Underground Tank Removal SWMS
NSW — Underground Tank Removal. Full task scope, hazards and controls to be authored to Phase 1 standard.
SWMS variants reference your state’s WHS legislation. Instant download after payment.
Underground tank removal is the decommissioning and removal of underground petroleum storage systems (UPSS) and similar buried tanks. It is high risk construction work under the WHS Regulation because it is carried out in or near a confined space, in a trench or excavation deeper than 1.5 m, in a contaminated or flammable atmosphere, and with the movement of powered mobile plant (s291), so a SWMS is mandatory (s299). The hazards stack: a buried fuel tank holds flammable vapour long after it is emptied, so cutting or hot work on an un-gas-freed tank can detonate it; the tank interior is a confined space; the excavation around it can collapse once it passes 1.5 m; the surrounding soil is frequently contaminated with hydrocarbons and lead; and the lift of the tank brings crane and mobile-plant risk. UPSS decommissioning also carries environmental obligations — notification and contaminated-land management under the applicable state legislation. The SWMS sequences gas-freeing, confined-space and excavation controls, the lift, and contaminated-soil handling so the tank is rendered safe before it is cut or lifted. It is supplied in eight jurisdiction editions, each citing its own Act, Regulation, regulator and environmental framework.
Hazards identified
8 hazards covered, sorted by priority.
Tank explosion and fatal blast
Asphyxiation, fire or explosion; breach of the confined space duty (WHS Reg Part 4.3)
Crush fatality or burial in the excavation
Chemical and heavy-metal exposure and an environmental incident
Dropped tank and crush fatality
Crush or struck-by fatality
Electrocution, gas release or flooding
Falls into the excavation and public exposure
Control measures
Hierarchy-of-controls order: elimination → substitution → isolation → engineering → administrative → PPE.
- 1Elimination — Gas-free, purge and render the tank inert before any cutting or hot work so no flammable atmosphere remains
- 2Substitution — Substitute cold cutting and remote tank handling for in-excavation hot work and personnel entry wherever the method allows
- 3Engineering — Continuous flammable-vapour and oxygen monitoring with the tank proven gas-free before cutting, and forced ventilation for any entry
- 4Engineering — Battered or shored excavation faces designed for the soil class to prevent collapse beyond 1.5 m
- 5Engineering — Certified lifting gear and crane set-up to the load chart, with the tank de-gassed before lifting
- 6Administrative — Confined space entry permit, hot-work permit and dial-before-you-dig services location before excavation
- 7Administrative — UPSS decommissioning notification and contaminated-land management under the applicable state environmental legislation
- 8Administrative — Exclusion zone around the excavation and lift, with spotters and the public excluded
- 9PPE — Air-supplied or appropriate respiratory protection for entry and vapour, with chemical-resistant clothing for contaminated soil
- 10PPE — Hard hat, high-visibility clothing, gloves and steel-toe boots for the excavation and lift crew
Applicable Codes of Practice
Central code — the tank interior is a confined space
Duties for trench and excavation collapse prevention
Duties for flammable vapour and contaminated soil
General construction duties and SWMS requirements
Technical basis for confined-space entry, ventilation and rescue
Reference for flammable-liquid tank handling and gas-freeing
High-Risk Construction Work triggered
The tank interior is entered as a confined space for cleaning and cutting.
The excavation around the tank routinely exceeds 1.5 m.
Residual fuel vapour and contaminated soil create a flammable, contaminated atmosphere.
Excavators and lifting plant move within the work area.
