Friable Asbestos Removal (Class A) SWMS

For Class A licensed asbestos removalists who strip friable asbestos such as pipe lagging, sprayed insulation and loose-fill from buildings and plant. It follows the job in order, from the licence, supervisor and regulator notice through the enclosure and decontamination unit, wet removal, air monitoring and waste to the dismantling and independent clearance. Bonded (non-friable) asbestos removal is outside it and has its own SWMS.

Class A removal is high risk construction work because it involves disturbing asbestos (WHS Regulation s 291), so that item is ticked and a SWMS is required before work starts (s 299); this SWMS does not replace the asbestos removal control plan, the regulator notice, air monitoring by an independent licensed asbestos assessor or the clearance certificate. Tick the confined space item if the enclosure or work space is a confined space, and falls over 2 metres, energised electrical installations and powered mobile plant where they apply.

New to SWMS? Read What Is A Safe Work Method Statement?

What Is Covered In Our Friable Asbestos Removal (Class A) SWMS?

After the standard pre-start checks, the job steps run from “Plan the job: licence, supervisor, workers and control plan” to “Clearance inspection, certificate, handover and records”. The hazards and controls include:

• Respirable asbestos fibres released when stripping friable material
• Enclosure leaks and negative air unit failure
• Fibres carried out on PPE, tools and waste
• Respirators that leak or fail
• Contact with live wiring while using wet methods
• Falls from platforms and scaffold inside the enclosure
• Heat stress in sealed PPE and enclosures
• Slips on wet floors and sheeting
• Fibre levels above the action levels
• Torn waste bags and unauthorised disposal
• Enclosure dismantled before the air is clear
• Reoccupying before an independent clearance certificate

High Risk Construction Work

These high risk construction work items (WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 291) are already ticked because they are part of this work. Tick any others that apply to your job:

• Involves, or is likely to involve, the disturbance of asbestos

Licences, Training and Competency

• Class A asbestos removal licence held by the removalist for friable asbestos and asbestos-contaminated dust or debris (WHS Regulation ss 485 and 486); a class B licence does not authorise this work
• Nominated supervisor of the licence holder, present at the removal area whenever the class A work is carried out (ss 459(a) and 529(a)); the licence holder names its supervisors, who hold certification for the specified VET course for supervision of class A removal (the regulator must be satisfied of this to renew a class A licence, s 518(b))
• Each worker certified in the specified VET course for class A asbestos removal, with job-specific training recorded and kept for 5 years after they stop (ss 460, 461)
• Health monitoring for each worker, starting before licensed removal work (ss 435, 436), and the health risks explained before they are engaged (s 462)
• Independent licensed asbestos assessor, holding an asbestos assessor licence, for air monitoring, clearance inspection and certificate (ss 473, 475, 489)
• Competent person to identify asbestos and select respirators; samples analysed only by a NATA-accredited laboratory, one the regulator has approved or one the regulator operates (s 479); identification by a competent person (s 422)
• Licensed electrical worker to isolate wiring (Electrical Safety Act 2002 s 55); high risk work licence for the class of any scaffold (person or object could fall more than 4 m) or boom-type elevating work platform (boom 11 m or more) used
• General construction induction training card (white card) and site induction; an adequate number of workers trained in first aid (s 42)

Legislation and Codes of Practice Referenced

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld): chapter 8 (asbestos), including ss 485, 489, 475, 476, 477
• How to Safely Remove Asbestos Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage and Control Asbestos in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing the Risk of Falls at Workplaces Code of Practice 2021
• Confined Spaces Code of Practice 2021 (if the enclosure or work space is a confined space)
• Scaffolding Code of Practice 2021 (where scaffold is used)
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing the Work Environment and Facilities Code of Practice 2021
• How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021
• First Aid in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld): electrical work needs a licensed electrical worker (s 55)
• Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld): construction site electrical equipment and exclusion zones in schedule 2
• Environmental Protection Act 1994 (Qld): transport and disposal of asbestos waste (named in WHS Regulation s 419(3)(e))
• AS 4260 High efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters – Classification, construction and performance (as named in the removal code)
• AS/NZS 1716 Respiratory protective devices and AS/NZS 1715 Selection, use and maintenance of respiratory protective equipment (as named in the removal code)

What You Get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (20 A4 landscape pages). Type your business, client and job details once and they fill in on every page, with a space for your logo
• 10 job steps for this work, each with its hazards, controls, initial and residual risk scores and the person responsible
• PPE listed for this job: powered air-purifying or supplied air respirator, selected by a competent person; full-face, positive pressure (air-line respirators with a belt-mounted back-up filter where dry removal is used); fit-tested and fit-checked
• Emergency arrangements for: worker collapses or is injured inside the enclosure, anyone who thinks they have breathed in dust and fire in or near the enclosure
• Plus the parts every Work Safety QLD SWMS shares, from the s 291 checklist to the worker sign-on sheet (see the layout in our free SWMS template)

Adjust it for your site, plant and crew, and talk it through with your workers before work starts. Please make sure you read our Disclaimer before downloading this SWMS.

Checked against the Queensland laws and codes of practice listed above. Last reviewed November 2026.