For hazardous chemicals stored in an outdoor area, the placard must be located either adjacent to them, or when storage is a tank, on the external surface of the tank or adjacent to the tank.

The provision of placards is addressed in clauses 349 and 350 and Schedules 11 and 13 of the WHS Regulation. Placards are required to be made of durable and weather-resistant material and be maintained in good repair and legible condition.

Due to reinforcements in the side walls the spill bunds are rigid and self-supporting. They are made from thick fabric with a protective proofing layer (PES/PVC 680 g/m²). They are resistant to oil-based substances, acids and alkalis at temperatures between -30°C and +70°C (see. Chemical resistance certificate in the relevant chapter at the end of catalogue). New handling belts – with a maximum carrying capacity 200 kg and safety fastening hooks at both ends – are used for manipulation. The protective pad and special liner which are delivered as accessories considerably enhance the durability of the spill bund. Product variants The XL DECON spill bund with its lower sidewalls is especially suitable for emergency decontamination of people. The reinforcements in the sidewalls of the EASY PACK are multi-segmented, so the bund folds better around any obstacle and it can be folded into a smaller pack. The SHALLOW version with its extremely low profile design can either be used in inaccesible areas, especially in narrow spaces with low headroom, or as a spill collecting tray to ensure safe filling and emptying of vessels.

Earthbund

Subsidiary risk of the dangerous goods means the Class or Division number of any important risks that have been identified by the classification system and are shown in Table 3.2.3 Column 4 of the ADG Code and the product Safety Data Sheet (SDS).

Class means the hazard class of the dangerous goods as stated in the ADG Code. A class may include divisions and packing groups (PG) where PG I – great danger, PG II – medium danger, and PG III – minor danger.

Information placards for tanks containing hazardous chemicals are similar to the full-size Emergency Information Placards (EIP) required by the ADG Code for bulk transport, with the emergency contact detail removed. Tanks must be placarded at all times unless they are confirmed to be free of hazardous chemicals.

Schedule 13 clause 6 (3) (b) requires a Class 3 label to be displayed when packages containing combustible liquids are stored with packages containing flammable liquids. A combustible liquid placard will not be applicable in this case.

Placards for Category 4 flammable liquids (ie C1 combustible liquids having a flash point greater than 60°C and ≤93°C) must have the words COMBUSTIBLE LIQUID in lettering not less than 100mm high in black on a white or silver background. Figure 6 below illustrates the form and dimension required.

For those storage and handling areas where there is regular variation in the types of hazardous chemicals (for example, in transit storage locations and transport storage areas), it may be more convenient to use frames for slip-in/slip-out labels that are commonly used on vehicles for the transport of dangerous goods. In locations where the public may have access to the placards, labels that attach more permanently will be required.

Bulk containers such as tanks used to contain hazardous chemicals are required to have specific information placards that have the form and dimensions shown in Figure 2.

Information placards for GTDTBT in tanks must be in the form and dimensions as shown previously in Figure 2 with the following adjustments:

2. Information placard for hazardous chemicals stored in packages displaying ADG code class labels for class 5.1 and 8 at the storage area.

Requirements for locations of placards are specified in clause 1 of Schedule 13. An outer warning placard must be displayed on every entrance to a workplace where an emergency services may enter the workplace so that it is clearly visible from normal approaches.

Information placards are not required for underground flammable liquid tanks at fuel retailers (i.e. service stations). An exemption is provided for fuel retailers storing flammable liquids in underground tanks used to refuel vehicles in clause 350 (3) (b) of the WHS Regulation.

Temporary bunding

Manufacturers, suppliers and local distributors may be able to provide technical assistance regarding their products, including the provision of Safety Data Sheets.

Packaged hazardous chemicals are containers of Schedule 11 hazardous chemicals in containers having a capacity of 500L or less or a net mass not exceeding 500kg. This includes drums and cylinders. Individual storage areas where hazardous chemicals in packages are kept must display an information placard when the prescribed placarding quantities in Schedule 11 table are exceeded. The form and dimension of placards for hazardous chemicals in packages are shown in Figure 5.

