New airborne contaminant guides ahead of December 2026 exposure limits
30 July 2026•BlueSafe Team•Source: Safe Work Australia
Safe Work Australia has released three guides to help workplaces manage airborne contaminant exposure and prepare for new workplace exposure limits from 1 December 2026. The resources cover employer duties, technical air monitoring and diesel engine emissions.
Australia is moving to the workplace exposure limits for airborne contaminants (WEL) list. From 1 December 2026, employers must ensure no person at their workplace is exposed to an airborne contaminant above the limit set out in that list.
Persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBUs), including employers, have duties under work health and safety laws to protect workers and others from airborne contaminant risks. Those risks must be eliminated wherever reasonably practicable. If elimination is not possible, they must be minimised as far as reasonably practicable.
The Guide for PCBUs: Air monitoring and the workplace exposure limits for airborne contaminants explains employers’ duties and how to protect workers from unsafe exposure. It covers when air monitoring may be needed, engaging a competent person to carry it out, interpreting and responding to results, and common questions about monitoring and exposure limits.
The Technical guide: Air monitoring and the workplace exposure limits for airborne contaminants is intended for occupational hygienists and other technical professionals who assess exposure and determine compliance with the limits. It covers exposure assessment, planning and conducting air monitoring, interpreting results, and reporting findings and advice to employers. Its aim is to support consistent, high-quality monitoring and decision-making across Australian workplaces.
The third resource, the Guide to managing the risks of exposure to diesel engine emissions in the workplace, addresses a new diesel particulate matter exposure limit of 0.01 mg/m3, which will also apply from 1 December 2026. Diesel particulate matter is used to measure exposure to diesel engine emissions.
Exposure to diesel engine emissions can cause serious health effects, including lung disease and cancer. The diesel emissions guide explains how to identify and manage exposure risks, carry out air and health monitoring, and prepare for compliance with the new limit.
The diesel guidance is relevant to people working in mining, quarrying, tunnelling, construction, agriculture, transport and logistics, oil and gas, and vehicle maintenance, where exposure to diesel engine emissions may occur.
How Blue Safe can help: Our free WHS self-check can help you review your business’s approach to WHS duties and identify areas for closer attention as you prepare for the new exposure limits. Take the free WHS self-check