Storage

Lead Acid Battery Storage Regulations

Regulations controlling the safe storage of new & used lead acid batteries are very similar where both must be stored and handled in accordance with applicable dangerous goods, environmental and workplace health and safety regulations.

Below is a general overview of the lead acid battery storage regulations for new & used or waste batteries, which hopefully will fast track your research and understanding of the requirements that govern the onsite storage and handling of lead acid batteries.

Go to this page, if you are more concerned with lead acid battery transport regulations.

Charges for Removal of Non Acceptable Batteries / Items

Our used battery collection and recycling service, delivers a safer, convenient service that meets your regulatory requirements, while reducing your environmental impact.

If you are wanting to purchase a suitable used lead acid battery storage container, such as the one pictured above, see our sister company Uniseg Products’ web page Battery Transport & Storage Container.

What Regulations Apply to the Storage of Lead Acid Batteries?

In recent years there have been a couple of positive developments on the regulatory front. Firstly back in 2011 Safe Work Australia developed a single set of Work Health & Safety (WHS) laws to be implemented across Australia, with the worthy goal of trying to standardise our WHS laws across each state. These are known as ‘model’ laws and for the model WHS laws to become legally binding, States and Territories must separately implement them as their own. These model laws have been implemented in every Australian jurisdiction except Western Australia.

Secondly, in 2012 Australia signed up to implement the UN’s Global Harmonisation System of classification and labelling of chemicals, with a commitment to have implemented the GHS system by 1^st January 2017. This was achieved in all states except WA, where a state election got in the way. The remainder of Australia has now been incorporated the GHS into their Work Health & Safety Regulations. So the upshot of this is that now most of Australia has one set of regulations that control the safe storage and handling of lead acid batteries.

For a summary of the WHS Laws implemented in your state, go to, “Useful Links for Lead Acid Battery Storage Regulations“

If you operate in WA you will need to familarise yourself with the Western Australian regulations for the storage of used lead acid batteries.

Which Parts of the WHS Regulations are Relevant to Lead Acid Batteries?

Once you have found the relevant WHS Regulations for your state / territory I would suggest you download the document. There are 3 main Chapters that concern new & used lead acid battery storage regulations (and handling).

The first should be a Chapter titled “Hazardous Work”, this should appear as Chapter 4 (This may vary from states to state) and the relevant part is “4.2 Hazardous Manual Tasks”. This is relevant because batteries are heavy and often exceed the recommended lifting weight of 20kg.

The second relevant chapter is the “General Workplace Management” and the sub section “Hazardous Atmospheres” – Lead acid batteries, particularly new batteries are a potential ignition source, so appropriate steps must be taken to eliminate this risk.

The third relevant Chapter titled “Hazardous Chemicals” and should appear as chapter 7. This Chapter contains several divisions that are relevant, including;

Obligations relating to safety data sheets and other matters
Register and manifest of hazardous Chemicals
Placards
Control of risk—obligations of persons conducting businesses or undertakings
Health monitoring
Induction, information, training and Supervision

Below is further explanations on some of these requirements for new & used lead acid batteries.

Division 1 – Safety Data Sheets and other matters

Subdivision 3 deals with the labelling requirements which aren’t relevant for batteries as they must be supplied with the relevant GHS labels, however it also requires businesses to make available a current Safety Data Sheet for their batteries and this must be readily available. You battery supplier must provide you with a Safety Data Sheet when they sell you batteries.

Division 2 & 3 – Manifest of Hazardous Chemicals and Placards

One of the confusing requirements of the GHS is determining the placard and manifest quantities for hazardous chemicals. For lead acid batteries (new & used) this is difficult because there are several applicable Hazard Class’ and Hazard Categories that apply (e.g. Metal Corrosion Catgeory1, Acute Toxicity (Oral) Category 4, Skin Corrosion Category 1A etc), which each specify different placard and manifest quantities – so which one applies?. At this stage most States appear to be taking the practical approach of reverting to their dangerous goods storage and handling regulations when accessing placard and manifest quantities. Which means that unless you are storing quantities of lead acid batteries containing more than 1000L of acid (approximately 4000kg by gross battery weight),you will not need to placard your storage location nor maintain a manifest.

Division 4 – Controls of risk, contains a relevant subdivision “Spill & Damage” that states:

“A person conducting a business or undertaking at a workplace must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that where there is a risk from a spill or leak of a hazardous chemical in a solid or liquid form, provision is made in each part of the workplace where the hazardous chemical is used, handled, generated or stored for a spill containment system that contains within the workplace any part of the hazardous chemical that spills or leaks, and any resulting effluent”

This is a common requirement that is not met by many companies. Your Used Lead Acid Batteries should be stored in a bunded area (or device) and undercover to prevent any acid leaking into the environment. Battery acid contains high levels of lead, which is one of the most toxic substances known to humans and the environment. If stored outdoors they should be stored in a weather proof container with a bunded base for capturing and retaining any acid leaks.

More specific details for the above requirements can often be found, if it exists in your State, in a relevant Code of Practice. Most states / territories will have a code of practice that deals with “Managing risks of hazardous chemicals in the workplace”. More on this in the section below…

WHS Codes of Practice and How They Apply to Lead Acid Batteries

Model Codes of Practice are practical guides for carrying specific work activities in a way that would meet the health & safety standards outlined in the model WHS Act and Regulations. CoP are not law however are admissible in a court of law and may be used by courts determine whether appropriate methods were used.

A model Code of Practice must be approved in your state or territory to be legally enforceable. Check your state / territory WHS regulator to determine if a relevant Code of Practice has been approved.

If your local jurisdiction has approved a code of practice for “Managing risks of hazardous chemicals in the workplace”, I would recommend you refer to this for more specific recommendations.

Chapter 4 should deal (remember this may vary from state to state) with “Controlling Risks” and the section “Isolation / Isolate chemicals from other chemicals” is particularly relevant if you are storing other hazardous chemicals or non compatible goods, such as food, in the vicinity of your lead acid batteries.

Environmental Regulations For The Storage of Used Lead Acid Batteries?

Most State’s environmental regulations provide provisions to protect against the discharge of any hazardous chemicals or substance into the environment. Inspections and enforcement of these requirements is often carried out by the local council. Essentially your Lead Acid Batteries should be stored in a bunded area (or device) and undercover to prevent the occurrence of an unauthorised discharge event.

Please note that the information I have provided here is general in nature. Companies must do their own research to understand their legal obligations in each jurisdiction and to ensure that they are fully compliant with the lead acid battery storage regulations.

Useful Links for Lead Acid Battery Storage Regulations

Safe Work Australia developed the Model Work Health And Safety Act supported by WHS Regulations to improve national harmonisation of work safety laws. These have been approved by most States and Territories, who are responsible for regulating and enforcing the laws in their jurisdictions (WA is the exception). To look up the relevant WHS or OHS regulations for your state go to www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/law-and-regulation/law-your-state. Also look up here whether there are any relevant Codes of Practice such as “Managing Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace” that have been adopted in your state.
Australian Standard for Storing & Handling Corrosives 3780:2008 – This publication can be purchased from a number of online providers. Section 2 deals with provisions for Minor Storage, which applies if the combined volume of acid contained by the batteries is less than 1000L.
Century Batteries, Safety Data Handling Sheet for Lead Acid Batteries.
UNISEG Products’ Used Car Battery Storage Container