Australia is considering banning engineered stone after a joint investigation by three news outlets accused manufacturer Caesarstone of not doing enough to warn people of the dangers of working with the material.The Australian government has directed its national policy body Safe Work Australia to start exploring a ban after an investigation by newspapers the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, and current affairs programme 60 Minutes. The investigation, which was published on 19 February, alleged that the popularisation of engineered stone – a composite material commonly used for kitchen countertops made from crushed stone, such as quartz, and a binder – has led to a rise in cases of the lung disease silicosis in Australia. Engineered stone is safe when used as a worktop in the home but can be dangerous when cut because of the silica dust it sends into the air, according to the experts interviewed in the investigation.

澳大利亚正考虑禁止使用人造石，此前三家新闻媒体联合调查，指责制造商凯撒斯通 (Caesarstone)在警告人们使用人造石的危险方面做得不够。 在《悉尼先驱晨报》、《时代报》和时事节目《60 分钟》进行调查后，澳大利亚政府指示 其国家政策机构“澳大利亚安全工作”开始研究禁令。 这项于 2 月 19 日发表的调查声称，工程石的普及导致澳大利亚肺病矽肺病病例的增加。工 程石是一种由石英石等碎石和粘合剂制成的复合材料，通常用于厨房台面。 在调查中接受采访的专家表示，工程石材在用作家庭工作台面时是安全的，但在切割时可能 是危险的，因为它会向空气中释放二氧化硅粉尘。

The media investigation was published at the same time as Australia's construction union launched a campaign calling for a ban on engineered stone, which has now been addressed by the federal government. Safe Work Australia has been asked to explore what a future ban on the products should look like and will deliver a decision later this year. This will include determining what percentage of silica in stone should be banned, with a licensing scheme covering those products with lower quantities. It has also been asked to examine how to deal with material that needed to be moved or demolished in the future. "Safe Work Australia have the expertise to be able to work through exactly where the line should be drawn," workplace relations minister Tony Burke said in a doorstop interview. "But wherever that line is drawn, it has to be drawn on the side of people being able to go to work and come home without a terminal illness." A decision on the ban is expected later this year, with the rules coming into effect 12 months later. It would make Australia the first country in the world to ban engineered stone, although New Zealand has indicated it may follow suit. 

媒体调查公布的同时，澳大利亚建筑工会发起了一项运动，呼吁禁止使用工程石材，目前联 邦政府已经解决了这一问题。 澳大利亚安全工作委员会已被要求研究未来对这些产品的禁令应该是什么样子，并将在今年 晚些时候做出决定。 这将包括确定石头中二氧化硅的比例应该被禁止，并对那些含量较低的产品实施许可计划。它还被要求研究如何处理未来需要移动或拆除的材料。 职场关系部长托尼·伯克在接受采访时说:“澳大利亚安全工作委员会拥有专业知识，能够准 确地把握界限。” “但无论在哪里划下这条线，都必须是人们能够在没有绝症的情况下上班和回 家。”有关禁令的决定预计将在今年晚些时候做出，规定将在 12 个月后生效。这将使澳大利亚成 为世界上第一个禁止使用人造石的国家，尽管新西兰表示可能会效仿。

Silicosis is an incurable disease caused by tiny particles of silica becoming embedded in the lining of the lungs. To contract the disease, people need to be exposed to high levels of silica over an ongoing period through, for example, drilling or cutting silica-containing material without protection.The investigation by the three news organisations profiled stonemasons and tradespeople in their 30s and 40s who experience typical silicosis symptoms such as shortness of breath and fatigue and have been given prognoses of just years to live.Lung disease specialist professor Deborah Yates described the symptoms as like being "strangled" or "having your lungs contracting from inside", and said rates of the disease had been increasing in Australia for the last decade."I've never seen such young people with silicosis," she told 60 Minutes. "I think my youngest is 27. It's really distressing; I could not believe it when I saw these patients with such severe disease."While silica is also found in natural stones such as marble and granite, it is in lower quantities than in engineered stone made with quartz, which can contain up to 97 per cent silica, according to Safe Work Australia. 

矽肺病是一种无法治愈的疾病，由微小的二氧化硅颗粒嵌入肺部引起。要感染这种疾病，人 们需要长期暴露在高水平的二氧化硅中，例如在没有保护的情况下钻探或切割含二氧化硅的材 料。三家新闻机构对三四十岁的石匠和商人进行了调查，他们出现了典型的矽肺病症状，如呼吸 急促和疲劳，并被告知只能活几年。肺病专家黛博拉·耶茨教授将这种症状描述为“被勒死”或“肺 部从内部收缩”，并表示，在过去十年中，澳大利亚的这种疾病发病率一直在上升。“我从来没有 见过这么年轻的人患有矽肺病，”她告诉《60 分钟》。“我想我最小的是 27 岁。这真的很痛苦; 当我看到这些患有如此严重疾病的病人时，我简直不敢相信。” 尽管大理石和花岗岩等天然石材中也含有二氧化硅，但根据澳大利亚安全工作协会(Safe Work Australia)的数据，二氧化硅的含量低于用石英制成的工程石材，后者的二氧化硅含量高达 97% 

