Silica dust is a work health and safety hazard. It is produced when materials or products containing silica such as stone, bricks, concrete or tiles are cut, drilled, polished or ground.
Silica dust particles can be so small they can lodge deep in the lungs and cause permanent damage, including serious and fatal diseases such as silicosis and lung cancer.
Workers in industries such as construction, manufacturing, tunnelling, demolition, mining, quarrying and stonemasonry can be exposed to silica dust at work.
Employers have a legal duty to protect workers by managing the health and safety risks from silica dust. Workers also have a legal duty to take reasonable care of their own, and others, health and safety at work.
Specific work health and safety regulations apply to working with materials containing 1% or more crystalline silica. The model Code of Practice: Managing risks of respirable crystalline silica in the workplace provides guidance to help employers understand and meet these requirements and protect workers and others in the workplace.
Make your workplace silica smart
The Be Silica Smart web page offers a range of practical resources, including fact sheets, guides and posters to help employers and workers better understand and manage silica dust risks.
Information is available in English, Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese, Korean and Hazaragi.
To find out more about workplace exposure to silica dust and download resources, visit the Be Silica Smart web page: swa.gov.au/clearlungs
Be Silica Smart is delivered in partnership with the Asbestos and Silica Safety and Eradication Agency, which provides national information on silica safety.