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October 14, 2024, Safe Work Australia (SWA) announced they would soon open a public consultation on the proposed workplace exposure limit (WEL) for 9 chemicals (see table below). Under the Model Work Health and Safety Act and the Model WHS Regulations, persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBUs) must ensure that no person at the workplace is exposed to an airborne contaminant at a level above the exposure limit specified.
Chemical | Proposed WEL |
Benzene | TWA: 0.2 ppm (0.7 mg/m3) |
Chlorine | TWA: 0.1 ppm (0.29 mg/m3) Peak limitation: 0.4 ppm (1.16 mg/m3) |
Copper (fumes, dusts and mists) | TWA (all forms): 0.01 mg/m3 |
Formaldehyde | TWA: 0.3 ppm (0.369 mg/m3) Short term exposure limit (STEL): 0.6 ppm (0.738 mg/m3) |
Hydrogen cyanide | TWA: 0.9 ppm (1 mg/m3) STEL: 4.7 ppm (5 mg/m3) |
Hydrogen sulphide | TWA: 1 ppm (1.4 mg/m3) STEL: 5 ppm (7 mg/m3) |
Nitrogen dioxide | TWA: 0.2 ppm (0.38 mg/m3) |
Respirable crystalline silica | TWA: 0.025 mg/m3 |
Titanium dioxide | TWA (respirable fraction; ultrafine/nanoscale particles): 0.3 mg/m3 TWA (respirable fraction; fine/pigmentary grade particles): 2.4 mg/m3 |
Note:
Eight-hour time weighted average (TWA) means the maximum average airborne concentration of a substance when calculated over an eight-hour working day, for a five-day working week.
Peak limitation means a maximum or peak airborne concentration of a substance determined over the shortest analytically practicable period of time which does not exceed 15 minutes.
Short term exposure limit (STEL) means the time weighted average maximum airborne concentration of a substance calculated over a 15-minute period.
In 2019, the SWA undertook a review of the Workplace Exposure Standards for Airborne Contaminants (WES List). The review aimed at assessing evidence related to the human-health impacts of airborne contaminants (excluding asbestos) to ensure that they could provide the best protection for workers and others in the workplace. Following the review, changes to the exposure limits in the WES List have been proposed, and resulted in the issuance of the Workplace Exposure Limits for Airborne Contaminants (WEL List) in 2024. The WHS ministers agreed to adopt the WEL List in Australia on December 1, 2026, replacing the previous WES List.
As for the upcoming public consultation, the SWA intends to seek feedback from stakeholders on the economic, social and health impacts of the proposed workplace exposure limits for the abovementioned 9 chemicals. The feedback will be collected and used for preparing an Impact Analysis to help WHS ministers decide whether or not to adopt the proposed exposure limits and the timeframe for implementation.
Notably, until the WHS ministers make the decision, PCUBs shall still adhere to the current exposure limits in the WES List.
