Plumber SWMS in Australian Capital Territory

The SWMS law in Australian Capital Territory

Plumber work in Australian Capital Territory is regulated by WorkSafe ACT under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (ACT) and the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (ACT). The duty to prepare a SWMS before high risk construction work is set by WHS Regulation 2011 (ACT) reg 299, and the high risk construction work itself is defined in WHS Regulation 2011 (ACT) reg 291. These follow the harmonised model WHS laws, so a SWMS prepared for another harmonised state transfers with a site-specific review.

The ACT carries a unique loose-fill asbestos ("Mr Fluffy") legacy affecting many older homes, so demolition and renovation SWMS in the territory should treat asbestos identification as a live risk before any work starts.

The ACT was the first Australian jurisdiction to create an industrial manslaughter offence, introduced in 2004, and it applies to a PCBU or officer whose conduct causes a worker's death. A site-specific SWMS is part of how a plumber business shows it identified and controlled the high risk work these duties attach to, rather than relying on a generic template.

High risk work for plumber crews

The high risk construction work categories a plumber SWMS usually has to cover:

• ✓ Work in or near a shaft or trench deeper than 1.5 m, or a tunnel
• ✓ Work in or near a confined space
• ✓ Work on or near pressurised gas distribution mains or piping

Typical plumber activities that each need their own SWMS:

• · Trenching and laying underground services deeper than 1.5 m
• · Sewer and stormwater connections (confined space entry)
• · Roof plumbing and gutter installation above 2 m
• · Hot water system installation and replacement
• · Gas line installation and work near pressurised gas mains
• · Core drilling and penetrations through concrete

Hazards a plumber SWMS has to control

The hazards that recur on plumber jobs and that a site-specific SWMS is expected to address:

• ⚠ Trench collapse
• ⚠ Confined space atmospheres
• ⚠ Underground service strikes
• ⚠ Falls from roofs and ladders
• ⚠ Sewage and biological exposure
• ⚠ Hot work on pipework

The rules a plumber SWMS is written against

Beyond the general duty in WHS Regulation 2011 (ACT) reg 299, a plumber SWMS in Australian Capital Territory is written against the specific model WHS duties and standards that apply to the trade's activities:

• § reg 304: the person with management or control of the workplace must take all reasonable steps to obtain current underground essential services information for the excavation area and adjacent areas before directing or allowing the excavation to start, and must give it to any person it engages to carry out the excavation; that person, and any business given the information, must have regard to it. A contractor that does not manage or control the workplace gets the information from the person with management or control of the workplace (normally the principal contractor) before excavating
• § reg 305: manage the risks of any excavation work under Part 3.1, including a person falling into the excavation, being trapped by its collapse, being struck by a falling thing or exposed to an airborne contaminant, having regard to the nature of the excavation, the work method and the means of entry and exit. Barricading or isolating the area around an excavation shallower than 1.5 m is a control under this duty (with reg 36), never under reg 306
• § reg 306: before excavating a trench at least 1.5 m deep, secure the work area from unauthorised access and support all sides by shoring, benching or battering, unless a geotechnical engineer advises in writing that the sides are safe from collapse. The duty applies to a trench 1.5 m deep or deeper. It sets no inspection frequency, so trench inspection is written as good practice without this citation. Securing the area around a shallower excavation is NOT this duty (see reg 305)
• § reg 291: high risk construction work includes work in or near a shaft or trench with an excavated depth GREATER than 1.5 m, or a tunnel ("deeper than 1.5 m" is correct for this category; the reg 306 support duty applies at 1.5 m)
• § reg 62 to reg 77: confined spaces (pits, tanks, sewer access); risk assessment under reg 66, entry permits under reg 67
• § reg 78 and reg 79: managing the risk of falls (roof plumbing, ladder work)
• § reg 166: when working near an overhead or underground electric line, no person, plant or thing may come within an unsafe distance of it; where that is not reasonably practicable a risk assessment and control measures are required
• § reg 44 to reg 47: PPE duties
• § AS/NZS 3500: plumbing and drainage (the technical standard the plumbing work itself is carried out to)
• § AS/NZS 5601.1: gas installations (gas line installation, purging and testing for leaks before commissioning)
• § AS/NZS 2865: confined spaces (entry permits, atmospheric testing and stand-by person for pits, tanks and sewer access)
• § Asbestos and plumbing work: the asbestos demolition and refurbishment lines that follow apply to plumbing work only where the job is refurbishment that disturbs the structure itself (for example cutting into walls, floors or wet area linings, or cutting out or removing old pipes, flues or vent stacks) in an older building, structure or plant that the application line covers (built or installed before the date it gives). Minor or routine maintenance work, and other minor work, is excluded. On a job that does not disturb the structure in such a building, do not state these duties as applying
• § reg 447: the asbestos duties for demolition and refurbishment (reg 448 to reg 457) apply to the demolition or refurbishment of a structure or plant constructed or installed before 31 December 2003. Demolition or refurbishment does not include minor or routine maintenance work, or other minor work. Where these duties apply they are law, never good practice
• § reg 448 to reg 450: before demolition or refurbishment starts, the person with management or control of the workplace must ensure the asbestos register is reviewed (and revised if it is inadequate for the proposed work) and that the business carrying out the work is given a copy, and the business carrying out the demolition or refurbishment must obtain a copy of the asbestos register from the person with management or control of the workplace before it starts the work
• § reg 451: where there is no asbestos register for the structure or plant, the business that is to carry out the demolition or refurbishment must not carry it out until the structure or plant has been inspected to determine whether asbestos or ACM is fixed to or installed in it, and must ensure that the determination is undertaken by a competent person. It must assume that asbestos or ACM is fixed to or installed in the structure or plant if the competent person is, on reasonable grounds, uncertain, or if part of the structure or plant is inaccessible and likely to be disturbed. If asbestos or ACM is determined or assumed to be present, it must inform the occupier and the owner of the premises (residential premises) or, in any other case, the person with management or control of the workplace
• § reg 456 and reg 457: all asbestos that is likely to be disturbed by the refurbishment must be identified and, so far as is reasonably practicable, removed before the refurbishment is commenced. For residential premises this is the duty of the business carrying out the refurbishment (reg 457); for any other workplace it is the duty of the person with management or control of the workplace, or of the structure or plant (reg 456)

What Australian Capital Territory builders check before you start

A principal contractor in Australian Capital Territory collects your SWMS before your crew goes on site and checks four things: that it is site-specific to this job (not a reused template), that every high risk category for plumber work is covered and controlled, that controls follow the hierarchy rather than jumping to PPE, and that it cites Australian Capital Territory legislation. SWMS Pack writes to all four: your site details throughout, WHS Regulation 2011 (ACT) reg 299 cited, and an adversarial review pass before delivery.

Common questions

Plumber SWMS in other states

New South WalesVictoriaQueenslandWestern AustraliaSouth AustraliaTasmaniaNorthern Territory

Other trades in Australian Capital Territory

ElectricianCarpenterRooferScaffolderConcreterBricklayerPainterTilerDemolitionExcavation / EarthmovingSolar Installer