California Moves to Ban Quartz Countertops Over Deadly Lung Disease Risks

A rash of deadly lung disease diagnoses has prompted California officials to propose legislation that would ban quartz countertop production. Why are health officials so concerned, and what does the legislation entail? Read on for all of the details.

California Expected to Ban Production of Quartz Countertops Over Health Concerns

It is looking likely that California will become the first U.S. state to ban the production of quartz countertops. Rising health concerns about the impact of the tiny particles associated with the luxury countertop material are prompting the legislation.

The California Occupational Safety and Health Standards (Cal-OSHA) Board began working on the legislation in May. The board is expected to trigger an emergency regulation by the end of October that would ban some types of this product, particularly the manufactured stone that is made with over 1% of crystalline silica.

An increase in lung disease diagnoses is behind the proposed ban. “The Petitioner states that this action is necessary in light of the continuing epidemic of silicosis that is causing disabling disease and death among California fabrication workers as a result of their workplace exposure to silica dust from engineered stone containing crystalline silica and will open the market for safer products, which are already commercially available,” a petition from the Western Occupational and Environmental Medicine Association (WOEMA) stated.

The petition notes that the solution to cutting this risk is to simply eliminate “hazardous products and substitution with safer and less toxic materials.”

The California Department of Public Health reported in August that almost 600 people in the Golden State became ill with a deadly lung disease when working for quartz countertop manufacturers. The report confirms that the number of cases of a disease known as silicosis has significantly increased over the last few years.

For instance, officials identified 592 cases of silicosis in quartz countertop fabrication workers between January 2019 and June 2026. Of these nearly 600 cases, 31 patients died, and 65 patients needed lung transplants.

What is Silicosis?

According to the Cleveland Clinic, silicosis is a long-term lung disease that is linked to inhaling small crystalline particles of silicon dioxide, otherwise known as silica.  This irreversible lung disease is caused by inhaling fine particles of crystalline silica dust, leading to lung inflammation and progressively permanent scarring.

People at risk of being exposed to silica are those who work in fields such as stonework, mining, construction, and pottery. There are three primary types of silicosis. Chronic silicosis develops after a decade or more of low levels of exposure to the dust. This is the most common subset of the disease.

Accelerated silicosis happens within five to 10 years of higher-level exposure. More alarming is acute silicosis, a condition that develops within a few weeks or months of heavy exposure to the irritant. Acute silicosis causes rapid lung inflammation that can be fatal.

There is no cure for silicosis. While some people can live a normal life after being diagnosed, other victims require long-term care such as oxygen therapy, bronchodilators, pulmonary rehabilitation, and lung transplants.

Cal-OSHA and the California Department of Industrial Relations both support the proposed ban. Should the legislation pass, both organizations would formally have to acknowledge that the state's laws around hazardous materials failed to protect workers.

“The standards board’s decision reflects the urgent need to protect workers from a product that has proven uniquely hazardous,” Denisse Gómez, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Industrial Relations, told the media.

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