An information placard is required for the diesel tank as it is in an above ground bulk container. An information placard is also required for the Class 2.1 LP Gas above ground tank. As the petrol tank is used for storage in an underground tank at retail premises for refuelling purposes, an information placard is not required as per WHS Regulation 350(3)(b).

When a Schedule 11 hazardous chemical is contained in an IBC intended for transport and not intended for use at the workplace, the IBC must display a tank placard and the storage area must be placarded as required for a package store as per Schedule 13 (6), ie the appropriate Class label (ie 'diamond') at the entry to the storage area and adjacent to the goods.

Another organisation that can assist with consulting services is the Australasian Institute of Dangerous Goods Consultants which again provides a contact list at aidgc.org.au.

When emergency services respond to fires and chemical spills at workplaces using, storing or handling hazardous chemicals, the responders need to know the potential hazards involved at such incidents. For effective and efficient emergency action, they need information about the type, quantity and locations of the hazardous chemicals stored at the workplace.

The information placard for a tank of Category 4 flammable liquid must have the words COMBUSTIBLE LIQUID in lettering not less than 100mm high in black on a white or silver background. Figure 3 below illustrates the form and dimension required.

Global spill and safety

Goods too dangerous to be transported (GTDTBT) means goods listed in Appendix A of the ADG Code as goods too dangerous to be transported. These goods are inherently unstable but it may be possible to transport the goods after mixing them with diluents, stabilisers, inhibitors, desensitisers, phlegmatizers, solvents, wetting agents or adulterants to overcome the instability.

Note that this requirement no longer applies to fuel retailers (ie service stations). An exemption is provided in clause 349 (3) of the WHS Regulation.

The quantity of hazardous chemicals that are part of an article or thing is the net quantity of that part of the article or thing that is hazardous chemicals. For example, number of litres of acid in a wet-acid battery.

An outer warning placard, or HAZCHEM sign, is required at the entrance to the workplace when the workplace exceeds a prescribed placarding quantity in the Schedule 11 table. It must conform to the design in Schedule 13 of the WHS Regulation as shown in Figure 1. The word HAZCHEM must be in red lettering, not less than 100mm high, on a white or silver background.

Workplaces using, storing or handling hazardous chemicals in tanks or in quantities exceeding prescribed quantities are required to be placarded under the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2017 (WHS Regulation). This guide provides information on how to identify when placarding is needed and the types of placards required.

The Class labels required by the WHS Regulation should be grouped together. They need not be placed in the one horizontal line on a shared sign as illustrated in Schedule 13 of the WHS Regulation, provided they are clearly visible against a contrasting background. Vertical or diagonal grouping is equally acceptable.

Aerosol means a non-refillable metal aerosol dispenser, pressurised by liquefied, dissolved or compressed propellant gas.

Information placards must be located within the workplace at the relevant storage location so that they are clearly visible from normal approaches. For hazardous chemicals stored in an indoor area, the information placards must be located:

The warning placard must be positioned separately from any other sign or notice so that the placard is not capable of being confused with the other sign or notice. Placards must be kept legible and unobstructed.

For this table, if a flammable liquid category 4 is used, handled or stored in the same spill compound as one or more flammable liquids of categories 1, 2 or 3, the total quantity of flammable liquids categories 1, 2 or 3 must be determined as if the flammable liquid category 4 had the same classification as the flammable liquid in the spill compound with the lowest flash point.

Placards are applicable to storages of those hazardous chemicals to which Part 7.1 of the WHS Regulation applies. Refer to Part 7.1 Division 1 for further details on the application of the hazardous chemicals provisions.

The workplace exceeds placarding thresholds so an outer warning placard would normally be required however a exemption now applies for service stations (fuel retailers only) so that the outer warning placard is no longer required.

