The Minns Labor Government has welcomed the Federal Government’s ban on the importation of engineered stone benchtops, slabs and panels with a silica content of more than one percent from 1 January 2025.
This follows the world-first domestic ban on the use, supply and manufacture of engineered stone products that have a silica content of more than one percent in Victoria, Queensland and the ACT that started on 1 July this year, with remaining jurisdictions to follow by the end of this year.
The proposed ban on importation aims to reduce the availability of banned engineered stone products to help prevent silicosis, a lung disease caused by breathing in small particles of silica dust.
In NSW there were 115 new silicosis cases between July 2023 and June 2024, and ten people sadly died from the disease.
Read more: NSW Government media release NSW welcomes proposed ban on importing engineered stone