Tougher coal dust monitoring standards in Australian mines are urgently needed to prevent miners from developing black lung, say medical experts who've slammed the recent resurgence of the potentially deadly disease in Queensland as unacceptable.
A clinical focus, published in the latest Medical Journal of Australia, conducted by experts in chronic lung disease, has found Australian coal dust exposure limits are not meeting international standards and should be more stringent to eradicate black lung.
Pneumoconiosis (CWP) - or black lung - is an untreatable but preventable disease and is caused by long-term exposure to fine airborne coal dust in areas with poor ventilation.
Six confirmed cases of CWP in Australia were reported by nominated medical advisers in the Queensland coal industry between May 2015 and February 2016. Unionists and activists believe there are many more unconfirmed cases.
This "concerning" and "disappointing" resurgence of black lung disease - which was all but eradicated 30 years ago - could point to a decline in exposure control in Australian coal mines and, or, a failure of the screening process, say the authors, who include Professor Graeme Zosky from the University of Tasmania and Professor Deborah Yates from Sydney's St Vincents Hospital.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
"It is unacceptable that any new cases of CWP should be occurring in Australia in 2016, and our aim should be to eliminate CWP in Australia altogether," the paper's authors concluded.
They are calling for national standardised coal dust monitoring protocols to be implemented in all mines, which supports previous calls for tighter health standards in the industry by mining union CFMEU.
"We strongly urge that the Australian guidelines be reviewed on the basis of current knowledge of CWP, in line with international standards."
Current standards regulating coal dust exposure vary considerably between states and are "significantly less stringent" than the current US standard.
They have also recommended a comprehensive screening program for workers at risk, which would include a questionnaire, medical imaging and detailed lung function testing to be performed every three years "funded by the employer".
Late last year, CFMEU Queensland district president Stephen Smyth slammed mining companies for allowing health standards to deteriorate and warned that the new cases of black lung could be the tip of the iceberg.
"There is no way to judge the size of the problem affecting coal mine workers in Queensland, or for how long it has been an issue because the regulatory system has broken down and the medical specialists don't exist in Australia to deal with it," Mr Smyth said.
