- Home
- Facts
- What Does HAZMAT Stand For?

# **What is HAZMAT?**

## HAZMAT is an abbreviation for “**hazardous materials**."

*In January 2010, NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration was notified of a collision between a crude oil tanker (T/V Eagle Otome) and a barge in Port Arthur, Texas.*

HAZMAT  is an abbreviation for “hazardous materials”—substances in  quantities or forms that may pose a reasonable risk to health, property, or the  environment. HAZMATs include such substances as toxic chemicals, fuels, nuclear  waste products, and biological, chemical, and radiological agents.  HAZMATs may be released as liquids, solids, gases, or a combination or form of all three, including dust, fumes, gas, vapor, mist, and smoke. 

HAZMAT spills have  caused health problems, injuries, and even death in people and animals, and  have damaged buildings, homes, property, and the environment. Given such dire  consequences, it is reasonable to conclude that one may not encounter HAZMATs  on a daily basis. The truth, however, is that many  products containing hazardous chemicals are routinely used and stored in homes,  and are transported every day on the nation's highways, railroads, waterways,  and pipelines.

### HAZMAT Incidents

Thousands  of incidents occur each year in which HAZMATs are released into the environment  as a result of accidents or natural disasters. In addition to potentially harming  people and the environment, spills in coastal waters may cause substantial  disruption of marine transportation with potential widespread economic impacts.  Both coastal and inland spills are called HAZMAT incidents, and are routinely  addressed by first responders like firefighters and local law enforcement.

### NOAA HAZMAT Response

Under  the National  Contingency Plan, NOAA provides scientific support to  the Federal  On-Scene Coordinator for oil and other HAZMAT spills, and participates  in emergency response activities in coastal and  near-coastal waters.

NOAA's Office  of Response and Restoration responds to 150-175 HAZMAT incidents  each year. Most are oil spills originating from  leaking pipelines or vessel collisions, as well as hurricanes and drilling well  blowouts, such as the 2010 *Deepwater Horizon* spill  in the Gulf of Mexico.

For  the thousands of minor incidents handled by first responders, NOAA and the U.S.  Environmental Protection Agency collaborate on tools like the CAMEO  software suite that offer fast access to chemical properties  and other relevant information.

##### More **Information**

Office of Response and Restoration

What to do before, during and after a HAZMAT incident

National Response Center (800-424-8802)

CAMEO (Computer-Aided Management of Emergency Operations) Hazardous Chemicals Database

##### **Last updated:**

######                1/04/21            

**Author:** NOAA

How to cite this article

Contact Us

##### 					Feedback

          -  Provide Feedback 
          -  Contact Us
          -  Report an error

##### 					Social

          - 
          - 
          - 
*Science. Service.Stewardship.*
							About NOS						- About Us
- NOS Program Offices
- Media Inquiries
- Website Acknowledgements
- Site Index
- Disclaimer
							More Resources						- Freedom of Information Act
- Accessibility
- Information Quality
- Privacy Policy
- NOS For Employees
- USA.gov
-  Department of Commerce
-  National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
-  National Ocean Service