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This consultation closed on Friday 18 April 2025. The NHVR would like to thank everyone who took the time to provide feedback.
Background
The Log Haulage Industry Code of Practice was developed with the assistance of the Australian Forest Products Association and the Australian Forest Contractors Association and has been graciously supported by the expertise of a wide range of industry and other stakeholders who were consulted throughout its development.
The Log Haulage Industry Code of Practice is a practical guide that assists parties in the Chain of Responsibility (CoR) for forest log haulage to comply with their primary duty and other obligations under the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL). It does this by identifying hazards to public risk and proposes controls that can be implemented to eliminate or minimise risk.
The code isn’t just for log haulage contractors. CoR parties in this sector include businesses that own or manage forests; harvest contractors who cut and stockpile logs; centralised dispatching businesses; harvest or transport contractors who load truck; and mills and other businesses that receive logs.
Under the HVNL, CoR parties have existing obligations to ensure safety. The Log Haulage Code does not create new obligations, but it provides information that guides parties about how to fulfill their broad primary duty. It identifies hazards and risks in log haulage and describes control measures which can be used to eliminate of minimise public risk.
It is not obligatory for a CoR party to implement the controls recommended in a registered code. So long as they are doing what is reasonably practicable to ensure safety, it doesn’t matter how they do it. However, if a party ignores hazards and risks that are identified in a registered code, or fails to implement available controls, then a court can refer to a registered code as evidence of what the party should have known. A party’s state of knowledge is one element of an assessment of whether they have done what is reasonably practicable.
Why we consulted
Feedback direct from industry ensures that the code of practice is comprehensive, up to date, and useful to its target audience.
Outcome
The Log Haulage Industry Code of Practice was endorsed by the NHVR for registration on 23 July 2025 and became a Registered Industry Code of Practice.