Sleek, glamorous, and luxurious are common descriptions of quartz kitchen counters, floor, wall, and bathroom tiles which are sought by many homeowners. However, scientists revealed in a new study how the stone industry is proving to be quite hazardous for the workers' health.
Quartz countertops were first explored by an Italian company, Breton, in the 1960s and continue to be a major manufacturer worldwide. For a while, granite had been the top trending stone countertop, but in recent years, people have preferred quartz.
The natural stone is popular not only for design, but for its wide availability, durability, and ability to withstand high temperatures, making it increasingly popular in home kitchens. While already trending in Europe, it was only in the 90s and 2000s that Americans started choosing quartz over their man-made, laminate countertops.
Silicosis
However, the tile trend has been the cause of silicosis. Stonemasons who cut and design the multi-colored stone inhale silica dust particles while working, which results in chest infections, lung cancer, and heart failure.
This occupational disease has been scarring the lungs of stonemasons since ancient history - prominently the Hebrews, Greeks, and Romans. A recent study with 106 masons from the Bay of Cadiz in southern Spain showed that almost 40% of them incurred lung damage within nine years even after leaving their job.
This area has been home to many small stone mason companies since the 1980s who manufactured and installed mostly kitchen countertops. Even with protective gear, such as masks, 25% suffered a decline in lung capacity.
The study began in 2009, where 99% of the male patients already had simple silicosis and seven had progressive massive pulmonary fibrosis (PMF), a lung disease with damaged and scarred organs. Within the next 2 years, 40 men developed PMF. They continued to be tested every year where their illnesses multiplied and would progressively grow worse.
The scientists noted that an estimated number of three to five million workers across Europe are exposed to silica, which eventually leads 'to progressive massive fibrosis (PMF), respiratory failure, and death.' In the United Kingdom, 216 reported cases between 1996 and 2017 were from workers who worked at industrial sites 'mining, quarrying, rock drilling, and sandblasting.'
Protective Measures
It was only in 2010 that silicosis was linked to quartz countertops, which is referred to as artificial stone, a new construction material at the time. Some of the isolated cases were in Spanish cities, 'who were evaluated for lung transplantation in Israel,' while 47 new cases in 2014 were in Southern Spain alone. Eventually, companies took measures to reduce dust concentration by using exhaust ventilation techniques and water suppression, yet stone masonry remained to be a hazardous occupation.
Antonio Leon-Jimenez, from the Puerta del Mar University Hospital, urges for increase protection since 'avoiding the continued inhalation of silica is essential but is not enough.' 'The majority of patients are young people and the progression of the disease, in a significant number of them, foreshadows an uncertain future,' he said. Protective measures must be maximized, Leon-Jimenez continued, and that their findings emphasize the need for new treatments for lung disease.
Robert Cohen and Leonard Go from the University of Illinois, who were not part of this study said, 'Given the toxicity of this material and the rising human cost of its use if engineering controls cannot limit worker exposure to hazardous concentrations of the (dust), a ban on (working the stone) needs to be considered.'
High demand for quartz surfaces can reach up to $12,400, much higher than marble or granite. 'Colourful countertops are not worth the price paid by these workers,' said the Illinois professors.
