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New Asbestos changes for 2012 - Work & Health Safety Laws.
This extract regarding the new Asbestos Laws was presented on the NSW WorkCover webinar 15 December 2012.
The webinar on the new Work Health and Safety laws covered:
- key areas of the new WHS Act and Regulations
- what these changes mean for NSW businesses and workers
- how businesses and workers can prepare for the new laws.
Full copy of this webinar will be available shortly on the NSW WorkCover Website.
New documentation for the 2012 Work & Health Safety Laws.
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WHS Codes of Practice
A code of practice provides details on how to achieve the standards required under the work health and safety (WHS) legislation, by identifying hazards and managing risks.
Under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (WHS Act), codes of practice are admissible in court proceedings. Courts may regard a code of practice as evidence of what is known about a hazard, risk or control, and rely on it to determine what is reasonably practicable in the circumstances. A person cannot be prosecuted for failing to comply with a code of practice.
A person with duties under the WHS Act can comply with their duties by following another method, such as a technical or industry standard,
if it provides a standard of work health and safety equivalent to, or higher than, the code of practice.
An inspector can refer to an approved code of practice when issuing an improvement or prohibition notice and can offer the person to whom the notice is issued a choice of ways in which to remedy the contravention.
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VIEW FULL LIST OF THE WHS CODES OF PRACTICE HERE
The printed material in this section is constantly being updated as the Legislation changes. To keep up to date, please check
back periodically. More items will be available soon.
All Printed Material on this website can be viewed using the FREE Adobe Reader.
NSW Asbestos Registers
A NSW asbestos register is a document which contains information on Asbestos Containing Material (ACM) within a building that is likely to contain asbestos. An asbestos register in NSW must be held onsite for buildings that contain asbestos to comply with NSW WorkCover requirements.
The NSW asbestos register uses risk management principles by:
- Identifying asbestos containing materials within the workplace
- Assessing the risk to health for each asbestos instance identified
- Recommending measures to control the risk to health if required
The identification of asbestos for the NSW compliant asbestos register involves a combination of visual inspection of the accessible areas of the building and the collection materials suspected of containing asbestos for testing. The suspected asbestos samples are then tested by a NATA accredited laboratory.
The results of the inspection are tabulised in an asbestos register which include:
- Location of the asbestos containing material
- Asbestos composition and type through mineralogical analysis and the material friability
- Risk to health based on the condition, potential disturbance and occupancy level
- Recommendations to control or further minimise risk to occupant health
A NSW asbestos register should be reviewed on a yearly basis, or sooner if the material has been disturbed or removed to assess the risk to health. The NSW asbestos register should be integrated within an asbestos management plan.
Identifying asbestos to create an asbestos register should be conducted by a qualified asbestos consultant. A qualified asbestos consultant should hold a Type A licence and comply with the requirements for the inspection of hazardous materials including asbestos.
There are a range of asbestos inspections. For your asbestos register to be compliant with NSW asbestos legislation the right type of inspection should be conducted.
Types of inspections:
Type 1 - Location and assessment asbestos inspections (presumptive asbestos inspections) - NOT COMPLIANT
Type 1 Presumptive Asbestos Inspections are undertaken by idenitifying suspected asbestsm materials without taking samples. The type 1 asbestos inspection presumes that the material contains asbestos. The presumtive asbestos inspection reduces the cost by defering asbestos testing before demolition or refurbishment. A risk assessment based on the material condition is tabulated as part of an asbestos register.
Type 2 - Location and assessment asbestos inspections (sampling asbestos inspections) - COMPLIANT
Type 2 Sampling Asbestos Inspections are similar to Type 1 presumptive asbestos inspections however; representative samples of the suspected asbestos containing material are collected for asbestos testing. Asbestos testing at the time of asbestos inspections generally save expense in the longer term as special precautions and expensive maintenance procedures are not required if no asbestos is detected in the material. A risk assessment based on the material condition is tabulated as part of an asbestos register compliant with NSW legislation.