ATF Institutes A Voluntary Magazine Identification-Labeling Program

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), in its recent ATF EXPLOSIVES Industry Newsletter, informed the industry of a new voluntary "process to better track industry-owned explosives storage magazines."

The Bureau noted that during natural disasters, local emergencies, and civil unrest, the ATF assists emergency responders in securing nearby explosives. In these situations, the ATF provides information on the location of explosives magazines within an affected area. According to the ATF, with the current processes, "it is difficult to identify industry-owned magazines across the country in a timely manner for emergency notifications."

The ATF indicates that a significant obstacle to emergency responder notification is the lack of a unique identifier for each industry magazine. Although the ATF maintains GPS coordinates for magazines, the coordinates "can't be used as unique identifiers since readings can vary slightly from one inspection