Dangerous Goods & Hazardous Materials Storage & Segregation SWMS
SWMS template for on-site storage and segregation of dangerous goods and hazardous materials. Covers DG cabinets, class incompatibility, placard/manifest quantities, bunding, ventilation and ignition control. Queensland coverage, CIH-reviewed editable DOCX, available as an instant download.
SWMS variants reference your state’s WHS legislation. Instant download after payment.
On-site storage and segregation of dangerous goods covers the fixed warehousing, shed storage, cabinet storage, and bulk holding of hazardous chemicals classified under the GHS — flammable and combustible liquids, compressed and liquefied gases including LPG cylinders, oxidising agents, corrosives, and acute toxics. The work is distinct from transport and from general handling: it centres on how packaged and bulk dangerous goods are laid out, separated by class, contained, ventilated, and protected from ignition while at rest in the store. Under Chapter 7 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), a PCBU storing hazardous chemicals must identify them, maintain a current chemical register and, where threshold quantities are reached, a manifest and placarding; must control ignition sources; provide spill containment; and store incompatible classes apart so far as is reasonably practicable. AS 1940:2017 governs flammable and combustible liquid stores, while AS/NZS 3833 and AS 4452 govern packaged dangerous goods and toxic substances, defining segregation distances, cabinet capacities, bunding, and ventilation. Where large threshold quantities are held, the Dangerous Goods Safety Management Act 2001 (Qld) may also apply. This SWMS establishes the systematic framework for a compliant, auditable dangerous goods store and is best practice for any workplace holding hazardous chemicals in quantity.
Hazards identified
8 hazards covered, sorted by priority.
Uncontrolled reaction on leak or spill releasing toxic gas, fire, or violent heat generation causing serious injury or fatality
Flash fire or vapour cloud explosion causing severe burns, structural collapse, and multiple-casualty fatality event
Emergency responders unaware of on-site hazard inventory, escalated incident outcome, and prosecution for regulatory breach under Chapter 7 WHS Regulation
Environmental contamination, notifiable incident, clean-up liability, and significant maximum penalties under the WHS and environmental legislation
Cylinder becomes a projectile, gas jet fire, or LPG BLEVE; asphyxiation in an inert or oxygen-displaced store causing sudden collapse and death
Incompatible goods placed together undetected, latent reaction risk, and stock issued or used against the wrong SDS controls
Acute lumbar disc and shoulder injury, dropped-container spill, and chronic musculoskeletal disorder requiring intervention
Fire spreads across incompatible stock, involves cylinders and flammable liquids, defeats manual response, and threatens adjacent occupancies
Control measures
Hierarchy-of-controls order: elimination → substitution → isolation → engineering → administrative → PPE.
- 1Elimination — Eliminate on-site holdings of dangerous goods not required for current operations by returning surplus or expired stock to the supplier or a licensed waste contractor, reducing the store inventory below placard and manifest thresholds where practicable.
- 2Substitution — Substitute high-hazard stored products with lower-hazard equivalents where an SDS comparison confirms equivalent function, and hold flammables and toxics in the smallest package size and lowest total quantity that operations require.
- 3Isolation — Segregate incompatible classes into separate bunds, cabinets, or dedicated store zones in accordance with AS 1940:2017 and AS/NZS 3833 segregation distances; store oxidisers away from flammables, acids away from bases and reactive sulfides/cyanides, and keep gas cylinders in a separate, secured, well-ventilated cage.
- 4Isolation — Restrain all compressed-gas cylinders upright with chains or brackets, separate full from empty and oxygen from fuel gases, and locate LPG and other liquefied-gas stores externally or in high/low-level cross-ventilated areas away from drains, pits, and ignition sources.
- 5Engineering — Provide compliant flammable-liquid storage cabinets and bulk bunds sized to 110% of the largest container, spark-proof and intrinsically rated electrical fittings in flammable zones, cross-flow and high/low ventilation to prevent vapour accumulation, and fixed or portable fire suppression matched to the stored classes.
