OH Consultant

Warehouse & Logistics: WHS Management That Works When You're Not Looking

Diesel particulate matter has never had a workplace exposure standard in Australia. From 1 December 2026, it gets one: 0.1 mg/m³. If you operate diesel forklifts indoors, you have eight months to find out whether your ventilation keeps workers below a limit that did not previously exist.

0.1 mg/m³
Diesel particulate WEL (NEW)
Safe Work Australia WEL List
29% of all workplace injuries
Manual handling injury rate
SafeWork NSW Statistical Bulletin
9
Codes of Practice becoming binding
SafeWork NSW — Section 26A

What keeps warehouse and logistics managers up at night

Diesel particulate in enclosed spaces

Warehouses with diesel-powered forklifts, loading docks with idling trucks, and enclosed dispatch areas accumulate diesel particulate. With no prior WES, many warehouses have never monitored for diesel exhaust. The new 0.1 mg/m³ WEL arrives in December 2026. Diesel particulate is classified as carcinogenic (Group 1 by IARC) and the health effects of chronic low-level exposure are well documented.

Safe Work Australia WEL List; WHS Regulation 2025, Chapter 7

Forklift incidents remain the leading cause of warehouse fatalities

Pedestrian-forklift interaction, tip-overs, falling loads, and struck-by incidents account for a disproportionate share of warehouse deaths and serious injuries. The Managing Risks of Plant Code requires traffic management plans, exclusion zones, pre-start checks, and operator competency verification. From July 2026, this code is legally binding.

Code of Practice — Managing the risks of plant; WHS Regulation 2025, Chapter 5

Manual handling across picking, packing, and dispatch

Order picking, palletising, and truck loading involve repetitive lifting, awkward postures, and sustained physical effort. Manual handling injuries are the single largest category of workers' compensation claims in warehousing.

Code of Practice — Hazardous manual tasks

What's changing for warehouse and logistics in 2026

WEL Impact (2 substances affected)

SubstanceCurrent WESNew WELChangeEffective
Diesel particulateNo current WES0.1 mg/m³NEW1 December 2026
PNOS (inhalable)10 mg/m³10 mg/m³No changeCurrent

Section 26A Applicable Codes (9)

Managing the risks of plant
Covers forklifts, conveyors, dock levellers — requires traffic management plans, exclusion zones, pre-start checks, and operator competency
Hazardous manual tasks
Addresses repetitive lifting, awkward postures, and sustained force in picking, packing, and dispatch operations
Managing risks of hazardous chemicals
Governs diesel exhaust, cleaning chemicals, and any other hazardous substances used in warehouse operations
Managing noise and preventing hearing loss
Loading docks, machinery, and vehicle operations generate noise levels requiring formal assessment
Managing the work environment and facilities
Covers ventilation, lighting, temperature, and amenities in warehouse environments

Penalty Exposure

Max Individual
$2,318,844 (Category 1) or $447,122 (Category 2)
Max Body Corporate
$11,150,183 (Category 1) or $2,235,363 (Category 2)
Uninsurable Since
10 June 2020
Recent Prosecution
Forklift-related fatalities and serious injuries continue to attract significant penalties, with warehouse sector prosecutions routinely exceeding $200,000.

How EHS Atlas solves this for warehouse and logistics

FlaskConical
Diesel exhaust flagged as NEW substance with WEL
Diesel particulate registered with the incoming WEL of 0.1 mg/m³. Flagged as a NEW substance with no prior WES. Cleaning chemicals and other warehouse substances also tracked.
Chemical register shows diesel particulate as red — NEW limit, no prior monitoring. System prompts exposure assessment for indoor forklift areas.
ClipboardCheck
Forklift pre-starts, racking inspections, fire equipment
Scheduled inspections for forklift pre-start checks, racking integrity, fire equipment, and general housekeeping. Photo evidence for every finding.
Daily forklift pre-start check identifies hydraulic leak. Forklift tagged out. Corrective action assigned to maintenance. Tracked to completion.
ShieldAlert
Forklift-pedestrian interaction, manual handling, diesel exposure
Structured risk assessments for the three highest-risk areas in warehousing. Each assessment references the applicable Code of Practice.
Forklift-pedestrian interaction risk assessment references the Managing Risks of Plant Code. System maps current controls against code requirements.
GraduationCap
Forklift licence tracking, manual handling, site induction
Track high-risk work licences for forklift operators, manual handling training, site inductions, and re-certification dates.
Forklift operator's licence expires next month. System alerts the supervisor. Operator scheduled for renewal before expiry.
AlertTriangle
Near-miss reporting for forklift-pedestrian events
Structured incident logging with focus on forklift-pedestrian interactions, manual handling injuries, and near-miss events. Investigation workflow with root cause analysis.
Pedestrian reports near-miss with forklift at aisle intersection. Logged. Investigation identifies inadequate signage. Corrective action: install mirrors and floor markings.
BarChart3
Diesel particulate highlighted as NEW limit
Diesel particulate prominently flagged as a NEW substance gaining a WEL for the first time. Days-until-deadline counter for December 2026.
Dashboard shows diesel particulate as red (NEW). No prior monitoring data. System generates action plan: commission exposure assessment, review ventilation, evaluate electric forklift transition.

Your warehouse and logistics compliance calendar

January
Annual forklift traffic management plan review
Code of Practice — Managing the risks of plant
Pedestrian-forklift interaction is the leading cause of warehouse fatalities
March
Manual handling risk assessment update — picking, packing, dispatch
Code of Practice — Hazardous manual tasks
Manual handling injuries are the largest claims category
May
Commission diesel particulate exposure monitoring
Safe Work Australia WEL List
Cannot demonstrate compliance without baseline data
June
Pre-July s.26A readiness — verify 9 codes documented
WHS Act s.26A
Non-compliance from 1 July 2026 is a breach
July
Section 26A takes effect — codes legally binding
WHS Act 2011 s.26A
Must follow code or document alternative
September
Racking inspection — structural integrity audit
AS 4084 (Steel storage racking)
Racking collapse = catastrophic injury potential
November
Final WEL readiness — diesel particulate
Safe Work Australia WEL List
30 days to transition
December
WEL takes effect — all monitoring against new limits
WHS Regulation 2025 (as amended)
Immediate enforcement

See EHS Atlas configured for warehouse operations

Forklift management, manual handling templates, and diesel particulate tracking — 15-minute walkthrough.