Call for national laws to stop engineered-stone ‘cowboys’

Stone benchtop suppliers and fabricators are calling for national regulation to deal with “cowboys” in the industry, saying a ban on using engineered stone will affect thousands of businesses and won’t limit workers inhaling deadly silica dust.

Engineered stone is widely used in kitchen benchtops, but following an investigation by The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and 60 Minutes, the call for a ban on products blamed for the disease has gathered momentum.

Engineered stone, widely used in kitchen benchtops, can cause the deadly and irreversible lung disease silicosis.Credit: Eddie Jim

The joint investigation revealed workers exposed to silica dust were battling the debilitating symptoms of the lung disease silicosis while state-based regulators failed to effectively police workplaces to guard against the dangers associated with engineered stone.

Businesses say a ban doesn’t deal with contamination from other sources such as natural stone, concrete or cement. They say a well-regulated national licensing system covering all types of stone and concrete cutting will be a better fix for the problem.

The process of dry cutting or grinding engineered stone, concrete or natural stone releases crystalline silica into the air which, if inhaled, can cause silicosis, a deadly and irreversible lung disease.

Manufacturer Cosentino and key health organisations, including the Lung Foundation Australia and Public Health Association Australia, are among those calling for bans of various degrees on the use of engineered stone products.

‘It’s just a matter of how you set your factory up and if you have the right PPE for your workers. We use disposable overalls every day.’

David Schlieper, Cutting Edge Stone

The construction union CFMEU has also said it will ban members from handling the materials if the government failed to ban production, importation and use of the material by July 2024.

But well maintained and properly used wet-cutting systems, plus protective equipment for workers, can substantially reduce or eliminate the risk, stone suppliers and benchtop businesses say.

David Schlieper, who runs a benchtop stone business in Melbourne called Cutting Edge Stone, said he had been using wet-cutting techniques and supplying personal protective equipment to staff for more than 20 years.

“As long as you’ve got the right practices in place by using wet cutting, water-jet saws, and CNC saws, there’s no issues,” Schlieper said. “It’s just a matter of how you set your factory up and if you have the right PPE for your workers. We use disposable overalls every day.”

Schlieper installs about 750 benchtops each year under Victoria’s new licence system, mainly in residential kitchens.

Introduced in 2019, it requires all businesses working with engineered stone to be regulated, and bans uncontrolled dry-cutting, grinding or polishing of engineered stone, and prohibits the use of compressed air for cleaning and untreated water to suppress dust.

Engineered stone generally has a higher silica content (up to 95 per cent) than natural stones such as marble and granite or other common materials such as concrete and cement, which have silica levels between 20 per cent and 60 per cent. The engineered stone has been linked with silicosis in workers.

Schlieper said a ban on materials containing up to 95 per cent silica was reasonable, but that a broader ban on engineered stone is misguided as it doesn’t deal with natural stone, concrete and cement, which are often ground or cut dry.

Engineered stone generally has a higher silica content than natural stones, such as marble and granite, or other common materials, such as concrete and cement.Credit: Eddie Jim

A better solution is to introduce a well-regulated national licence covering all types of stone and concrete use. “That licence should be across the board. It doesn’t matter what stone you’re cutting because you still need the same processes in place. Everything should be wet cut.”

A ban on engineered stone products will have a large impact on Cutting Edge’s business. About 80 per cent of customers buy benchtops made from engineered materials which, unlike natural stone benchtops, are generally maintenance free, non-porous and don’t stain, he said.

“How could you ban a reconstituted stone that’s only got say 40 per cent silica in it and leave a natural stone that’s got 50 per cent? It doesn’t make sense,” Schlieper said.

Mark Norman, general manager of natural and engineered stone distributor WK-Quantum Quartz – which operates across NSW, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia – also called for a national licensing scheme, saying that tighter regulations in Victoria helped to oust companies doing the wrong thing.

“The industry in Victoria wasn’t regulated before, but it is now, which has forced the dodgy fabricators out,” he said. “Most companies did the right thing, but some weren’t following the correct, well-documented work practices. Victoria got on the bandwagon, but we urgently need licensing around the country.”

Norman said natural stone also contained silica, and that a ban on engineered stone would fail to address the unsafe work practices causing silicosis in workers.

“Whether it’s low-silica content materials or natural stone, companies have to make sure their workers are following safe practices such as wet-cutting and wearing respirators,” he said.

Norman said banning high-silica materials may leave the door open for unlicensed companies to sidestep SafeWork requirements and use low-silica materials instead. “When people follow safe processes all material containing crystalline silica are safe.”

Businesses in the property space also said they followed strict guidelines.

Tarun Gupta, chief executive of property development company Stockland, said customers chose the materials used when constructing their homes, but the firm had a policy to manage the risk from crystalline silica.

“Across our platform for a number of years now, our policy is that no stone should be cut on site,” Gupta said. “They need to be prefabricated safely from the factories when they come and then just assembled safely on site. And any product we create is in accordance with those guidelines because that is the best way they can be managed”.

A spokesperson for property group Mirvac also said materials were processed off-site.

“Mirvac implements stringent safety standards and requirements for the handling of materials on our projects,” they said. “These include prioritising off-site manufacturing and the processing of materials in controlled environments. We continue to work with industry bodies and experts to ensure the safe handling of materials on our sites.”

Jennifer Low, director of health, safety, resilience and digital policy at the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry said the organisation would work with government to address the issue.

“ACCI strongly supports further efforts being undertaken to address silica-related exposure risks, and we acknowledge the concerning rates of preventable lung disease caused by uncontrolled dust exposure,” she said. “We look forward to working with government to increase awareness of this issue and to equip employers and workers to prevent further harmful exposure wherever possible.”

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