The placarding requirement is scheduled to take effect March 1 for commercial businesses.

By this column, I call upon NEHA, its members, leaders, and staff, to develop and present this standard, entirely compatible with the Food and Drug Administration Food Code, by which a health department can quickly and efficiently launch a grading or placarding program.

Categories in the catalog include labels, forms, placards, placarding systems, transportation, packaging, spill control, shipping supplies, facility management, material handling, workplace safety, signs, books, and software.

Under constraint of time and the non-availability of the appropriate placards, the contractor decided to transport the explosives without properly placarding their vehicle, a direct violation of safety standards.