Occupational Lung Disease

Mining and Quarrying Safety and Health Regulation

Supporting the health of mineral mine and quarry workers through respiratory surveillance.

As of 1 September 2020, changes to the Mining and Quarrying Safety and Health Regulation 2017 have introduced mandatory respiratory health surveillance for all workers in the mineral mine and quarry (MMQ) industry in Queensland.

These changes were introduced in response to a rise in occupational lung disease, particularly silicosis, among quarry and metalliferous mine workers.

What Does the Regulation Require?

Under the amended regulation, senior site executives are now required to:

  • Arrange respiratory health surveillance for each worker:
    • Before they start work in the MMQ industry
    • At least every 5 years during employment
  • Ensure that surveillance includes:
    • A chest X-ray
    • A spirometry test (lung function)
    • An occupational and medical history review

Why It Matters

Silica exposure is serious.

Silicosis is caused by inhaling crystalline silica dust — which is up to 20 times more toxic than coal dust. It can cause irreversible scarring of the lungs and progress without symptoms until it becomes life-threatening.

These regulations aim to ensure:

  • Early detection of lung disease
  • Reduced exposure for at-risk workers
  • Safer long-term health outcomes

Who Is Affected?

The regulation applies to workers in:

  • Quarries
  • Metalliferous mines (extracting iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, zinc, etc.)
  • Sites that disturb silica-bearing rock or materials

More than 15,000 MMQ workers in Queensland are now covered under the updated respiratory health requirements.

How Lungscreen Supports Compliance

Lungscreen’s team of NIOSH B-Reader radiologists provides accredited ILO reporting and classification services that meet the requirements of the amended regulation.

We assist:

  • Employers in registering workers and managing reporting
  • Doctors in uploading images and accessing reports
  • Workers in viewing and understanding their results

All chest X-rays are read to ILO standards, and final reports are returned quickly and securely.

Registration

To complete screening, each worker must be registered with Lungscreen before their chest X-ray is taken.

  • Register here
  • Employers and doctors can also register on behalf of workers

Registration provides a Lungscreen ID, which ensures the X-ray and report are correctly matched and tracked throughout the screening process.

Need Help?

If you’re an employer, worker, or referrer with questions about compliance under the new regulation: