warning you about a potential hazard that isn’t included in the required signage of OSHA or DOT. Hopefully, you’re already familiar with road signs that indicate potential hazards, such as falling rocks or icy roads. Hazard signs show up in far more places than just on the road. Particularly if you work in an industrial facility or on a construction site, you may see hazardous signs that are meant to help keep you safe.

If the BABA Act applies to a Federal financial assistance award for an infrastructure project, pursuant to Section 70914(b) of the BABA Act, the Department of Justice may waive the Buy America Preference where it finds that:

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These hazardous materials pose a danger to public health and safety, which is why they must be marked with a hazardous waste sign. These signs help individuals know how to operate around these materials to prevent injury or property damage.

Many of us are used to seeing signs every day, so it may seem at times that even the hazardous cargo signs fade into the background. However, safety signs play a critical role in keeping everyday citizens and workers safe.

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Toxic waste signs that include symbols are easier to identify quickly rather than using text alone. Symbols are commonly used to communicate information effectively, helping individuals identify hazardous materials and preventing physical damage to people and property.

While the EPA doesn’t require hazardous waste signs to include labels, they’re strongly recommended. The Department of Transportation (DOT) also regulates the transportation of these materials and requires materials to be marked with specific designs on placards.

OSHA has aligned its system of labeling, known as the Hazard Communication Standard, with the GHS, a system the United Nations developed to help identify hazardous chemicals. The symbols include:

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The DOJ Program Plan is a tool to help applicants find funding opportunities (solicitations), managed by the DOJ grant-making components, that address their criminal, juvenile, and civil justice needs.

The Justice Grants System (JustGrants) is the Department of Justice's grants management system for the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office), the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) and the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW).

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HAZMAT School offers hazmat shipping courses that cover a variety of topics related to hazardous materials, so no matter how you interact with these materials, you can be armed with the information you need to stay safe. If you have questions about our course offerings or what training you are required to take to comply with OSHA, contact us today so we can answer your questions and help you stay safe.

If you’re wondering what safety signs and labels are required for your business, it’s crucial to learn more about the signage itself and the materials these signs label. Signs aren’t enough to keep you safe if you work with hazardous materials. If you work with hazardous chemicals, proper training is absolutely essential so you stay safe and help keep others safe by properly labeling and handling these materials.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance and additional resources on the implementation of the Buy America Preference in Federal financial assistance programs for infrastructure can be found at Made In America | OMB | The White House.

Communities that have been affected by mass violence incidents may be able to apply for assistance through several DOJ grants.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) uses numerous standards to make it easier to determine whether or not a material is hazardous. These standards help determine whether something should include a hazardous waste sign. The EPA standards used to determine if a material is hazardous include:

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Manages Hazmat School’s E-Learning courses and blog. Kirstie has extensive experience in the online training and education industry. Kirstie has worked with courses that offer a variety of safety and environmental certifications that satisfy OSHA, EPA and DOT requirements.

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The JustGrants Resources website is an entryway into information about JustGrants and the system itself. Through this portal both award recipients and applicants can access training resources and user support options, find answers to frequently asked questions and sign up for the JustGrants Update e-newsletter

The National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS), supported by OJP, offers a range of services and resources to meet the information needs of anyone interested in criminal and juvenile justice, victim assistance, and public safety.

You can often tell warning signs from their bright colors and distinct markings, but do you know what those signs warned you about? In this article, we will cover the meaning of hazardous cargo signs, what the different hazardous waste signs mean, info about the biohazard sign, hazmat placards meanings, and even where to find more information on what safety signs and labels are required for your business.

Please direct questions regarding the Buy America Preference to the grant manager listed on your organization’s Federal assistance award.

The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) is responsible for advancing the practice of community policing by the nation's state, local, territorial, and tribal law enforcement agencies through information and grant resources. The COPS Office awards grants to hire community policing professionals, develop and test innovative policing strategies, and provide training and technical assistance to community members, local government leaders, and all levels of law enforcement.

