Australia bans artificial stone, causing incurable diseases for 600 people

Recently, Australia announced at a conference that it would ban the use of artificial stone. Except for individual states and territories, the ban in most areas will take effect on July 1, 2024. This is the first country in the world to ban artificial stone.

Workers processing artificial stone Source: Unsplash

The ban was announced for no other reason than that a large number of workers processing artificial stone have been suffering from incurable pneumoconiosis since 2015.

Australia is facing an epidemic of silicosis and related lung cancer, according to a Curtin University modelling report, which estimates that about 10,390 Australians will develop lung cancer in their lifetime from exposure to silica dust at work.

Particularly those workers involved in artificial stone processing, with nearly 580 of an estimated 4,000 artificial stone workers diagnosed with pneumoconiosis since 2015. The first death from silicosis caused by artificial stone was 36-year-old Queensland stonemason Anthony White, who was diagnosed in 2017 and died in March 2019.
They are exposed to particularly high levels of respirable crystalline silica (RCS), which has been linked to a variety of adverse health effects, not limited to pneumoconiosis but also including lung cancer and autoimmune diseases.

Copyright images in the gallery. Reprinting and using them may lead to copyright disputes.

According to a report released by Monash University a few months ago, up to a quarter of workers in the artificial stone countertop industry in Victoria suffer from pneumoconiosis. A recent survey in New South Wales also found that only a portion of them were diagnosed. The current monitoring system in New South Wales only requires workers to undergo X-ray examinations, but X-rays are not as accurate as CT scans.

In addition, many workers in the artificial stone industry are foreign workers, some of whom are illegally residing in Australia. They are afraid of being deported or losing their jobs, so they dare not see a doctor. Therefore, it is unknown how many people actually get sick from artificial stone processing.

In other countries such as the United States, a study found that workers in the artificial stone manufacturing industry, especially Latino immigrant workers who have low insurance coverage and may be undocumented, do face significant health risks from silica dust exposure. This may in some ways reflect the situation of the Australian artificial stone processing population.

Artificial stone is a material made of natural stone fragments, quartz and other minerals through artificial synthesis process, mixed with resin and other adhesives and compressed. It is equivalent to reusing some waste stones from mining that were not originally used, maximizing resource utilization. In addition, natural marble is much more expensive than artificial marble. The use of artificial stone will bring huge profits to the construction and decoration industries.

During the processing of artificial stone, especially when cutting, grinding and polishing artificial stone, very fine silica dust particles are released. These silica dust particles are so small that they are only one hundredth the size of a grain of sand and are invisible to the naked eye. When inhaled, they can enter deep into the lungs and cause lung fibrosis and scarring. The silica content in artificial stone is often much higher than that in natural stone, which makes the concentration of silica dust generated during its processing higher, increasing the risk of workers inhaling silica dust.

Fibrothorax and pleural effusion due to pneumoconiosis Image credit: Salih M, Aljarod T, Ayan M, Jeffrey M, Shah BH

When people inhale dust containing silica, the silica dust particles are deposited in the lungs, triggering a chronic inflammatory response in the lung tissue. This leads to pulmonary fibrosis, which is the formation of scars in the lung tissue. This scarring process is irreversible, meaning that once the lung tissue is damaged, it cannot return to normal.

Current treatments are mainly aimed at slowing down the progression of the disease and relieving symptoms, but they are unable to repair scarred lung tissue. Patients with pneumoconiosis usually die in their prime, and eventually die of suffocation due to extreme difficulty breathing.

Can't you wear a high-efficiency mask to prevent pneumoconiosis? Don't these workers wear masks when processing? Although there are health and safety regulations in Australia that require workers to use appropriate personal protective equipment when processing, actual compliance with these regulations may vary depending on the workplace, training and supervision. In some cases, workers may not use adequate protection measures, such as appropriate dust masks and other respiratory protective equipment, due to lack of sufficient awareness, proper training or poor supervision.

Image source: 3M

To prevent pneumoconiosis, you must use industrial dust masks. my country's respiratory protection standards have clear divisions for protection levels. KN100 is the highest protection level in my country, with a 99.97% dust blocking rate for ultrafine particles, followed by KN95, with a filtration efficiency of 95%, and the lowest is KN90, with a dust blocking rate of only 90%. To prevent pneumoconiosis, you must reduce the amount of ultrafine dust that enters the body, so you must first choose a KN100 dust mask.

For workers in the artificial stone processing industry, it is best to use a full-face dust mask. Half masks and full-face masks are two different types of respiratory protection equipment, the main difference is the coverage area and protection ability. Half masks cover the nose and mouth and are suitable for medium-level air pollution environments, while full-face masks cover the entire face, including the eyes, providing more comprehensive protection.

Image source: chinacdc

Although the structure of dust masks is simple, their use is not simple. Choosing an appropriate and suitable mask is only the first step in protection. In order for the protection to really work, it must be used correctly, which not only includes wearing it according to the instruction manual and ensuring that the wearing position is correct each time, but also insisting on wearing it during dust exposure operations, promptly discovering signs of failure of the mask, and replacing it in time to ensure the maximum degree of protection. Therefore, workers who process artificial stones are prone to pneumoconiosis, and it may also be because some workers have not learned to use dust masks correctly.

But there may be another reason. Ordinary factories cannot afford high-standard dust masks that cost hundreds of yuan, so workers can only use cheap medical masks.

Copyright images in the gallery. Reprinting and using them may lead to copyright disputes.

Ceaserstone, a large artificial stone manufacturer, is very disappointed with the ban. A spokesperson for the manufacturer said that the basis for the decision is untenable because targeting artificial stone alone will not eliminate the risk of pneumoconiosis in the workplace. The point is that the ban does not address the root cause of the increase in pneumoconiosis rates: poor compliance and enforcement of safety standards.

Anthony White, the first person who died of pneumoconiosis caused by artificial stone, was mentioned in the previous article. His brother revealed to the media that only a few artificial stone processing companies would fire employees for not wearing dust masks. Most companies only impose minimal penalties on employees who do not comply with regulations and will not specifically force you to wear a mask.

Regardless, a blanket ban is a bit harsh.

References

[1]hhttps://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/10/09/sili-o09.html

[2]https://www.mansemedical.com.au/silicosisrisingamongsttradies/

Planning and production

Source: Bringing Science Home (id: steamforkids)

Author | Su Chengyu

Editor: Wang Mengru