Countertop Fabricator Spends Big to Better Protect Workers

This episode of KQED's The California Report investigates the growing health crisis among stone-cutting workers in California due to exposure to crystalline silica from engineered quartz countertops. As demand for artificial stone has surged in home renovations, so has the incidence of silicosis—a deadly lung disease—among fabricators. Gino Scolari, a Bay Area countertop fabricator with four decades of experience, details how his business has invested millions in automated machinery, water-spray systems, and respirators to comply with safety regulations. Despite these measures, he laments that smaller competitors often bypass safety protocols, cutting quartz in unregulated settings and making substantial profits. Medical experts warn that quartz dust is so toxic it may require robot handling, with over 540 confirmed silicosis cases and nearly 60 lung transplants in California. The Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board is set to vote on a proposed ban on artificial stone fabrication, a move Scolari and health advocates say is urgently needed for worker protection. The episode underscores the tension between economic incentives, regulatory enforcement, and worker safety in a rapidly expanding industry.