Caesarstone accused of not taking responsibility for dangers of engineered stoneFounded in Israel in 1987, Caesarstone was the first company to import engineered stone into Australia but has sought to distance itself from the dangers of working with the material, the investigation alleges. In 2012, lung disease expert Mordechai Kramer, director of the Institute of Pulmonary and Allergy Medicine at Bellison Hospital in Tel Aviv, authored a study that was originally titled Caesarstone: Silicosis Disease Resurgence Among Artificial Stone Workers.Kramer said he had hoped Caesarstone would work with him to address the safety issues around the material, but claimed that he was instead threatened with legal action. The journal eventually changed the name of the paper to omit the mention of Caesarstone ahead of publication. "I think it's outrageous," he said. "They're not taking responsibility for something they created. This is a case of severe diseases and death." "In the past years, we didn't have any silicosis cases in Israel; this was a very rare disease. But since 2006 we started to see rolling in one patient after another, and very severe cases that needed lung transplantation. And then we found that all of them were working with the new engineered stone of Caesarstone." Caesarstone claims to have placed prominent warnings on all of its slabs since 2010 when it "recognised the problem of silicosis", but 60 Minutes branded this as "a cynical exercise" as the text on the labels was so small as to be barely readable. A redesigned sticker with larger text, warning icons and clearer wording was introduced in 2018. 

调查称，1987 年在以色列成立的凯撒石是第一家向澳大利亚进口工程石材的公司，但该公 司一直试图与使用这种材料的危险撇清关系。 2012 年，肺病专家、特拉维夫 Bellison 医院肺部和过敏医学研究所主任莫迪凯·克莱默 (Mordechai Kramer)撰写了一项研究，最初的标题是《凯撒石:人工石工人中的矽肺病死灰复燃》。 克莱默说，他曾希望凯撒斯通能与他合作，解决有关材料的安全问题，但他声称，他反而受到了法律诉讼的威胁。该杂志最终在发表前更改了论文的名称，以省略对凯撒斯通的提及。 “我认为这太离谱了，”他说。“他们没有为自己创造的东西承担责任。这是一个严重疾病和 死亡的案例。” “在过去的几年里，以色列没有任何矽肺病病例;这是一种非常罕见的疾病。但自 2006 年以 来，我们开始看到一个接一个的病人，非常严重的病例需要肺移植。然后我们发现他们都在使用 凯撒石的新工程石。” 凯撒斯通声称，自 2010 年“意识到矽肺病的问题”以来，该公司在所有的石板上都放置了醒 目的警告，但《60 分钟》称这是“一种愤世嫉俗的做法”，因为标签上的文字太小，几乎看不清。 2018 年，一款重新设计的贴纸推出了更大的文字、警告图标和更清晰的措辞。

Caesarstone denies "distasteful" allegations in statementIn response to the allegations in the investigation, Caesarstone issued a statement claiming its material is entirely safe if handled correctly. It said the disease risks were the result of non-compliance with product handling requirements, and that these were the fault of employers and work safety bodies. It called allegations "distasteful" and "entirely without foundation", stating that all stone contains potentially risky silica, not just engineered stone."Caesarstone has been providing clear warnings to customers about the quartz content of engineered stone, the risk of silicosis and safe handling procedures since the 1990s," said Caesarstone Asia-Pacific managing director David Cullen in the statement. "These predate Caesarstone's entry to Australia.""Since 2010, when Caesarstone recognised the problem of silicosis, every slab has carried a prominent warning," he continued. "We have also focused heavily on fabricator education, and we have engaged closely with government through our participation in state-based taskforces in NSW, Queensland and Victoria and the National Dust Disease Taskforce." "The engineered stone industry has matured greatly in recent years, with a significant improvement in professionalism, work practices and safe handling by fabricators. This needs to continue. Banning a product that can be handled safely makes no sense. Licensing an industry to ensure full compliance does make sense." 

针对调查中的指控，凯撒石发表声明称，如果处理得当，其材料是完全安全的。它说，疾病 风险是由于不符合产品处理要求，这是雇主和工作安全机构的错。 它称这些指控“令人反感”，“完全没有根据”，并指出所有的石头都含有潜在危险的二氧化硅， 而不仅仅是工程石头。 凯撒石亚太区董事总经理 David Cullen 在声明中表示:“自上世纪 90 年代以来，凯撒石一直 向客户提供有关工程石材的石英含量、矽肺病风险和安全处理程序的明确警告。”“这是在凯撒斯 通到澳大利亚以前的事了。” “自 2010 年凯撒斯通意识到矽肺病的问题以来，每块石板上都有一个明显的警告，”他继续 说道。“我们也非常重视制造商的教育，我们通过参与新南威尔士州、昆士兰州和维多利亚州的 国家级工作组以及国家沙尘病工作组，与政府密切合作。” “近年来，工程石材行业已经非常成熟，制造商在专业程度、工作实践和安全处理方面都有 了显着提高。这需要继续下去。禁止一种可以安全处理的产品是没有道理的。授权一个行业以确 保完全合规是有意义的。”