Managing hazardous substances in your facility
The 101 on managing hazardous substances.
Under the WHS Regulations, a hazardous substance is any substance that satisfies the criteria of one or more hazard classes in the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS). These are substances that might cause a health and physical hazard or both, so their storage and handling must to be carefully managed.
Who’s responsible for managing hazardous substances?
You’re responsible for managing the risks of hazardous substances if you are a:
Person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU); or a
Designer, manufacturer, importer, supplier or installer of a substance.
This role comes with significant responsibilities in relation to WHS Regulations – so it’s extremely important to know if you’re responsible and what to do about it.
So what do I need to do?
If you’re responsible for hazardous substances your role is multi-faceted, and includes ensuring formal processes are in place to:
Identify hazards and discover what might cause harm;
Assess risks, including understanding what could eventuate from a hazard, and the severity and likelihood of harm;
Eliminate risks so far as is reasonable;
Control risks; and
Review control measures over time to ensure they are working as planned.
A key part of this process will be ensuring you prepare a register and manifest of all hazardous substances through using a safety data sheet (SDS).
What do I need to put in an SDS and where does it go?
A supplier of a hazardous substances must provide a copy of the manufacturer or importer’s SDS free of charge when asked to do so. This should be done before the substance is used. If you are the manufacturer or importer and need to prepare a SDS yourself we recommend following Safe Work Australia’s guidelines as they outline how to ensure your SDS contains all the required information and complies with WHS Regulations.
The register and SDS should be easily identifiable and readily available to all workers who use or may be affected by chemicals in the workplace. We’d recommend storing it where you keep your facility emergency plan and other emergency procedure documents.
If you need more information, Safety101 have a team of experts to assist.
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