Dry-cutting of benchtops banned in push to save young tradies' lives
Victorian tradies will be be banned from “dry-cutting” kitchen benchtops made from artificial stone amid fears of a looming silicosis crisis.
New safety procedures for cutting the benchtops, which have rapidly risen in popularity since the early 2000s, are to be introduced amid concerns about the health consequences.
Exposure to the dust emitted from sawing can result in silicosis – a disease that causes cancer and scars the lungs.
Victorian authorities are concerned that the number of recorded silicosis cases will rise sharply after under-reporting in recent years.
Employers will face prosecution for dry-cutting stone products that contain crystalline silica.
Use of water to dampen the dust, or “wet-cutting”, is regarded as much safer workplace practice.
The government will provide free health screenings for 1400 stonemasons and host education seminars for the stonemasonry industry.
WorkSafe will also conduct a blitz on workshops to ensure they are complying with the new standards.
The government says there are 300 high-risk workplaces for silicosis.
Premier Daniel Andrews said silicosis was on the rise across Victoria.
“People can exhibit no symptoms at all sometimes and yet have contracted the condition – one that can be deadly,” he said.
However, people can start feeling symptoms within just one or two years or exposure.
Last year WorkSafe received 28 claims for silica-related illnesses and there have already been nine claims this year.
Respiratory specialist Ryan Hoy said screening programs that began late last year in Queensland had so far identified more than 100 workers in the industry who had contracted silicosis.
“We’re certainly very concerned about the number of workers who potentially have this disease,” he said.
There have been 15 confirmed deaths from silicosis since 1985. But Dr Hoy said the recent number of claims reflected the introduction of the artificial stone products in the early 2000s.
He said the stone materials used more recently in renovations and new homes contained up to 90 per cent silica compared with marble that has about 3 per cent silica.
“So this is a new product that was introduced in the early 2000s that really took off in popularity,” he said. “We’re really starting to see the tragic effects of the use of that material now in terms of the number of cases that we’re seeing.”
Dr Hoy said 50 per cent of new benchtops in kitchens and bathrooms across Australia were made from new products containing extremely high levels of silica.
He suggested the material should be banned.
“As a respiratory doctor I’m certainly an advocate for stopping anything that does potentially cause problems,” he said. “In my opinion certainly controlling use of that product is extremely important.”
Attorney-General Jill Hennessy said one of the lessons learnt from lung cancers caused by asbestos was that industrial illnesses needed to be taken seriously.
She said the average age of WorkSafe claims for silicosis was just 41 years old.
“It is a disease that is impacting young tradies,” she said. “The reason we’re taking these steps is that we don’t want our young tradies to die.”
Ms Hennessy said many people who contracted silicosis needed lung transplants.
“The age of death and very short latency period means this is something that is affecting young workers and that’s why we need to take strident action.”
The Andrews government is also calling for a reduction in exposure standards from 0.1 per cent of silica per cubic metre over an eight hour shift to 0.02 per cent.
Ms Hennessy said Australians loved renovations and rebuilding kitchens but young tradespeople should not pay the “ultimate price” with their lives through unsafe exposure silica dust.