The quantity of solid hazardous chemicals not in tanks or packages such as a stockpile is the undivided mass of the goods in kilograms.

Placards are a means of alerting the emergency services and other persons to the presence of hazardous chemicals and providing information about them. They are an important part of an overall safety management strategy for workplaces using, storing or handling hazardous chemicals.

A company which supplies chemicals for dry cleaning and laundry facilities stores the following hazardous chemicals in packages and combustible liquid in a tank:

For further information on the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 and Work Health and Safety Regulation 2017, visit safework.nsw.gov.au or call 13 10 50.

Fuelbund

Essentially the placarding requirements under the WHS Regulation are the same as that required under the former Occupational Health and Safety Regulation 2001 (repealed on 31 December 2011) with some differences as described below:

The placard must have a white or silver background and be large enough to accommodate the number of Class labels required to be displayed on it. The class labels ('diamond') must have sides of at least 100mm long.

3. Information placard for various hazardous chemicals stored in packages displaying class labels for classes 2.2, 5.1, 6.1 and 8

When emergency services respond to fires and chemical spills the responders need to know the potential hazards involved.

For example, for placarding, a spill compound containing 1000 L of flammable liquid category 2 (eg petrol) and 1000 L of flammable liquid category 4 (eg diesel) is considered to contain 2000 L of flammable liquid category 2.

It should be noted that while the WHS Regulation has introduced the GHS for classification and labelling of hazardous chemicals, the associated GHS pictograms are not referred to for placarding purposes. That is, GHS pictograms are not used for placarding of tanks and storage areas. Class labels from the ADG Code have been retained for the purposes of identifying hazardous chemical storages at workplaces. Appendix 1 shows the ADG Code class labels that will be applicable for the equivalent GHS hazard categories to which the WHS Regulation apply.

Static tanks and transportable containers such as isotainers and intermediate bulk containers (IBCs) are examples of bulk containers (ie tanks) requiring a tank placard for hazardous chemicals at a workplace.

This collapsible spill bund is designed for a quick response to accidental leaks of water, oil-based products and chemicals. The spill bunds are delivered in several sizes. It is also possible to use the bigger models both as large volume containers and to capture spills when siphoning fuel from refuelling trucks.

Where GTDTBT are stored in packages exceeding the prescribed placarding quantity, the label shown in Figure 4 will be required along with any other applicable class labels.

ADG Code means the document known as the Australian Dangerous Goods Code comprising the Australian Code for the Transport of Dangerous Goods by Road and Rail, 7th Edition, available at ntc.gov.au.

However, this exemption is not applicable to flammable gases such as LPG and does not extend to production facilities, works depots or fuel distributors. Underground tanks at these locations must be identified using information placards. An example is illustrated on the right where a plan is provided with the placards clearly identifying the products.

The term refers to the complete product consisting of the goods and their packaging for transport. Examples of hazardous chemicals in packages are shown below.

Category 4 flammable liquids are equivalent to C1 combustible liquids having a flash point greater than 60°C and ≤93°C. An example of a hazardous chemical in this category is diesel fuel.

To identify the placarding for a package store, the quantity of hazardous chemicals for each GHS category at the workplace must be determined and compared with the prescribed placarding quantity in column 3 of the Schedule 11 table. For the purposes of this calculation, all hazardous chemical packages should be assumed to be full, even if they are not.

For consultants specialising in fuel systems, refer to the Australian Petroleum Industry Contractors and Suppliers Association (PICSA) at apicsa.com.au. There is a list of New South Wales contacts under the member directory section.

Hazardous chemical means a substance, mixture or article that satisfies the criteria for a hazard class in the GHS as defined in the WHS Regulation. Hazardous chemicals that are subject to the WHS Regulation covers dangerous goods excluding explosives (Class 1), radioactive materials (Class 7), infectious substances (Division 6.1) and certain miscellaneous dangerous goods (Class 9).