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Transport & Logistics
Detect workplace hazards. Protect your people.
Transport and logistics is expected to be significantly affected by the updated Workplace Exposure Limits (WELs) commencing on 1 December 2026, including the introduction of a new limit for diesel particulate matter.
From freight depots and distribution centres to warehouses and fleet workshops, everyday activities can expose workers to diesel engine exhaust, welding fumes, dusts, solvents and other airborne contaminants.
Find out what changes are relevant to your industry.
If your business undertakes any of the following activities, the revised Workplace Exposure Limits may affect your workplace.
Loading Docks
Freight Depots
Warehousing
Distribution Centres
Fleet Workshops
Forklift Operations
Vehicle Servicing
Yard Operations
Welding & Fabrication
Common Workplace Hazards: Diesel engine exhaust
Primary Workplace Exposure Considerations: Diesel particulate matter from trucks idling, reversing and manoeuvring near workers
Recommended JTA Services: Occupational Hygiene Assessment, Workplace Exposure Monitoring
Common Workplace Hazards: Diesel engine exhaust, dusts and vehicle-related emissions
Primary Workplace Exposure Considerations: Repeated exposure associated with truck and vehicle movements throughout a shift
Recommended JTA Services: Occupational Hygiene Assessment, Workplace Exposure Monitoring
Common Workplace Hazards: Diesel engine exhaust and process-specific airborne contaminants
Primary Workplace Exposure Considerations: Diesel-powered equipment operating indoors or exhaust entering from adjoining loading areas
Recommended JTA Services: Occupational Hygiene Assessment, Workplace Exposure Monitoring
Common Workplace Hazards: Diesel engine exhaust and airborne contaminants associated with vehicle and warehouse operations
Primary Workplace Exposure Considerations: Repeated vehicle movements, loading activities and emissions entering enclosed or partially enclosed areas
Recommended JTA Services: Occupational Hygiene Assessment, Workplace Exposure Monitoring
Common Workplace Hazards: Diesel engine exhaust, welding fumes, grinding dusts, solvents and degreasers
Primary Workplace Exposure Considerations: Multiple airborne contaminants generated during servicing, repairs and maintenance
Recommended JTA Services: Occupational Hygiene Assessment, Workplace Exposure Monitoring
Common Workplace Hazards: Diesel engine exhaust where diesel-powered forklifts operate
Primary Workplace Exposure Considerations: Diesel particulate matter, particularly where equipment operates indoors or near occupied work areas
Recommended JTA Services: Occupational Hygiene Assessment, Workplace Exposure Monitoring
Common Workplace Hazards: Diesel exhaust, solvents, degreasers and other maintenance-related contaminants
Primary Workplace Exposure Considerations: Exposure during engine testing, servicing, cleaning and maintenance activities
Recommended JTA Services: Occupational Hygiene Assessment, Workplace Exposure Monitoring
Common Workplace Hazards: Diesel engine exhaust and airborne dust
Primary Workplace Exposure Considerations: Frequent vehicle and plant movements around workers and nearby occupied areas
Recommended JTA Services: Occupational Hygiene Assessment, Workplace Exposure Monitoring
Common Workplace Hazards: Welding fumes, manganese, chromium, nickel and other metal contaminants
Primary Workplace Exposure Considerations: Fumes and particulates generated during welding, cutting, grinding and repair activities
Recommended JTA Services: Occupational Hygiene Assessment, Workplace Exposure Monitoring
Consultant Video Library
Manufacturing Knowledge Centre
Detect workplace hazards. Protect your people.
Identify workplace hazards through Occupational Hygiene Assessments, workplace inspections and hazard identification.
Assess potential worker exposure and undertake Workplace Exposure Monitoring where required.
Eliminate exposure where reasonably practicable or reduce it so far as is reasonably practicable, prioritising higher-order controls.
Review control effectiveness through ongoing assessment and further monitoring where required.
Join JTA's Occupational Hygienists for a practical breakfast seminar covering:
The revised WELs affect airborne contaminants encountered across transport and logistics operations, including a new limit for diesel particulate matter. Businesses should identify relevant exposures and review existing controls before 1 December 2026.
From 1 December 2026, diesel particulate matter will have a Workplace Exposure Limit of 0.01 mg/m³, measured as respirable elemental carbon.
No. The need for monitoring depends on the contaminants present, potential worker exposure and existing controls. An Occupational Hygiene Assessment can help determine whether monitoring is required.
Exposure can extend beyond drivers to loading dock workers, warehouse employees, forklift operators, yard workers, mechanics and others working around diesel-powered vehicles or equipment.
Yes. Fleet maintenance can generate diesel exhaust, welding fumes, grinding dusts and exposure to solvents, degreasers and other chemicals.
Businesses can consider replacing diesel equipment with electric alternatives where reasonably practicable, switching engines off when they don't need to run, reducing unnecessary idling, improving ventilation, separating workers from exhaust sources and using local exhaust extraction where engines need to operate indoors.
Businesses should prioritise elimination and higher-order controls in line with the hierarchy of controls. Respiratory protective equipment may form part of a control strategy where required but should not replace reasonably practicable higher-order controls.
JTA can identify workplace hazards, assess potential worker exposure, undertake Workplace Exposure Monitoring where required and recommend practical controls.
Head Office Melboune
139 Ormond Road Elwood, VIC 3184
Mornington Peninsula
20 Lister Avenue,
Sorrento,
VIC 3943
JTA Health, Safety & Noise Specialists acknowledges the Boon Wurrung People of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the land on which the home of JTA resides. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging, and acknowledge and uphold their continuing relationship to this land.
