Crystalline silica substances in mining and quarrying

Overview

Mining and quarrying is an important industry in South Australian, employing about 18,000 people and significantly contributing to the state’s economy.

Mining operations have many inherent risks to health and safety, which must be managed appropriately.

Exposure to crystalline silica substances (CSS) in mining operations presents a serious health hazard.

Silica, primarily in the form of quartz, is commonly found in rocks and ores such as granite.

Mining activities like drilling, blasting, crushing, grinding, and transporting these materials release fine respirable silica dust into the air.

Additional sources include heavy machinery movement on unpaved surfaces and inadequate dust suppression.

Inhalation of these particles can lead to severe diseases including silicosis, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and kidney disease.

The risk is heightened in environments with inadequate ventilation or insufficient use of personal protective equipment (PPE). Identifying and controlling these sources of exposure is critical to ensuring workplace safety and regulatory compliance.

Tighter controls to protect people working with crystalline silica substances came into effect from 1 September 2024.

The updated Work Health and Safety Regulations 2012 has new prescribed requirements for PCBUs to meet their duties including to document if processing crystalline silica substance activities are ‘high risk’ and to produce a silica risk control plan to mitigate risks.

Failure to do so leaves workers at risk of harmful exposure. Academic estimations predict current workplace exposures will result in 83,090-103,860 silicosis cases in Australia.

High-risk processing of crystalline silica substances is defined as processing that is reasonably likely to result in a risk to the health of a person at the workplace.

In addition to consulting with workers, key requirements for employers undertaking high-risk crystalline silica processes include:

  • ensuring processing is adequately managed in accordance with the requirements of the new regulations and the hierarchy of controls
  • developing a silica risk control plan based on the outcomes of a risk assessment, detailing the specific tasks and control measures related to processing the substance
  • provide accredited or regulator approved crystalline silica training to workers, covering health risks of exposure and the need for and proper use of control measures
  • undertaking air monitoring for respirable crystalline silica and provide health monitoring for all workers carrying out high risk processing.

The campaign

The 12-month Crystalline silica substances in mining and quarrying campaign will begin in July 2025 and involve an initial educational phase to prepare mining businesses for the compliance element of the campaign.

This will include a webinar in August to highlight the risk of crystalline and silica substances and explain the audit process.

From September 2025, South Australian mines and quarries will be audited following callouts and on a proactive basis.

The audits will measure compliance against Chapter 8A of the Work Health and Safety Regulations 2012 Non-compliance matters will be managed via statutory notices.

SafeWork SA Inspectors will use an audit tool to document findings and track improvements over time.

Data will also be collected during audits to identify trends, common issues, and areas requiring additional focus.

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