Dust down under - Australia and Silicosis cases

Home » News & Knowledge » Dust down under – Australia calls for a ban on engineered stone due to Silicosis

In Australia, young men are being diagnosed with fatal illnesses and given short forecasts for the remainder of their days, according to the press.

News reporters in the land down under have covered the story of Kyle Goodwin, a 37 year old tradie who worked as a stonemason. Like many others who work regularly with stone dust, Mr Goodwin was diagnosed with a lung disorder known as silicosis. He was given just five years to live back in 2018. He only has a year left.

We recently reported on a Silicosis case in Scotland.

Silicosis

Silicosis is a long-term lung disease caused by inhaling large amounts of crystalline silica dust, usually over many years. Although these dusts are found naturally, they’re found in high concentration in engineered stone. Working with such materials can create a very fine dust that can easily be inhaled.

Tradies working with stone or silica dust might start to suffer from breathlessness, a persistent cough and tiredness.

Due to a perceived spike in silicosis cases, the Construction Forestry Maritime Mining Energy Union in Australia have called upon their government to ban imports of engineered stone by July 2024. They are calling it “the asbestos of the 2000s”.

Curtin University are estimating that as many as 100,000 Australians will be diagnosed with silicosis due to their exposure to silica dust at work. In April 2022, the Australian government created the National Dust Disease Taskforce to report on this topic.

In the UK, workers should be protected by the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH). However, there are cases of work-related silicosis here.

At Oakwood solicitors, we often advise those diagnosed with silicosis or other lung diseases. If you are suffering with any of the conditions mentioned or simply want to enquire, please feel free to contact us.

Dust down under – Australia calls for a ban on engineered stone due to Silicosis

In Australia, young men are being diagnosed with fatal illnesses and given short forecasts for the remainder of their days, according to the press.

Further reading

WHAT TO DO NEXT