Hazard symbols and meanings

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) also requires chemicals to be adequately labeled in the workplace to protect employees using Globally Harmonized System (GHS) labels. However, this system doesn’t apply to hazardous waste since these are regulated by the EPA.

Another set of hazardous waste symbols you may have seen are placed on vehicles transporting hazardous materials down the highway. The Department of Transportation or DOT requires drivers to display these placards. You may see multiple pictures and numbers, but to understand these signs is to understand the nine classes of hazardous materials they denote. Note that some classes include numerous symbols, but every sign will bear its class number.

Hazardous signs and meanings have evolved since they were first used to indicate poison in the 1800s. More hazardous materials have been identified since then, and labeling these materials prevents harm to the public.

Hazardous materials come with safety data sheets identifying what is hazardous. These safety data sheets are comprehensive and complicated, but the warning signs are basic and simplistic. They tend to include nothing more than a pictogram, or symbol, and minimal text. If you understand the meaning of hazardous chemical information signs or other warning signs, you have a better chance of staying safe at work and wherever hazards are present.

The Department of Justice offers funding opportunities to support law enforcement and public safety activities in state, local, and tribal jurisdictions; to assist victims of crime; to provide training and technical assistance; to conduct research; and to implement programs that improve the criminal, civil, and juvenile justice systems.

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The EPA requires that hazardous materials are properly marked with the correct symbols when their characteristics are identified. These labels must be placed on any containers that contain hazardous waste. However, hazardous waste signs don’t always include symbols since they’re not required by the EPA, except in cases of bio-waste.

Make sure you know what each of these signs means. Here are a few common symbols you may see on these signs along with their meanings:

The Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act (Pub. L. No. 117-58, §§ 70901-52), enacted as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act on November 15, 2021, requires that “none of the funds made available for a Federal financial assistance program for infrastructure, including each deficient program, may be obligated for a project unless all of the iron, steel, manufactured products, and construction materials used in the project are produced in the United States.” (Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act, P.L. 117-58, Secs 70911 – 70917).

Office of Justice Programs (OJP) provides innovative leadership to federal, state, local, and tribal justice systems, by disseminating state-of-the art knowledge and practices across America, and providing grants for the implementation of these crime fighting strategies. Because most of the responsibility for crime control and prevention falls to law enforcement officers in states, cities, and neighborhoods, the federal government can be effective in these areas only to the extent that it can enter into partnerships with these officers. Therefore, OJP does not directly carry out law enforcement and justice activities. Instead, OJP works in partnership with the justice community to identify the most pressing crime-related challenges confronting the justice system and to provide information, training, coordination, and innovative strategies and approaches for addressing these challenges. OJP’s goals are to strengthen partnerships with state, local and tribal stakeholders; ensure integrity of, and respect for, science - including a focus on evidence-based, "smart on crime" approaches in criminal and juvenile justice; and administer OJP’s grant awards process in a fair, accessible and transparent fashion - and, as good stewards of federal funds, manage the grants system in a manner that avoids waste, fraud and abuse. Visit the OJP bureaus and program offices listed below:

You should be aware of all signs meant to preserve your safety and know what each means, especially if you work in a facility with hazardous materials or other dangers.

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Hazmat School provides online hazardous waste, hazardous materials, and safety training to fully comply with OSHA and DOT requirements. We provide official OSHA and DOT certificates. We serve more than 20,000 students each year.

The Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) provides federal leadership in developing the national capacity to reduce violence against women and administering justice for, and strengthening services to, victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. OVW administers grant programs to help provide victims with the protection and services they need to pursue safe and healthy lives, while simultaneously enabling communities to hold offenders accountable for their violence.

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So, what do all the hazardous waste symbols mean? And what about other hazard warning symbols and their meaning? Keep reading for an overview of what the different hazardous waste signs mean so you can do your part to ensure these signs keep you safe.