_____
LEGISLATIVE AND LEGAL NEWS
CUTTING RED TAPE FOR TRANSPORTERS OF EXPLOSIVES AND FIREWORKS
Removing unnecessary and inefficient duties imposed on transporters of explosives was the focus of the latest amendments to the Dangerous Goods Safety (Explosives) Regulations 2007 (the Explosives Regulations) that took effect on 21 March 2018. The amendments maintain the optimal effectiveness and currency of the regulations and focus on reducing regulatory burden, especially for small business. The highlighted amendments below were part of a larger reform package and more detail is available online. •• Old provision: Licensed shotfirers, fireworks operators and pyrotechnics (special use) operators were only allowed to transport explosives (up to a Category 2 threshold) for their own use. •• New provision: Licensed shotfirers, fireworks operators and pyrotechnics (special use) operators are now allowed to transport explosives (up to Category 2 threshold) for their own use as well as for use by other shotfirers. •• By removing the previous restriction, the Department has enabled industry to operate more efficiently without negatively impacting safety and security [rr. 98(b), 99(b), 100(b) and 101(1)9b)].
| 6 | ThinkSafe vol. 1 no. 1 January 2019
•• T he amendments removed the requirement for licensed fireworks operators to notify the Department of interstate imports of fireworks [rr. 54 and 55]. The notifications did not improve fireworks safety in WA and are at variance with national policy and equivalent laws in other states. The usual notification requirements for the import of fireworks from overseas remain unchanged. •• The amendments remove the requirements imposed by section 8.4.3 Requirements for Drivers and Attendants of the Australian Explosives Code (AEC) [r. 104 (2)(c)]. This section imposes outdated, and often impractical, requirements on the prime contractor, the owner of the explosives vehicle and the driver, and was in conflict with the licensing requirements in Part 15 of the Explosives Regulations. •• In 2017, the Chief Dangerous Goods Officer, in response to requests from the Australian explosives industry and with national agreement, granted an exemption to transporters of bulk blasting explosives in intermediate bulk containers (IBCs) to dispense with the emergency information panel (EIP) label requirement on the IBCs in favour of an alternative label. The EIP requirements continued unchanged for the back of the vehicle and both sides of the freight container holding the IBCs. The amendment has now been incorporated into the Explosives Regulations [r. 104(2A)], making the exemption (No. 54 gazetted on 4 April 2017) redundant.
