Dust disease cases double

Minister urges national response to crisis

THE rate of silicosis detections in Queensland stonemasons has almost doubled in the past year, with almost 20 per cent of the industry diagnosed in what has been called the worst industrial health crisis since asbestos.

New WorkCover figures show 186 stonemasons have been diagnosed around the state, with 26 having the most deadly variant of progressive massive fibrosis. More than 1000 free health screenings have been held since authorities discovered a silicosis cluster in late-2018, sparking an industry-wide audit of workers and businesses.

About one in 10 stonemasons were getting diagnosed with silicosis in early testing, but that alarming rate almost doubled as the $2 million program continued through 2019.

Silicosis, which is an irreversible scarring of the lungs, can be fatal and is caused by inhaling plumes of silica dust formed when manufactured stone products are cut.

The Federal Government is expected to ramp up a national response this year.

State authorities are also due to perform more audits to ensure compliance with a code of practice introduced last October. A previous round of checks discovered almost 600 violations in the state’s 148 known engineered stone benchtop fabricators, with workers facing dangerous practices such as dry cutting and poor dust control.

It’s feared thousands of stone masons could be affected nationally, however, the full extent of the epidemic is unclear as all other states have been slower than Queensland to test workers. About 260 cases have been diagnosed nationally.

Industrial Relations Minister Grace Grace said the State Government had “acted swiftly” to protect workers.

“I have written to various federal ministers multiple times since 2018, highlighting the need for a national response to this serious matter,” she said.

“This included calling on the Commonwealth to consider controls on the import of engineered stone and uniform nationwide industry regulations.”

The Federal Government established a $5 million national dust disease taskforce mid-last year.

The taskforce delivered an interim report last month. The final report is due in December this year.