Safe Work Australia is offering information on how to eliminate or manage dust hazards as part of its Clean Air Clear Lungs campaign.
The campaign aims to raise awareness of the dangers of occupational lung disease to protect workers from breathing in hazardous air.
The national campaign seeks to educate persons conducting a business or undertaking (PCBUs), such as mining companies and high-risk industries of construction, agriculture, manufacturing and engineered stone, on the risk of their workers developing an occupational lung disease.
“Safe Work Australia is providing PCBUs with information on how to eliminate or manage these work health and safety risks as part of their risk management process,” Safe Work Australia chief executive officer Michelle Baxter said.
“Not all hazards in the workplace are visible. It’s important to identify if your work processes are creating hazards such as dusts, gases, fumes or vapours, that if inhaled can cause lung disease.”
Occupational lung diseases are conditions of the respiratory system caused by workplace exposure to hazardous chemicals and dust and are a major work health and safety concern in Australia.
The Clean Air Clear Lungs campaign kit has a range of resources including information sheets, social media tiles, infographics and posters for organisations and individuals to use to help spread awareness of occupational lung diseases.
“This is not a one-off – all control measures need to be reviewed regularly to make sure they are still working and controlling the risk,” Baxter said.
The Clean Air Clear Lungs campaign targets high-risk industries and is supported by Safe Work Australia members, including work health and safety regulators.
The campaign will run until December 2021.