Silicosis epidemic 'worse than asbestosis'
Both major political parties have pledged a response
9th May 2019
Australia’s silicosis epidemic is shaping up to be ‘worse’ than the asbestosis disaster, disabling young workers across the artificial stone industry, a Brisbane occupational physician warns.
Some 139 people have been diagnosed with silicosis since the crisis began to unfold in 2016, says Dr Graeme Edwards, from the Australasian Faculty of Occupational and Environmental Medicine of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians.
“This is worse than asbestosis. Why? Because of their working age, and social and political and emotional consequences of the