Scope note
Workplace exposure standards, the triggers for air monitoring, and the requirements for health monitoring are set in the regulations and lists that apply in your jurisdiction, and they are substance-specific. This template does not state exposure figures. Record the standard for each substance from its safety data sheet and your jurisdiction's list, confirmed with Safe Work Australia and your state WHS regulator.
Assess the task, not just the product. The same chemical is low risk poured carefully into a bucket and high risk sprayed as a mist in an unventilated room.
Assessment details
Task assessed One assessment per task, for example spray application, decanting, mixing, cleaning a specific area
Chemicals used, as labelled Cross-reference the chemical register entries
Quantity used per task, and frequency
Location, and whether indoor, outdoor or enclosed
Workers doing the task, and anyone else nearby
Assessor, date and review date
Step 1 - Hazard information from the safety data sheet
Read the sheet for each product before assessing. Record the exposure standard where one exists.
- Acute health effects identified, including corrosive and irritant effects
- Chronic health effects identified, including carcinogenic, mutagenic and reproductive hazards
- Sensitising substances identified, since a sensitised worker can react at very low exposures thereafter
- Physical hazards identified: flammable, oxidising, corrosive to metals, gas under pressure
- Incompatibilities identified, including mixtures created accidentally during cleaning
- Decomposition products considered, including what is released when the substance is heated or burnt
| Product | Hazard classification | Health effects | Exposure standard, if any | SDS date | Physical hazards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Step 2 - How exposure actually happens in this task
Duration and frequency of exposure per shift
Is any exposure likely to approach the exposure standard If yes, air monitoring by a competent person may be required
- Inhalation: vapour, mist, aerosol, dust, fume, gas
- Skin contact: splash, immersion, contaminated surfaces, contaminated gloves, contaminated clothing
- Skin absorption, which can occur without any sensation
- Eye contact: splash, mist, rubbing eyes with contaminated hands
- Ingestion: hand to mouth, eating or drinking in the work area, contaminated containers
- Injection: sharps, high pressure equipment, damaged skin
- Exposure to others nearby, including people in adjacent areas and on later shifts
- Exposure during non-routine moments: decanting, spills, cleaning, maintenance, disposal
Step 3 - Controls, strongest first
- Eliminate: stop using the chemical, or stop doing the task
- Substitute: a less hazardous product, or a less hazardous form such as a liquid instead of a powder, or a ready-diluted product instead of a concentrate
- Isolate: enclose the process, use a fume cupboard or glove box, restrict access, work outside normal hours away from others
- Engineering: local exhaust ventilation at the point of release, general ventilation, closed transfer systems, splash guards, dispensing equipment
- Administrative: written procedures, training, reduced quantities, decanting into labelled containers, no eating or drinking in the area, hygiene rules
- PPE: gloves of the correct material and breakthrough time, eye protection, respiratory protection fit tested, coveralls
| Exposure route | Control chosen | Level in the hierarchy | Owner | Due date | How it is verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Step 4 - Storage, spill and emergency
- Storage complies with the safety data sheet, with incompatibles segregated
- Quantities at the point of use kept to the minimum for the task
- Decanted containers labelled with product name and hazard information
- Spill kit suited to these chemicals, present, stocked, and staff trained to use it
- Spill procedure written, including when to evacuate rather than clean up
- Eyewash and safety shower available, unobstructed, and flushed on a schedule where required
- First aid measures from the safety data sheet known to first aiders
- Fire response considered, including the correct extinguishing media
- Waste disposal route defined and compliant
- Emergency contacts displayed, including 000 and the poisons information line for your country
Step 5 - Training and health monitoring
Health monitoring required for any substance in this task (Y/N) Check your jurisdiction's list of substances requiring monitoring
If yes, who supervises it, and the interval
- Workers trained on the specific hazards, controls and emergency response for this task
- Workers know where the safety data sheets are and can read the relevant sections
- Correct PPE use, including glove selection, removal without self-contamination, and disposal
- Respirator users fit tested, trained and medically assessed where required
- Health monitoring requirement checked for each substance, since it is required for specified substances in many jurisdictions
- Where health monitoring applies, a registered medical practitioner supervises it and workers receive their results
- Records retained for the required period, which can be many years for substances with long-latency effects