General information about Queensland’s rules, not legal or safety advice. The official place to check is asbestos.qld.gov.au, run by the Queensland Government.
Queensland’s own guidance says that, as a general rule, a home built before 1990 is likely to contain some asbestos materials. That is not a reason for alarm on its own: Queensland’s health page says that simply living in a home with asbestos in it carries no danger while the material stays in good, undamaged condition. The risk starts when it is disturbed, which is why removal has rules.
Handling Read before you touch anything
- The national asbestos agency says it is “not recommended that you handle or remove asbestos yourself”, and that getting a professional to do the job is easier and safer.
- Queensland’s health page puts the danger plainly: “It is when asbestos is worked with or disturbed and asbestos fibres are released that the risk of developing an asbestos related disease is increased.”
- Queensland’s homeowner questions page says: “Never use power tools (such as power saws, drills, sanders and angle grinders) or high pressure water blasters on asbestos materials.” Queensland’s prohibited activities page adds two more that state law forbids when you are working with or removing asbestos-containing materials: compressed air or abrasive blasting, and a household vacuum cleaner, even one with a HEPA filter (only cleaners specially designed for asbestos work may be used), which the page calls very dangerous because they can release large numbers of asbestos fibres into the air. The national agency also says never to clean asbestos with anything abrasive, such as scrubbing, sanding or grinding. Queensland’s renovating tips also tell you not to “Saw, sand, scrape or drill holes in asbestos materials.”
- In Queensland, asbestos waste must go to a disposal site licensed to receive it: a landfill that can lawfully take asbestos waste, usually run by your local council. It is illegal to put it in a domestic garbage bin. The other option Queensland lists is a plastic-lined industrial skip, which may be provided by a waste contractor holding an environmental authority to transport regulated waste.
Six specimens
Each guide answers one question in its first lines, then sets out what Queensland’s sources say, with every step of Queensland’s safety procedures printed word for word rather than summarised.
- BNE-01
When Queensland requires a licensed removalist
Friable or bonded, the 10 square metre line, class A and class B, and the homeowner’s certificate.
- BNE-02
Removing a small amount yourself in Queensland
What Queensland lets a homeowner remove, and every step of Queensland’s procedure and protective equipment, word for word.
- BNE-03
Where asbestos hides in a Queenslander
The places Queensland’s own guidance lists, from eaves and wet areas to the switchboard.
- BNE-04
Disposing of asbestos in Brisbane
Brisbane City Council’s rules, Queensland’s transport limits and the procedure for both.
- BNE-05
If you disturb asbestos by accident
A broken fence, a drilled sheet or crumbling material: what Queensland’s rules say.
- BNE-06
After a storm or fire in Queensland
Every step of Queensland’s storm cleanup procedure and its advice for fire-damaged material, word for word.
The 10 square metre line
Most of Queensland’s homeowner rules turn on one measurement. Queensland’s homeowner page puts it this way: “If you are planning to remove 10 square metres or less of non-friable materials containing asbestos, you do not require a certificate. However, you will still need to follow safe work procedures and safety precautions to minimise asbestos fibres getting into the air.”
- 10 m² or less, bonded
- No certificate, but Queensland’s safety precautions still apply.
- More than 10 m², bonded
- “Home renovators and owner-builders must hold a certificate obtained under arrangements approved or established by Queensland Health to remove more than 10 square metres of non-friable (also known as bonded) asbestos materials.” Otherwise, a contractor who holds a current asbestos removal certificate.
- Crumbly (friable), any amount
- A removalist with a class A licence, whatever the amount.
Two details catch people out. The measurement covers the entire job, not each section of it, and Queensland says a job cannot be split into pieces under 10 m² on different days to avoid needing a certificate. The details are in when Queensland requires a licensed removalist.
When a licensed removalist does the work
In Queensland an asbestos removal licence is held by the business, and workers carry out licensed removal work on its behalf; a licence issued by Workplace Health and Safety Queensland is valid for five years.
Queensland’s regulation sets out what happens around licensed work. The removalist must give the regulator written notice at least five days before starting. It must prepare an asbestos removal control plan, and when the work is at a home, the plan must be accessible to the people who live there. When the job is at a home, the licensed removalist is also responsible for making sure the clearance inspection is carried out afterwards.
Asking a licensed removalist
Queensland’s asbestos website publishes details of the businesses that hold class A and class B licences to remove asbestos. If you would like a licensed removalist to look at your job, ask which class of licence it needs, and check the business against that list before work begins.