Safety & Compliance

Legislation

Workplace Standards Tasmania administers 3 sets of legislation that govern the safe control of fireworks in Tasmania.

Dangerous substances legislation

Dangerous Substances (Safe Handling) Act 2005
Dangerous Substances (Safe Handling) Regulations 2009
- Part 5 - Division 11
- Schedule 5
- Schedule 6
- Schedule 7

Providing laws and requirements for safety and risk minimisation regarding the handling and storage of dangerous substances, including firework displays and shot-firers.

Security-sensitive dangerous substances legislation

Laws regarding all security and supply-chain requirements for fireworks defined as security-sensitive explosives (SSE). This legislation is only applied to fireworks that are defined as Type 3 fireworks.

Dangerous Goods legislation

Dangerous Goods (Road and Rail Transport) Act 2010
Dangerous Goods (Road and Rail Transport) Regulations 2010

Providing laws and requirements regarding safe transport of dangerous goods including explosives (fireworks) , vehicles, drivers and packaging.

(The implementation of this legislation is pending a final review and is expected to be passed by parliament in mid 2010).

Schedule 5 - Type 1 (indoor) fireworks

	Device	Maximum Pyrotechnic Substance
1	Amorce	0.0075g
2	Cap	0.0075g
3	Party popper	0.03g
4	Snap for bonbon	0.03g
5	Sparkler	10g per item (100g total in same package)
(extract from Schedule 5)

Schedule 6 - Approved purposes for a fireworks displays

A New Year's Eve celebration;
A Commonwealth Day celebration (24 May - "cracker night");
A traditional cultural occasion (E.g. Chinese New Year);
A finale to a major agricultural show (E.g. Royal Hobart Show);
A finale to a major sporting or recreational event (E.g. Royal Hobart Regatta);
A school fair;
A community fair;
The celebration of a major anniversary or milestone of political, historical or other significance to the Commonwealth or the State (E.g. Australia Day, Tasmania Day or a city centenary);
The performance of an artistic work that incorporates or is associated with the use of explosives (E.g. Handel's "Music for the Royal Fireworks");
A military tattoo;
The opening or anniversary of a major commercial enterprise;
A purpose that substantially corresponds to one of these purposes;
The testing of fireworks
(For classification or other purposes, by a fireworks importer, manufacturer or supplier, is also taken to be an approved purpose).

Important note:

The Secretary of the Department may place additional conditions or even refuse an application for a proposed fireworks display, if not satisfied that the requirements of legislation can be met.

Schedule 7 - Standard conditions of fireworks display permits

1. Interpretation

(1) In this Schedule

"checked", in the case of Type 3 fireworks or associated equipment, means checked by a pyrotechnician;

"display" means the relevant fireworks display;

"display equipment" includes mortars, stakes and frames;

"fireworks" means Type 2 fireworks or Type 3 fireworks;

"firing area" means any area in which fireworks are made ready for firing or from which they are fired;

"permit" means the relevant fireworks display permit;

"site" means the immediate site of the display.

(2) Unless the contrary intention appears, if an expression used in this Schedule is defined in regulation 100 it has the same meaning in this Schedule.

2. Supervision and control

(1) The following persons must be on site throughout the display:

(a) the holder of the permit (if the permit is held by a natural person);

(b) the responsible adult (if the permit is held by a body of persons);

(2) An authorised officer may cancel or temporarily halt the display if he or she reasonably believes that

(a) the conditions of the permit have been, are being or are likely to be contravened in a serious way; or

(b) there is a genuine danger to any persons or property.

3. Notifications and publicity

(1) The holder of the permit must ensure that the following persons are given at least 7 clear days' notice of the display:

(a) the Tasmania Fire Service;

(b) Tasmania Police;

(d) the owner or occupier of each property adjoining the proposed site;

(e) the owner or occupier of each property, within a one-kilometre radius of the proposed site, used for commercial livestock operations;

(f) if the proposed site is within one kilometre of any reserved land within the meaning of the Nature Conservation Act 2002, the Director of National Parks and Wildlife;

(g) if the proposed site is within one kilometre of a State forest within the meaning of the Forestry Act 1920, Forestry Tasmania;

(h) if the proposed site is on the seashore and the display will involve any aerial display of fireworks, the Marine and Safety Authority established under the Marine and Safety Authority Act 1997 ("MAST").

(2) A person is taken to have complied with subclause (1) if the person

(a) gives the required notices individually; or

(b) gives public notice of the display by means of a notice in a daily newspaper published and circulating generally in the region in which the display is to be held.

4. Timing and duration

(1) The display must not last, in total, longer than 30 minutes (from the first to the last firing, inclusive of breaks).

