Snowy 2.0 Lab at Lobs Hole Closes Over Silica Risks

A concrete testing lab at the multi-billion-dollar Snowy 2.0 pumped hydro project has been closed for nearly two months amid concerns workers were being exposed to silica.

SafeWork NSW said it responded to a request for service at Lobs Hole Test Laboratory on May 15 regarding concerns about respirable crystalline silica (RCS).

The inhalation of fine silica dust can result in the lung disease silicosis, causing long-term lung damage that can be fatal.

SafeWork NSW documents seen by the ABC revealed the health and safety authority believed workers were exposed to "respirable dust and RCS in [a] lab building at Lobs Hole".

In a statement, SafeWork NSW told the ABC the business had "ceased use of the laboratory" while the concerns were being addressed.

"SafeWork NSW enquiries remain open as work continues with the business and the health and safety representatives to ensure adequate control measures are implemented," the statement read.

The project’s principal contractor, Future Generation Joint Venture (FGJV), was directed to take measures to mitigate further risks, including cleaning the lab’s walls and floors, and putting in additional ventilation systems to extract dust from all rooms in the building.

Concrete testing operations have not been impacted by the lab’s closure, as testing has been diverted to another lab.

Snowy Hydro confirmed up to 12 employees worked in the Lobs Hole concrete lab.

In a statement, Snowy Hydro said it expected "the highest standards of safety, focus and leadership" from FGJV.

"We are always clear that the safety and wellbeing of the Snowy 2.0 workforce must always come first," the statement read.

The project is located in the NSW Snowy Mountains.

Risks of silica exposure

In March, the NSW government
formed an expert taskforce
of government, medical, industry and union representatives to address silica-related health risks to tunnelling project workers across the state.

Monash University professor of respiratory pharmacology Jane Bourke said workers in industries like tunnelling, mining and construction, and those working with engineered stone bench tops, could be exposed to silica dust.

"If it [silica dust] is ground to very small-sized particles, it can bypass all the body’s normal defence mechanisms that we have when we breathe in things that shouldn’t be in our body," she said.

"The body’s not able to cough it out or clear it from the lungs. And this eventually causes inflammation and scarring of the lungs."

Professor Bourke said silicosis in the tunnelling industry was "an area of emerging concern", after more than a dozen Sydney
tunnel workers were diagnosed
with the incurable disease.

"It would be naive to think that the disease is absent in other workplaces where there would be a similar level of risk," she said.

"There’s no safe levels of silica … exposure is dangerous and everything should be done to ensure that workers are not exposed to it in the first place."

In a statement, FGJV said it prioritised "the safety and wellbeing of its workforce as a fundamental aspect of the operation".

"FGJV is proactive and works in collaboration with health and safety representatives and SafeWork NSW to ensure the highest standards of wellbeing for those delivering Snowy 2.0," it said.

SafeWork NSW told the ABC it had an "active presence in tunnelling projects".

Project setbacks

The Snowy 2.0 project is expected to provide up to 2.2 gigawatts of electricity to the national grid once completed.

The controversial project is expected to start delivering power in late 2027, following a string of setbacks.

Work on the $12 billion project stopped in January when concerns were raised about
the status of "last resort" chambers
, designed to be used in an emergency when workers were unable to evacuate.

Underground work was also halted again for three weeks in late February, after a
ventilation fan imploded on site
and sent metal shrapnel flying through the air.