- 6Engineering — Install spill-containment bunding graded away from stormwater, spill kits and neutralising agents at the store, an eye-wash and safety shower within 10 seconds travel per AS 4775, and gas detection or oxygen monitoring where liquefied or inert gases are held.
- 7Administrative — Maintain a current chemical register with an SDS for every product, a manifest and placarding where threshold quantities are reached, and a segregation matrix displayed at the store; control ignition sources through a hot-work permit and no-smoking signage per Chapter 7 of the WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld).
- 8Administrative — Restrict store access to trained, authorised personnel; verify GHS labels and container integrity on receipt and during routine inspection; enforce safe stacking heights and load limits on DG shelving; and rehearse the store emergency and spill response plan with WHSQ notification triggers documented.
- 9PPE — Select PPE per each SDS Section 8: chemical-resistant gloves (nitrile/butyl/Viton matched to the substance), AS/NZS 1337.1 eye protection or face shield for decant and inspection, AS/NZS 1716 respiratory protection for vapour exposure, and chemical-resistant apron and AS/NZS 2210.3 footwear.
- 10PPE — Provide gas-appropriate escape respiratory protection and gauntlets for cylinder handling, and ensure emergency responders have access to SCBA and the manifest and site emergency information at the store entry point.
Applicable Codes of Practice
Imposes PCBU duties to identify, label, register, manifest, placard, ventilate, control ignition sources for, and safely store and segregate hazardous chemicals, and underpins the SWMS and induction obligations for this storage work.
Provides the approved risk management methodology for hazardous chemical storage in Queensland, defining acceptable segregation, ventilation, spill containment, and register practice enforced by Workplace Health and Safety Queensland.
Defines cabinet capacities, bulk-store bunding, segregation distances, ventilation, and ignition-source control applied to the on-site storage of flammable and combustible liquids.
Sets segregation, compatibility, bunding, and placarding requirements for packaged dangerous goods and toxic substances held in the store, including class-to-class separation of oxidisers, corrosives, and toxics.
Mandates pictograms, signal words, and hazard statements verified on receipt and maintained on stored containers so that each product is stored in the correct segregation zone.
High-Risk Construction Work triggered
Routine on-site storage and segregation of dangerous goods is not, of itself, high-risk construction work under section 291 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld), so a construction SWMS is not mandated on that basis. However, storing hazardous chemicals engages mandatory and directly enforceable duties under Chapter 7 of the Regulation — identifying and registering the chemicals, holding current Safety Data Sheets, preparing a manifest and placarding once placard or manifest quantities are reached, controlling ignition sources, and safely storing and segregating incompatible classes. In addition, any associated work carried out in an area that may have a contaminated or flammable atmosphere (for example hot work near a flammable store) is high-risk construction work under section 291 for which a SWMS is legally required. A documented SWMS for the storage and handling task is best practice, is commonly required by clients and site principals, and evidences discharge of the primary duty under the WHS Act. Penalties for breaching these duties are substantial and indexed under the WHS Act and are enforced by Workplace Health and Safety Queensland.
Who this is for
- →Warehouse and store personnel holding dangerous goods on site
- →Dangerous goods store supervisors and site chemical coordinators
- →Forklift and manual handling operators working in a DG store
- →Manufacturing and workshop staff managing on-site chemical stock
What you receive
- ✓Editable DOCX template — Microsoft Word compatible
- ✓Queensland WHS legislation and Code of Practice schedule
- ✓Hazard register with risk ratings + hierarchy-of-control mapping
- ✓Segregation matrix prompt, spill response flow, and worker sign-on register
Worked example
At a Queensland regional manufacturing site, a store person is rostered to receive a delivery of ten 200L drums of a flammable solvent, four IBCs of a corrosive cleaner, and a pallet of oxidiser sacks, then put them away in the dangerous goods store. At the 7:00am pre-start brief, the supervisor opens this SWMS on the toolbox tablet and walks the crew through the hazard register, flagging incompatible co-mingling and flammable vapour accumulation as the controlling hazards for the task. The store person cross-checks each product's GHS label against the chemical register and confirms the SDS revision dates are current. Before put-away, the crew consult the segregation matrix displayed at the store entry: the oxidiser must not go on the flammable bund, and the corrosive IBCs must sit in the acid/base bund away from the solvent drums. The flammable drums are placed in the bunded flammable zone under the compliant cross-ventilation, with the intrinsically rated fittings confirmed operating and no-smoking and hot-work controls verified. The store person notices one drum's label is faded to the point the class code is unreadable; the drum is quarantined, re-identified against the SDS and register, and relabelled before storage rather than being guessed into a bund. A quantity check shows the incoming solvent will push the flammable holding toward the placard threshold, so the supervisor confirms placarding and the manifest are current and updates the register. Compressed-gas cylinders already on site are checked for upright restraint and full/empty separation in the external cage. Mid-task, a small weep is found at an IBC valve; the crew stop, deploy the spill kit and neutraliser from the store, contain the leak within the graded bund so nothing reaches the stormwater drain, and record the event. Both workers sign on to the SWMS and the amended register before the store is closed and secured.
