The Block 2023 has been slammed for promoting stone products that contain crystalline silica, which has been dubbed “the new asbestos”.
The hit renovation show’s stone supplier, Cosentino, has been spruiking Silestone, an engineered stone that the contestants have been using in their kitchens and laundries.
However, according to news.com.au, this product contains a percentage of the potentially dangerous substance, crystalline silica.
If inhaled, the silica dust produced from cutting this stone can lead to lung cancer and silicosis, an incurable, deadly disease.
Both Channel Nine and Cosentino have told ABC’s Media Watch that the products used on the show didn’t fall under the category of “engineered stone” as per Worksafe Victoria’s definition.
However, Cosentino’s benchtops would be classified as engineered stone by Safe Work Australia’s standards.
A Nine spokesperson clapped back at these claims, telling news.com.au that The Block contestants used “natural stone”, not engineered stone.
Nine had also sighted documents stating that Cosentino had undergone WorkSafe reviews.
The Block‘s Scott Cam says products on the show contain ‘minimal silica’
Host Scott Cam also told viewers that the products used on the show contained “minimal silica”, like the amount that “naturally occurs in beach sand”.
However, occupational hygienist Kate Cole OAM told Media Watch that this comparison wasn’t accurate.
The Australian Council of Trade Unions also claimed that any amount of silica could be harmful, suggesting that engineered stone should be banned altogether.
Over 275,000 Australian workers are exposed to high levels of silica dust, reports news.com.au.
Earlier this year, Perth’s Curtin University estimated that around 103,000 tradies will be diagnosed with silicosis as a result of being exposed to silica dust at work. Over 100,000 will develop lung cancer.
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