Quartz countertop workers exposed to incurable disease

A

alarmguy

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Wow, what a story. Maybe it makes sense maybe it doesn’t. I can’t help feel being quartz countertops being man-made fabricated item that there could be hazardous chemicals involved, certain epoxies of the type types of glue.

However, that seems not to be the case well depending how you look at it.
The high levels of silica used in man-made quartz countertops are exposing workers to an incurable and deadly lung disease.

In all fairness, I’m assuming some type of protection is probably used, but there’s not enough in the story. Other than a number of people have died and a number of people have this incurable disease.

This is about a case in Massachusetts. It’s involving one worker, but there’s many others across the country if you read through the whole story.
You may find some advocates calling for a ban. This could turn into nothing or you never know, could it turn into a pariah?

Reading the entire long story, I’m sure overtime industry will overcome somehow by using less silica. But if you read it through to the end, it is an issue even if they stop now because the disease takes a long time to show up in a worker.

https://nypost.com/2025/12/10/healt...uuj0npeFkZU61FfVSQ_aem_TD1S0Lq-QO_HWBd959sIrw

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I've been hearing about the increase in silicosis for a few years now. Silicosis is not new. What's new in the last 25 years or so is the desire of every homeowner to have hard, stone-like countertops in all areas of their homes. When I was growing up in the 70s and 80s, I don't remember anyone having granite or quartz countertops in their home. But supply has responded to demand, and now I see slabs for sale all over town for remodeling projects. They've got a display right in the front door at the home improvement stores.

Construction workers need to use precautions. Breathing is life. Wear an N-95 mask and have a 2nd person with a shop vac right on top of the cutting tool, is the procedure that I've seen used in new home construction near me. As always and definitely in this case, YMMV.
 
Silicosis is not new. It first affected hard-rock miners in the 1800s shortly after a new type of drill was introduced. This drill quickly became known as "the widowmaker" and mining techniques were changed.

The answer in the mines was to flow water to the drill point so the dust never becomes airborne.
 
Brons2 said:
I've been hearing about the increase in silicosis for a few years now. Silicosis is not new. What's new in the last 25 years or so is the desire of every homeowner to have hard, stone-like countertops in all areas of their homes. When I was growing up in the 70s and 80s, I don't remember anyone having granite or quartz countertops in their home. But supply has responded to demand, and now I see slabs for sale all over town for remodeling projects. They've got a display right in the front door at the home improvement stores.

Construction workers need to use precautions. Breathing is life. Wear an N-95 mask and have a 2nd person with a shop vac right on top of the cutting tool, is the procedure that I've seen used in new home construction near me. As always and definitely in this case, YMMV.
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Granite and marble is not the problem according to the story
The problem is quartz, which is a manufactured product
 
alarmguy said:
Granite and marble is not the problem according to the story
The problem is quartz, which is a manufactured product
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Quartz is just worse. Nobody should think they can cut granite or marble all day long in enclosed spaces and not get some lung disease over time.
 
Brons2 said:
Construction workers need to use precautions. Breathing is life. Wear an N-95 mask and have a 2nd person with a shop vac right on top of the cutting tool, is the procedure that I've seen used in new home construction near me. As always and definitely in this case, YMMV.
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Right but then you couldn't hire illegal aliens for pennies as young men to use angle grinders on it.
with no capital investments. (that seems to be the California story angle)

They have machines that could do most of the work but those cost $$$$$$ up front.

Granted for final install work they should be using N95, hepa vac, wet cutting whatever.
 
Brons2 said:
Quartz is just worse. Nobody should think they can cut granite or marble all day long in enclosed spaces and not get some lung disease over time.
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I don’t disagree I’m just commenting on what is written.
I can’t deny the science, facts and what many state agencies were concerned about.
Nor the death of 11 individuals directly related to this disease and they indicate this is just the beginning as many more are affected.

