Why Silica Dust Prevention Must Be On Your Workplace Radar
Posted on November 1, 2024
Why Silica Dust Prevention Must Be On Your Workplace Radar
Silica is a compound of silicon and oxygen found in clay, rocks, and sand. When these minerals are cut, dust is released. Without preventative action, the dust poses serious health hazards to your workforce.
It’s a legal requirement for your business to manage worker health and safety to comply with Australian Government statutory laws. You must provide awareness training to any worker involved with silica dust. They need to undertake a recognised safety program with appropriate accreditation. Failure to do so may result in significant fines and other serious legal consequences for your business.
You can address the matter immediately—contact Sydney Safety for steps to gain worker accreditation. You can also read this complete guide to understand prevention tactics across your business.
| Protect your workforce and meet legal obligations—call us now to book a fully accredited crystalline silica awareness training: 02 9892 3370. |
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Meet Your Legal Obligations With Silica Dust Awareness Training
The Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (WHS) enforces a legal duty for employers to train staff correctly. New silica dust regulations in 2023 made this a mandatory legal obligation.
Additional laws are now in force (as of 1st September 2024) under the Work Health and Safety Amendment (Crystalline Silica Substances) Regulation 2024, which amends the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2017. This amendment ensures a person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) with crystalline silica must:
- Receive instruction, information, and awareness training for workers regarding the risks of the dust.
- Establish a control plan.
- Monitor work premises air and report these results to a WHS regulator.
- Ensure workers have appropriate PPE (personal protective equipment).
Crystalline silica dust causes potentially life-threatening long-term health problems. It’s toxic to the human body and can penetrate deep into the eyes and lungs. It can cause lung cancer, silicosis (scarring of the lungs), kidney disease, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
If you don’t complete awareness training, your business may face serious legal consequences. This can include costly employment tribunals and long-term damage to your reputation.
The instant solution is to ensure you book silica awareness training.
You can book this online today with Sydney Safety Training. We offer a face-to-face program at your premises with complete training modules for up to 20 workers at a time.
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How to Prevent Silica Dust
The best way to prevent worker exposure is to ensure awareness training is completed. However, there are extra ways to keep your staff (and business) protected.
To meet your duty of care towards workers, your business can take additional steps for silica dust prevention. These include:
- Introducing engineering controls, such as water suppression and extraction systems, to remove silica from the working environment.
- Implementing administrative controls, including limiting worker exposure times and organising scheduled clean-ups of affected areas.
- Supplying appropriate PPE (personal protective equipment) for those dealing with the dust, such as respiratory, eye, skin, hand, and footwear protection.
- Offering ongoing training and education for workers. This can include further hazard awareness support, advice on safe work practices, and actively monitoring worker health.
- Purchasing detection equipment (see the below section for further details).
Silica Detection Equipment
It’s good business practice to purchase, or hire, detection equipment. Safe Work Australia advises employers like yourself to monitor the airborne concentration of silica in your workplace.
You can do this with one or more affordable products. These can include:
- Real-time air quality monitoring systems.
- Gravimetric sampling, which requires personal sampling pumps that workers wear during their shifts.
- Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Portable varieties allow for on-site evaluation of your workplace.
At Sydney Safety training, we provide breathing apparatus to prevent inhalation of toxic materials. Our selection includes an oxygen escape set and a breathing apparatus set.
But remember, these products complement the awareness training accreditation you must complete. However, you must also still complete awareness training—the detection equipment alone does not make you compliant with Australian law.
Common Silica Dust Sources in the Workplace
Construction, mining, and industrial sectors often expose workers to silica. This includes work such as:
- Cutting, drilling, or grinding concrete, stone, or brick.
- Sandblasting.
- Demolition work.
- Tunnelling and mining.
- Manufacturing of glass, ceramics, or bricks.
Signs of Silica Dust at Your Workplace
It can be difficult to spot the dust at your workplace. It isn’t immediately detectable to human senses, which is a contributing factor as to why it can be so dangerous. It’s almost invisible to the human eye, so workers can accidentally put themselves in harm’s way.
Signs that dust is present at your workplace include:
- Visible dust clouds: They can be suspended in the air, but can also settle on surfaces and accumulate around machinery and floors.
- Illness in workers: Signs a worker has been exposed include continuous coughing, shortness of breath, and chest pains. Over time, unexpected weight loss can also appear.
Awareness training is the first step you must take to address the above. This will allow workers to address dust clouds and/or report signs of illness in colleagues.
Book Your Silica Dust Training Course
Health hazards posed by silica are preventable. You can begin with the right awareness training for staff, alongside your business taking steps to promote high safety standards. Again, it’s a legal obligation to protect workers.
With the safety training costing as low as $2000 for up to 20 individuals, we provide an affordable route for your business to achieve legal compliance.
You can book your session immediately via the booking form below.
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