The base case also includes the measures agreed to by WHS ministers at their meeting on 28 February 2023 on the Silica Decision RIS including implementation of :
� Option 2 : national awareness and behaviour change initiatives , and
�
Option 5a : regulation of high-risk crystalline silica processes for all materials ( including engineered stone ).
As such , the costs to PCBUs associated with the additional requirements agreed for Option 5a have not been included in this Impact Analysis . These include costs for undertaking / preparing risk assessments and risk control plans , training of workers , undertaking any additional air and health monitoring , and reporting of any exceedances of the RCS exposure standard to the WHS regulator .
4.2 Overview of industry
Almost all engineered stone in Australia is manufactured overseas and imported from countries such as China , Spain , Israel and the United States . Given this Decision RIS does not cover impacts outside of the domestic market , manufacturers are not a focus of this Impact Analysis .
A relatively small number of wholesalers ( around 12 ) import engineered stone from overseas . 4 They sell the stone to businesses who process ( or fabricate ) slabs into finished products and install them ( hereafter referred to as engineered stone PCBUs ). Other tradespersons , such as builders , electricians , tilers , and carpenters , may also work with engineered stone products ( referred to as other industry PCBUs throughout this document ).
The 2 key cohorts , engineered stone PCBUs and other industry PCBUs , are expected to be most significantly impacted through the prohibition of engineered stone , and are the focus of this Decision RIS :
�
Engineered stone PCBUs comprise businesses that fabricate ( i . e . cut , shape , polish ) and install new engineered stone 5 .
o There are 750 to 1,250 engineered stone PCBUs , 44 % of which are sole traders , 42 % are small businesses ( 1 to 20 employees ) and 14 % are medium businesses ( 21 – 200 employees ).
o Processing and installing engineered stone is their primary activity ( along with natural stone for some businesses ).
o Workers in this cohort have the highest exposure to RCS produced from engineered stone , and consequently the greatest health risks .
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In the course of their primary activities , other industry PCBUs may work with engineered stone that has previously been installed ( legacy engineered stone ) For example , cutting an existing benchtop to fit an electrical outlet , replacing a cooktop , repairing or modifying plumbing , or removing a benchtop .
o The estimated number of other industry PCBUs working with legacy engineered stone is 179,750 , of which 55 % of which are sole traders , 44 % are small businesses ( 1 to 19
4
Caesarstone submission .
5
For the purpose of this analysis , it has been assumed that no engineered stone PCBUs work with legacy engineered stone , and no other industry PCBUs fabricate or install new engineered stone .
DECISION REGULATION IMPACT STATEMENT Prohibition on the use of engineered stone Page 32 of 107