Related legislation
- Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
- Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld) — Chapter 7
- Managing risks of hazardous chemicals CoP 2021 (Qld); Dangerous Goods Safety Management Act 2001 (Qld); ADG Code
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a SWMS for dangerous goods storage and segregation work?
A SWMS is not strictly mandated simply because you store dangerous goods — on-site storage is not, of itself, high-risk construction work under section 291 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld). What the Regulation does make mandatory, through Chapter 7, are the hazardous-chemical duties: identifying and registering the chemicals, holding current Safety Data Sheets, preparing a manifest and placarding at threshold quantities, controlling ignition sources, and safely segregating incompatible classes. A documented SWMS or safe work procedure for the storage and handling task is best practice, is routinely required by principal contractors and clients, and is the most auditable way to record hazard identification, segregation decisions and worker consultation. Note too that any associated work carried out in a contaminated or flammable atmosphere — such as hot work near a flammable store — is high-risk construction work under section 291 for which a SWMS is legally required.
How do the placard and manifest quantities affect my store?
Chapter 7 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld) sets threshold quantities that trigger placarding, a manifest, and notification to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland. Once your holding of a hazardous chemical reaches the placard quantity you must display the outdoor and container placards; at the manifest quantity you must prepare and maintain a manifest and site emergency information so responders know the on-site inventory. This SWMS prompts you to check your stored quantities against those thresholds and confirm the corresponding controls, placarding, and register entries are current before storage proceeds. Where very large threshold quantities are held, the Dangerous Goods Safety Management Act 2001 (Qld) may also apply.
How should incompatible dangerous goods be segregated in the store?
Segregate by class using the separation distances and compatibility rules in AS 1940:2017 for flammable and combustible liquids and AS/NZS 3833 and AS 4452 for packaged dangerous goods and toxic substances. Keep oxidisers away from flammables, acids away from bases and from reactive sulfides and cyanides, and hold compressed-gas cylinders in a separate, secured, well-ventilated cage with full separated from empty and oxidising gases from fuel gases. Use dedicated bunds or cabinets for each incompatible group, display a segregation matrix at the store, and verify GHS labels on receipt so nothing is placed in the wrong zone.
Does this SWMS replace the Safety Data Sheet, chemical register, or manifest?
No. The SWMS documents how the storage task is performed safely; it does not replace the current SDS for each product, the workplace chemical register, or the manifest and placarding duties under Chapter 7 of the WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld). Controls and PPE must still be matched to each SDS Section 8, and the register, manifest, and segregation checks remain standing legal requirements for the store that the SWMS references rather than replaces.
How do I make this SWMS site-specific before use?
Enter your PCBU and site details, then align the hazard register with the actual dangerous goods you hold — confirming SDS revision dates, GHS labels, stored quantities against placard and manifest thresholds, and the incompatibilities relevant to your store layout. Verify that the listed controls match what is installed on site, such as cabinet and bund capacities, ventilation, cylinder restraint, gas detection, and spill containment, then consult the workers doing the task and have them sign on before work starts. A generic, unedited SWMS will not stand up to a WHSQ audit or an incident investigation.