Silica in the News
The Andrews Labor Government is improving access to justice and making it easier to bring class actions for silicosis, wage theft and other forms of wrongdoing – under new legislation before the Parliament.
The Justice Legislation Miscellaneous Amendments Bill 2019 will pave the way for class actions – including cases of silicosis and wage theft – to proceed where they otherwise may not have been viable. Read more: miragenews.com
A recent report published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, which details cases of silicosis in stone fabrication workers, has highlighted risks faced by those who work with engineered stone. Read more: healio.com
WorkSafe is poised to cut in half the level of safe exposure allowed for a potentially lethal dust commonly created by cutting kitchen benchtops.
Deaths and illnesses from silicosis caused by inhaling crystalline silica have been on the rise across the Tasman. Read more: mz.co.nz
The National Dust Disease Taskforce is preparing to read submissions next week on how best to handle the resurgence of the fatal lung disease silicosis. This can develop after breathing in silica dust when cutting artificial stone — also known as engineered, composite or manufactured stone — the type used for kitchen benchtops. Read more: theconversation.com
Look for silica and you’ll find it almost everywhere. It’s in rocks, sand, clays and gravel. Not surprisingly, it is a major component of many construction materials, including bricks, tiles, concrete and mortar.
But the substance is increasingly being seen as the new asbestos, due to the threat it poses to workers in many sectors, including mining, ceramics, foundry work, quarrying and construction. Read more: theconstructionindex.co.uk
The past few years have brought awareness to an old occupational health risk appearing in a modern industry. Workers who manipulate “engineered stone” countertops are falling ill with a disease known as silicosis. Silicosis is a potentially deadly disease that takes the lives of 100 American workers each year. As concern and awareness grow around the safety of handling “engineered stone,” many workers who frequently work with materials containing silica are filing silica dust exposure lawsuits. Read more: consumersafety.org
Australia’s leading cancer charity has joined forces with the global body for workplace health and safety professionals to raise awareness of the risks of silica dust and prevent people’s lives being threatened by exposure to it. Read more: miragenews.com
A series of inspections will take place on construction sites across Ireland in a bid to reduce injuries and fatalities in the sector.
Five people were killed in construction-related activity in 2018, and there were 767 non-fatal incidents reported to the Health and Safety Authority (HSA).
There have been six deaths reported so far this year. Read more: itv.com
Construction workers are increasing their risk of developing cancers later in life by not protecting themselves from dust particles, a senior safety inspector has said.
Michael McDonagh, who regularly inspects construction sites, said that while there is a lot more awareness around the issue of site safety, he believes the health of workers is often overlooked. Read more: irishtimes.com
RST operations and technical director David Handel explains how mining can tackle the silicosis crisis with effective and cost-efficient dust management solutions. Safe to Work writes.
Silicosis has re-emerged as a major issue for workers in mining and other industries where dust is prevalent over the past decade. Read more: safetowork.com.au
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