Who this is for
- →UPSS and underground-tank removal contractors
- →Service-station decommissioning contractors
- →Environmental remediation contractors
- →Confined-space and excavation supervisors
- →Civil contractors with UPSS specialty
What you receive
- ✓Editable DOCX template — Microsoft Word compatible
- ✓State-specific WHS legislation schedule (NSW/VIC/QLD/SA/WA/TAS/NT/ACT)
- ✓Hazard register with risk ratings + hierarchy-of-control mapping
- ✓Worker sign-on register, pre-start checklist, and incident escalation flow
Worked example
At 7:00 am a crew from Subsurface Civil arrives to remove a decommissioned petrol tank from a former service station. The supervisor confirms the UPSS decommissioning notification was lodged and the dial-before-you-dig plans are checked, with the team potholing to expose a nearby gas main first. The tank is pumped out, then gas-freed and purged, and a flammable-vapour monitor proves it inert before anyone cuts it — the rule is no torch on a tank that is not proven gas-free. The excavation is battered as it passes 1.5 m, and the surrounding soil, which smells of hydrocarbons, is handled as contaminated and loaded into lined trucks. The tank is slung with certified gear and lifted by an excavator working to its chart, with a spotter keeping the crew clear of the lift and the open hole. The excavation is fenced against public access and a validation sample is taken before backfill. Nothing contaminated is washed to the drains.
Related legislation
- WHS Act 2011 (model)
- WHS Regulation 2025
- Excavation Work Code of Practice
- AS 1940 The storage and handling of flammable and combustible liquids
Frequently asked questions
Is removing an underground fuel tank high risk construction work?
Yes, and four paragraphs of WHS Regulation s291 stack on the one job. The tank interior is entered for cleaning and cutting, engaging s291(f) for confined spaces. The excavation around it routinely passes 1.5 metres, engaging s291(g). Residual fuel vapour and hydrocarbon-contaminated soil create a flammable or contaminated atmosphere under s291(l). Excavators and lifting plant working in the same area bring in s291(o). Section 299 makes the SWMS mandatory before work starts. That stacking is the point of the document: each hazard is manageable alone, and it is the sequence between them that gets people killed.
Does the tank have to be gas-freed before we cut it?
Yes, and the document treats it as an elimination control rather than a precaution. A buried petroleum tank holds flammable vapour long after it has been pumped out, which is why an empty tank explodes under a torch. The sequence is pump out, gas-free, purge and render inert, with continuous flammable-vapour and oxygen monitoring proving the tank gas-free before any cutting begins. AS 1940 is the reference for flammable liquid tank handling and gas-freeing. Where the method allows, cold cutting is substituted for hot work entirely. The stated rule is blunt: no torch on a tank that is not proven gas-free.
What permits and rescue arrangements need to be in place?
Three permits typically run together on this job: a confined space entry permit for any entry into the tank, a hot work permit where cutting is done, and dial-before-you-dig services location completed before the excavation opens, since tanks sit among live fuel, electrical and gas assets. AS 2865 is the technical basis for entry, forced ventilation and rescue. Respiratory protection for entry and vapour work is air-supplied or otherwise appropriate to the atmosphere rather than a dust mask. Rescue must be planned and resourced before entry, because a collapse in a tank cannot be answered by someone climbing in after.
Does this cover the contaminated soil and the environmental notifications?
It covers the work-health side fully and points to the environmental duties without replacing them. Hydrocarbon and lead-contaminated soil is a listed high priority hazard, handled with chemical-resistant clothing and appropriate respiratory protection, loaded into lined trucks, with a validation sample taken before backfill and nothing contaminated washed to drains. Separately, UPSS decommissioning notification and contaminated-land management sit under the applicable state environmental legislation, and the SWMS records those obligations as administrative controls. The approvals themselves are held with the environmental regulator and the site owner — get them lodged before mobilising, not after.
Does it cover lifting the tank out, and what do I actually receive?
It covers the lift controls: certified lifting gear, the crane or excavator set up to its load chart, the tank proven de-gassed before it is slung, a spotter keeping the crew clear of both the lift and the open hole, and the excavation fenced against public access. A complex or critical pick still warrants its own lift study. What you receive is a single editable Word document, bought once, in one of eight jurisdiction editions covering NSW, VIC, QLD, SA, WA, TAS, NT and ACT, each citing its own Act, Regulation, regulator and environmental framework, with the hazard register, sign-on register and pre-start checklist included.
Document details
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