(2) Unless the permit provides otherwise, the display must not

(a) in the case of a New Year's Eve fireworks display, commence before midnight on New Year's eve or continue after 12.30 a.m. of the following day; or

(b) in the case of any other fireworks display, commence before 6 p.m. or continue after 10 p.m. on the day it is authorised to be held.

(3) Despite any other condition of the permit, the display must not commence or, if it has commenced, proceed

(a) in contravention of a total fire ban declaration; or

(b) in high winds or a lightning storm or other unsafe weather conditions.

(4) In this clause

"high winds" means winds stronger than force 5 (fresh breeze/17-21 knots wind speed) on the Beaufort scale.

5. Fire-fighting equipment

(1) Adequate fire-fighting equipment must be provided on site throughout the display.

(2) In this clause

"adequate", fire-fighting equipment, means at least 2 suitable fire extinguishers, 2 sand buckets and one hose connected to a water supply.

6. Safe firing distances aerial fireworks

(1) Fireworks in the form of projectiles designed to attain, or ordinarily capable of attaining, heights greater than 60 metres must not be fired within 5 kilometres of an aerodrome.

(2) Fireworks consisting of or including aerial fireworks must be so placed and fired that their trajectory is at least 10 metres distant from any

(a) above-ground power lines; or

(b) above-ground communications cables; or

(d) gantries, cranes or similar high structures; or

(e) tall trees.

7. Safe firing distances protected works, &c.

(1) Fireworks must not be fired within 200 metres of any place where other explosives or flammable or combustible materials are stored.

(2) Fireworks must not be fired within 50 metres of any

(a) protected works (outside the immediate venue for the display); or

(b) major infrastructure; or

(d) motor vehicle.

(3) Fireworks consisting of a shell or mortar exceeding 75 millimetres in diameter must not be fired within 100 metres of any

(a) protected works; or

(b) major infrastructure; or

(d) motor vehicle.

(4) Despite subclauses (2) and (3), fireworks must not be fired within 500 metres of protected works of the following kind without the approval of the owner of, or an authority responsible for, those protected works:

(a) a school or other educational institution;

(b) a hospital or other medical institution;

(d) a church or other place of public worship.

8. Spectator safety

(1) The holder of the permit is responsible for crowd control and ensuring that spectators do not gain access to any fireworks or firing areas.

(2) Aerial fireworks or shells must not be fired so as to cross over or burst over any designated spectator or parking area.

(3) Any area set apart for the landing of aerial fireworks or associated debris (or any area in which such fireworks or debris may reasonably be expected to land) must be

(a) free of flammable or combustible material; and

(b) be at least 100 metres from any designated spectator area.

(4) Fireworks must not be fired within the prescribed distance of any designated spectator area.

(5) In this clause

"prescribed distance" means

(a) for Type 2 fireworks, 10 metres; and

(b) for Type 3 (ground display) fireworks, 25 metres; and

(d) for Type 3 (aerial) fireworks with a shell exceeding 100 millimetres in diameter, 100 metres plus one extra metre for every millimetre by which the diameter of the shell exceeds 100 millimetres.

9. Fireworks precautions

(1) Before being taken on site

(a) Type 3 fireworks must be kept in an approved magazine; and

(b) Type 2 fireworks must be securely held away from any ignition source or from other dangerous substances with which they could explosively interreact.

(2) Once any fireworks have been taken on site, they

(a) must be kept in closed containers, at least 25 metres away from the firing area, until they need to be positioned and made ready for firing; and

(b) must not, before being fired, be left unattended at any time.

(3) All fireworks must be checked for damage or defects before the display and any found to be damaged or defective (or suspected of being so) must be put aside and not used.

(4) Fireworks that do not have the manufacturer's instructions printed on their casing must not be fired unless the manufacturer is responsible for their firing.

(5) Misfires must be destroyed or safely removed from the site in an approved portable magazine, preferably by soaking with water for at least 10 hours and then burying, but under no circumstances may misfires be burned.

10. Mortars

(1) All mortars must be checked before the display (particularly for bent, bulging or split tubes) and any mortars found to be damaged or defective (or suspected of being so) must be put aside and not used.

(2) Mortars must be

(a) securely pegged; and

(b) so sited that their projectiles will fire as near to the vertical as possible.

11. Follow-up measures

(1) Immediately after the display, all necessary follow-up measures must be taken.

(2) Any misfires found must be treated in accordance with clause 9(5).

12. Incidents and accidents

(1) Any incident or accident attributable in any way to the display fireworks (whether or not resulting from their actual firing and whether or not causing damage or injury) must be promptly reported to an authorised officer.

(2) For the purposes of subclause (1), a serious misfire or malfunction of a Type 3 firework is taken to be an incident.