Skip to main content

Signage

Your agrichemical store must have appropriate signage to alert people and emergency responders that they are approaching an area where hazardous substances are present.

All agrichemical stores should have two signs:

  • 2WE AGRICHEMICALS sign (where '2' means use fog or fine mist (water) for extinguishment, 'W' means wear full PPE with breathing apparatus, and 'E' means consider evacuating the area
  • a NO SMOKING sign.

Additional signage is required where the quantities of agrichemicals (hazardous substances) exceed the threshold levels in the table below:

 

Amount (trigger level)
50 kg or litres 100 kg or litres 250 kg or litres 1000 kg or litres 10 000 kg or litres
HSNO 3.1A 9.1A 3.1B 3.1C 3.1D
class 6.1A 9.2A 6.1B 6.1C 6.1D
8.2A 9.3A 8.2B 8.1A 9.1D
9.4A 8.2C 9.2D
8.3A 9.3C
9.1B
9.1C
9.2B
9.2C
9.3B
9.4B
9.4C
Note: Threshold is 250 L for petrol (or 2000 L on farm >4ha).

 

This additional signage must:

  • be located where clearly visible to persons entering a site where hazardous substances are located (at above the specified trigger quantities)
  • advise that the location contains hazardous substances
  • describe the hazardous property and nature of the hazard(s) of the substance
  • describe the precautions needed to safely manage the substance
  • give contacts for emergency response personnel
  • advise emergency service provider(s) and trained persons of the immediate emergency response actions for the hazardous substances present.
Signage must be:
  • easily understood
  • easily read from 10m distance, under varying conditions.

Signs must be positioned at every vehicular and pedestrian access to the building used to store agrichemicals. A practical interpretation of the legislation requires that store signage is visible from all approaches to the store (i.e. signs may be required on two or more sides). It is inappropriate from an emergency management point of view to have signage for agrichemical stores at all property entrances.

If your store is in a particular room or compartment within a building, the entrance to that room or compartment must also have signage.

More information can be found in WorkSafe's Quick Guide to Hazardous substance signage.

 

Specifications for signage were previously found in a Code of Practice but have now been incorporated into the Hazardous Substances Regulations.