Check before you load
What makes something dangerous goods
The NSW EPA defines dangerous goods as substances and objects whose chemical or physical nature makes them an acute risk to people, property and the environment. In NSW it regulates their transport along with SafeWork NSW.
To work out whether something in the shed is dangerous goods, the EPA lists six checks (the ADG Code is the Australian Dangerous Goods Code):
- Read its label.
- Look at its shipping or transport documents.
- Check the product’s safety data sheet (once called the materials safety data sheet).
- Ask the manufacturer or supplier.
- See whether the ADG Code’s dangerous goods list includes it, and that no special provision in column 7 excludes it.
- Have it tested against the ADG Code’s classification criteria or the UN Manual of Tests and Criteria.
- 2.1Flammable gases: LPG cylinders for a barbecue or heater.
- 3Petrol in jerrycans, and flammable paints.
- 5.1Pool chemicals such as pool chlorine.
- 8Acids, which the EPA lists with pool chemicals.
Why a removalist is in a different position
NSW has special provisions that let a person carry dangerous goods for their own use, or as tools of trade, without meeting every requirement that applies to larger loads. The EPA is plain that these provisions do not cover anyone moving goods as a business, giving a courier as its example, or if you carry more than the limits. Then the goods must be transported under the dangerous goods regulations. Under those regulations, anyone transporting dangerous goods needs training, and the driver and the vehicle may each need a licence.
That is one reason a removal company may decline to load the barbecue bottle or the fuel can even though you could take them in your own car. Ask the company for its list early, so nothing waits on the footpath on moving day.
If you carry them yourself in NSW
The EPA’s examples for personal use, as it publishes them:
| Item | What the EPA says |
|---|---|
| Barbecue LPG cylinders (division 2.1) | The EPA and SafeWork NSW advise no more than one 9 kg and one 4 kg gas bottle in a space connected to the passenger compartment, and that includes the boot. |
| Large 45 kg LPG cylinders for heating (division 2.1) | A maximum of 2 per vehicle, carried in an open tray or a ventilated compartment. |
| Petrol in jerrycans (class 3) | As much as 500 L in total, with no more than 250 L in a space joined to the passenger compartment, such as the boot. |
| Pool chlorine (division 5.1) and acids (class 8) | They can react dangerously in an incident. Load them carefully to reduce that risk, and consider segregated compartments or boxes. |
| Diesel | Not regulated as dangerous goods for transport, but still a hazardous chemical to carry in appropriate containers, and extra fuel in an incident if carried with petrol. |
Before setting off, the EPA says to inspect the packaging, make sure caps and closures are secure, and on gas bottles, close the main cylinder valve; consider removing the regulator if it could be wrenched off and damage the valve in an incident. Restrain the load following the National Transport Commission’s load restraint guide.
The allowances have ceilings. With flammable gas (other than aerosols) on board, the aggregate is 250 kg or litres of dangerous goods; and a load with flammable gas that is over 50 kg or litres can’t travel in the passenger compartment or in any enclosed space where vapours or fumes might build up. A vehicle carrying goods under these provisions must not be placarded.
Gas bottles, from the gas regulator
Energy Safe Victoria explains why the barbecue bottle gets the attention. LPG is stored as a liquid under pressure, and escapes can lead to explosions and fires. It is heavier than air, so it can pool in low places and may not disperse quickly, and it is highly flammable.
Two of its tips matter at a move. Only use LPG cylinders that have been tested within the last 10 years, with the test date marked on the cylinder. And dispose of disposable gas canisters at a waste centre, never by burning them; your local council can tell you where.
A last sweep of the shed
As an illustration of using the EPA’s checklist: before the truck arrives, walk the garage and the laundry with the label test in mind. Anything carrying a dangerous goods diamond, or with a safety data sheet that lists it as dangerous goods, goes on a separate list to raise with the removalist, to carry yourself within the limits above, or to use up or dispose of before you go.