4 ms·
A key insight into things like this is that many regulations are like speed limits: loosely enforced. Sometimes because it is too hard to inspect every shop han
by Zigurd 3y ago
A key insight into things like this is that many regulations are like speed limits: loosely enforced. Sometimes because it is too hard to inspect every shop handling dangerous materials.
In cases like these you have to ban the dangerous material, or essentially kill the market for the products that use it.
BTW, I'm not sure how solid granite, soapstone, marble, etc. would be any better. Maybe my 30 year old totally fake Corian is back in style. But for the microplastics from scrubbing it?
- icegreentea2 3y agoThe silica content varies significantly based on the stone being cut. Engineered stone is apparently like 90%+ silica, with the rest being binders. Granite is apparently ~10-45% silica, while marble has a negligible amount. There's a OSHA/NIOSH pamphlet linked through the original article (https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/publications/OSHA3768.pdf https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/publications/OSHA37...) with table and additional details. The pamphlet said that in one study, a marble shop performing dry grinding (no wetting, nor other engineering controls) had airborne silica levels of 39-45 ug/m3, while a granite shop which also did not use engineering controls say 89-460ug/m3.