California bans engineered quartz countertops over worker silicosis crisis

California will become the first U.S. state to prohibit the use of engineered stone for kitchen countertops. The ban is a direct response to a surge in silicosis, a debilitating lung disease, among workers who fabricate the material. State workplace safety officials have classified the situation as a health crisis, with hundreds of workers already diagnosed. The severe health outcomes include reported deaths and the need for lung transplants among affected individuals.