New 'blanket' Safe Work rules not practical, say miners and farmers

In short:

New rules for workplace exposure to dust, chemicals and gasses come into effect on December 1, but mine and farm groups say they are not practical or measurable.

Safe Work Australia formed the new rules, but enforcing the limits will be up to each state.

What's next?

Industry groups are lobbying government to consider changing or delaying the rollout.

Farmers and miners in Western Australia are nervous about new workplace safety rules that will reduce accepted exposure levels of dust and certain chemicals from December 1.

New rules set by Safe Work Australia (SWA) will reduce the safe exposure limit for hundreds of dusts, fumes and chemicals found in Australian workplaces.

The change is designed to protect workers, but industry groups say some new limits are so low there is no practical way to measure them.

Farming groups are warning the new rules could disrupt grain harvest and are calling on the government to intervene.

West Australian Grain Group chair Alastair Falconer said farmers were alarmed SWA's accepted exposure limit for the fumigant phosphine will be slashed by 80 per cent.

"It's concerning, and I'm not sure if there's equipment that can measure such [new] low levels,"he said.

Mr Falconer said the grain industry relied on phosphine to keep insects out of stored or exported grain, but said the new rule "almost renders phosphine unusable".

Exports play a big role in Australia's $33 billion grain industry, but many importing countries will reject entire shipments if insects are found due to biosecurity laws.

Grain dust limits more than halved

Mr Falconer said the new exposure limits for grain dust, including oats, wheat and barley had been more than halved.

He said the industry was scrambling to find information on how to measure grain dust exposure, and how to comply with the new regulations.

"To be honest, I wasn't aware of what our grain dust limits were until now," he said.

"When we're blowing down harvesters, we're cleaning out our own silos, what exposure is that giving us, how do you measure exposure when you're blowing down a harvester, and what's the correct PPE to use to make sure you don't go over this new limit.

"I think we need a three-year delay on implementing [the new rules] while industry can do more research on are these levels appropriate, or how we manage them into the future?"

Rules to protect workers

In a statement, Safe Work Australia said workplace exposure limits were used to protect workers and the revised workplace exposure limits reflect current scientific evidence and independent expert advice.

Safe Work said it conducted public consultation in 2019-2021, and the new limits were agreed by work health and safety ministers and published in April 2024 for implementation on December 1, 2026.

"Safe Work Australia recognises there are questions about how limits for phosphine and other airborne contaminants are applied in practice and is working with industry stakeholders and other government agencies, including the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, to support a consistent understanding of the requirements," the statement said.

"Compliance is assessed through personal air monitoring of workers, rather than measuring levels of an airborne contaminant at a fixed location."

Safe Work pointed to more information on its website.

The new standards are set by Safe Work Australia, but will be implemented by states legislation.

In August, WorkSafe Victoria said it would delay workplace exposure limits for 15 airborne contaminants, including phosphine, until December 1, 2029.

Grain industry groups met with West Australian Agriculture Minister Jackie Jarvis last week raising concerns about phosphine and grain dust compliance.

The minister told the ABC she was seeking more information from the impact of the new phosphine limits on the grains industry.

More than 600 substances are covered by the new workplace exposure limit (WEL) system, with exposure limits tightened for about 250 of them.

The WEL defines the maximum level of airborne contaminant that most people can be exposed to without harming their health.

Blanket approach does not consider individual challenges

Mining groups have requested government modify or delay the new rules before December 1.

Association of Mining and Exploration Companies chief executive Warren Pearce said Safe Work had taken a "blanket" approach, which was not always practical to implement.

"It's important for workplace safety and worker safety, but in some cases it doesn't take into account the challenges of certain ore bodies or certain minerals," he said.

"There are issues in minerals such as manganese, we're concerned we won't be able demonstrate that we can get beneath that limit because there's not an ability to measure at that level.

"There will be operations that won't be able to meet those limits, but there are other pathways to continue operations.

"We've seen tragic stories emerge over many decades with asbestos and more recently silica, so it's really important we approach this from a worker safety perspective.

"We're willing to do everything we can possibly do to ensure that's possible and minimise risk in this space, but there needs to be an ability to tailor to individual operations."

Mr Pearce said it was impossible to eliminate dust in mining, but industry used a range of tools such as protective equipment, pressurised cabs, dust monitoring and watering to reduce dust and exposure as much as possible.

In a statement, Minerals Council of Australia CEO Tania Constable said the proposed changes had significant implications across a range of Australian industries.

She said Safe Work Australia was consulting with affected industries, and MCA was providing input.

"This is an opportunity to ensure health objectives and all technical, scientific and implementation considerations are fully assessed before any final decisions are made and recognises the complex science and the practical ability of the minerals industry and other sectors to implement these limits," she said.

"These issues are particularly important in mining, where workplace exposure limits must be supported by reliable measurement methods, proven risk controls and practical implementation pathways across diverse operating environments."