What is "dangerous goods"

n. Any substances, natural or man-made, which are intrinsically dangerous or otherwise pose a safety hazard. Examples are materials which are explosive, poisonous, chemically active (including acids and other corrosives), radioactive, or biologically active (including human blood and other medical waste).

Dangerous goods or hazardous goods are solids, liquids, or gases that can harm people, other living organisms, property, or the environment. They are often subject to chemical regulations. In the United States, United Kingdom and sometimes in Canada, dangerous goods are more commonly known as hazardous materials (abbreviated as HAZMAT or hazmat). Hazmat teams are personnel specially trained to handle dangerous goods, which include materials that are radioactive, flammable, explosive, corrosive, oxidizing, asphyxiating, biohazardous, toxic, pathogenic, or allergenic. Also included are physical conditions such as compressed gases and liquids or hot materials, including all goods containing such materials or chemicals, or may have other characteristics that render them hazardous in specific circumstances.

In the United States, dangerous goods are often indicated by diamond-shaped signage on the item (see NFPA 704), its container, or the building where it is stored. The color of each diamond indicates its hazard, e.g., flammable is indicated with red, because fire and heat are generally of red color, and explosive is indicated with orange, because mixing red (flammable) with yellow (oxidizing agent) creates orange. A nonflammable or nontoxic gas is indicated with green, because all compressed air vessels are this color in France after World War II, and France was where the diamond system of hazmat identification originated.