7 December 2005 - HSC Consultation for New Workplace Exposure Limits

7 December 2005 - HSC Consultation for New Workplace Exposure Limits: "A consultation on proposals for new Workplace Exposure Limits (WEL's) for Respirable Crystalline Silica has been published by the Health and Safety Commission (HSC).

Two million employees every year are exposed to crystalline silica, a naturally occurring mineral found in rock, sands, clay, building materials made from them such as bricks, concrete and tiles, exposing at least, as estimated by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), 100,000 workers to the dust containing respirable crystalline silica.

Long-term exposure to dusts can lead to the following:

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The development of silicosis, a slowly developing irreversible lung disease.
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Risk of lung cancer through heavy and prolonged exposures under conditions that are sufficient to cause silicosis."