FEATURE
RECOGNITION NOT REINVENTION As regulation tightens, restoration demands specialist skills, rigorous evidence and accountability. Words Charlotte Huston
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azardous material removal has never been a riskfree endeavour. Especially when compounded with restoration, the stakes rise quickly. What was once perhaps framed as a ‘clean-up job’ now demands controlled remediation. It is complex and technical work where missteps carry real consequences, and these expectations are now being rigorously enforced. Published in March 2026, the Safe Work Australia Model Code of Practice: 'Managing the risks of biological hazards at work’ formally recognises restoration and remediation workers as a higher-risk occupation and directs employers to engage technical specialists for complex contamination. In New South Wales, this will become mandatory from July 2026, with other jurisdictions expected to follow. Under growing scrutiny from regulators, insurers and industry personnel, the sector is entering a new phase defined by proactive risk management.
RECOGNITION NOT REINVENTION
“Restoration is, at its core, the removal of hazards and hazardous materials, particularly biological hazards,” Managing Director of Cleaning Inspection Restoration and Testing Services (CIRTS) Sam Ruff says. Ruff also chairs the RIA (Restoration Industry Association) Australasia Advocacy and Membership Committee and 10 INCLEAN May / June / July 2026
has been closely involved in the response to the Safe Work Australia Model Code of Practice on managing biological hazards, as well as the development of the Restoration Industry Code of Practice. As stated in an RIA bulletin about the code adoption, “These recognitions are not incidental. They reflect the technical complexity and specialist nature of restoration and remediation work, as well as the industry's critical role in returning hazardous environments to safe and habitable conditions, a unique function that sits at the intersection of workplace health and safety, public health and building science.” What has changed is not the work itself, but who the market expects and qualifies to carry it out and the standard to which it is delivered. “Instead, the real growth area is recognition,” Ruff explains. “There is a clear and overdue shift toward acknowledging that property damage involving biological, chemical and fire-affected materials must be handled by competent and qualified restoration specialists – not generalist trades, builders or labourers.” Alongside the Safe Work Code of Practice, AS-IICRC S500:2025 and AS-IICRC S520:2025 address standards for water damage and mould remediation, while the RIA Codes of Practice formalise industry commitments to training, certification and quality outcomes. Together these frameworks signal clear market