Certain imported coloured sand products have been found to contain very low levels of naturally occurring asbestos. The sand products appear to have been mined and quarried overseas from quartz products that contain naturally occurring forms of asbestos. Australian Border Force (ABF) continues to make enquiries to confirm details of the importer(s) and supplier(s) involved.
The coloured sands are intended for use as an educational aid and for arts and crafts.
EnHealth has advised that there is very low risk to human health from these products.
In the interim while analysis to confirm which brands are affected is ongoing, it is recommended to treat all coloured sand products as potentially contaminated. See the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) notice for details of affected brands.
A ban on the import and new use of asbestos came into effect in Australia in December 2003. Asbestos containing materials installed before this date are not prohibited.
Actions required by workplaces
Workplaces using coloured sands are advised to take the following actions:
- Cease using any coloured sand products. Do not allow children or adults to play with or handle coloured sands.
- Conduct a risk assessment: Assess the risk of exposure to asbestos fibres in the workplace from these products. For example, if the products are in closed containers and have not been spilled, current risks would be very low.
- Isolate any materials or areas that may be affected. This should include:
- securing the products in sealed containers and moving these to a secure location
- blocking off access to areas where coloured sand or contamination is located until the area has been cleaned.
- You do not need to isolate areas where the product was historically used, that have been cleaned and are visually clean.
- Low risk cleaning, such as closing opened containers and wet wiping hard surfaces, may be conducted following the enHealth guidelines published for domestic cleaning. This is because the risk in this situation is very low, similar to the risks in homes, and the WA WHS legislation permits handling small amounts of low risk asbestos containing material without a licence.
- Consistent with the enHealth advice, guidance for this cleaning includes:
- If the sand is still in its packaging, place in a heavy-duty plastic bag, double tape it securely, label it and store in a secure location pending disposal.
- Clean up sites where the product was used using wet cloths to avoid generating dust. Wear gloves and a mask (P2 or N95). Double bag the sand, gloves, mask and cloths.
- In other circumstances, contact a licensed asbestos professional for further advice on containment, cleaning and disposal. A list of these license holders in WA is available at WA Online Licence Search.
Disposal or return of products
In this circumstance, an exemption has been provided to stores accepting returned products, to allow the store to implement safe systems of storage and handling of returned materials prior to disposing of them at an approved facility. The exemption and the conditions required for it to apply is at the WorkSafe website. Contact your supplier to locate stores accepting returned products.
Transport and disposal of asbestos waste must be in accordance with all relevant State legislation and guidelines.
The Work Health and Safety (General) Regulations 2022 requires that asbestos waste is disposed of as soon as practicable at a site authorised to accept asbestos waste.
The Asbestos and Silica Safety and Eradication Agency has a search function which helps users find a nearby asbestos disposal facility.
For more information on managing asbestos in the workplaces visit Asbestos - WorkSafe – LGIRS.
Further information
Check ACCC Product Safety website for the latest advice and affected brands.