I haven’t seen any facts figures or state agency comments about places that are cutting granite marble. But maybe there are but not in the story and actually comments to the contrary.

https://www.builderonline.com/produ...oncerns-prompt-bans-and-new-safety-measures_o

Here is a better one than the original post
“A study published Monday in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine identified 52 cases of an irreversible, potentially life-threatening lung disease among workers in California who fabricate quartz slabs. Ten of those workers died, and three received lung transplants.”
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/quartz-countertops-deadly-lung-disease-workers-rcna95959

“The new study estimated that 100,000 workers in the U.S. are potentially at risk of silicosis due to exposure to silica dust.”
 
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Nothing new, pretty obvious to be honest. I think most of the quartz fab here are computer controlled and human labor don't fab that many without water / mask like 3rd world would.

When I installed mine in 2017 the guy only drill one hole for the faucet. Everything else was already cut in the fabricator and loaded onto a truck haul to my house. The guy would have cut the same hole in quartz, marble, granite, etc. I would imagine his work risk has more to do with dropping a heavy granite on his head / toes more than the silicon lung.
 
The title is borderline misleading too. makes it seem like quartz is dangerous or has some sort of chemical exposure.
"Quartz countertop workers exposed to incurable disease"

makes it sound like they got AIDS.

but hey its much more sensationalist than "quartz countertop workers breathed in dust which causes an incurable disease"
 
Rand said:
The title is borderline misleading too. makes it seem like quartz is dangerous or has some sort of chemical exposure.
"Quartz countertop workers exposed to incurable disease"

makes it sound like they got AIDS.

but hey its much more sensationalist than "quartz countertop workers breathed in dust which causes an incurable disease"
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Well, they were exposed to an incurable disease.
 
I have been in a quartz plant and there were very high end particulate count computers all over the area that would have the airborne pre epoxy quartz dust. All people going into the area with the dust would have respirators, and as someone coming into the plant where there was a chance of dust we were only allowed in an area that had the computer particulate counters around. We were escorted by plant workers and monitored from a distance to stay in regulated safe areas. We did go through a storage area of the bags of quartz with no respirators as long as time of bag movement was heeded and monitors were around they did not have an issue. I assume dumping of the bags was the worst place. I saw no dust on the floor in the bag storage area, so I assumed the raw quartz dust was heavy enough to not go airborne, when sitting undisturbed. All the workers going into the respirator area were wearing dust monitor badges.
 
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alarmguy said:
Wow, what a story. Maybe it makes sense maybe it doesn’t. I can’t help feel being quartz countertops being man-made fabricated item that there could be hazardous chemicals involved, certain epoxies of the type types of glue.

However, that seems not to be the case well depending how you look at it.
The high levels of silica used in man-made quartz countertops are exposing workers to an incurable and deadly lung disease.

In all fairness, I’m assuming some type of protection is probably used, but there’s not enough in the story. Other than a number of people have died and a number of people have this incurable disease.

This is about a case in Massachusetts. It’s involving one worker, but there’s many others across the country if you read through the whole story.
You may find some advocates calling for a ban. This could turn into nothing or you never know, could it turn into a pariah?

Reading the entire long story, I’m sure overtime industry will overcome somehow by using less silica. But if you read it through to the end, it is an issue even if they stop now because the disease takes a long time to show up in a worker.

https://nypost.com/2025/12/10/healt...uuj0npeFkZU61FfVSQ_aem_TD1S0Lq-QO_HWBd959sIrw

…
Click to expand...
Not anything new. Bags of sand even have a warning in California. I'm guilty of not caring when sand blasting and grinding on occasion. It's human nature to ignore really long term side effects
 
Where I worked in the mid 1980s, DOD started testing for silicosis on people who did sand blasting and required an enclosed helmet with remote air supply. I got tested because we fired aircraft guns down a tunnel into 16 ft of sand. Nobody I worked with had it then, but we evacuated the air in the tunnel with huge fans and didn't breathe the cloud from the sand pile.
 
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