In the mining industry, serious lung disease has been a recognized hazard for hundreds of years. For hundreds of years, the damage to miners' health from silica dust was simply accepted. There were no known means of prevention. Today, we know better.
Recognized methods exist to prevent silicosis, in mines and other workplaces.
Because silicosis was early recognized in the mining industry, it's fitting that answers have also come out of the mines. In the 1800's, the high rate of silicosis in U.S. metal mines led to development of drills that applied water to control the silica dust. Today, wet drilling is one of a number of basic weapons in the arsenal against silicosis in mines and other industries. But if you heard Mrs. Charlene Howard speak yesterday morning, then you know that our job is not finished. Mrs. Howard lost her husband to silicosis.