Determination of Asbestos Fibre Release Potential from Contaminated Craft Sand and Sand-Based Toys
11 affiliations
- 1School of Future Environments
- 2Auckland University of Technology (AUT
- 3Environmental Innovation Centre (EIC
- 4Faculty of Science and Engineering
- 5Southern Cross University
- 6Asbestos Management Consultants
- 7Department of Earth Sciences and Interdepartmental Centre for Studies on Asbestos and Other Toxic Particulates
- 8University of Torino
- 9Eurofins Built Environment Testing
- 10Faculty of Medicine
- 11University of Otago
Abstract
Over the last century, human exposure pathways for asbestos have changed from those associated with direct interaction with the minerals (e.g. mining) to secondary exposure from a variety of asbestoscontaining materials, including those linked to para-occupational, domestic and environmental pathways. In 2025, the discovery of asbestos in children’s toy sand products caused panic, stress and fear amongst the community. Although there is no safe level of asbestos exposure, these products were deemed to be low risk by some due to uncertainty around whether fibres could become airborne during play. In this experimental study, contaminated sand samples were “played with” inside a Class A asbestos enclosure by an asbestos technician wearing protective equipment. Air samples collected were analysed using a combination of light and electron microscopy undertaken by two independent laboratories. 90% of tested craft sands released asbestos fibres into the air during play activities. Some fibres met the criteria for respirability. Air samples taken during experiments using moulding sand samples did not show any airborne asbestos fibres; however, analytical detection limits for this study were high. This demonstrates that the potential risk from asbestos in the product can create a real risk from fibres in the air; however, the magnitude of this risk has yet to be determined by further research. Nevertheless, no amount of risk of asbestos exposure through toys is acceptable so the most practical way to eliminate this risk would be to avoid the use of artificial sand products in toys or similar consumer products.
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BibTeX
@misc{berry2026determination,
title = {{Determination of Asbestos Fibre Release Potential from Contaminated Craft Sand and Sand-Based Toys}},
author = {Terri-Ann Berry and Joanne Low and Gregor Steinhorn and Jason Milner and Elena Belluso and Jasmine Rita Petriglieri and Silvana Capella and Frank Ehrenfeld and David McBride},
howpublished = {ChemRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.26434/chemrxiv.15006130/v3},
url = {https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15006130/v3},
note = {CC BY-NC},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Determination of Asbestos Fibre Release Potential from Contaminated Craft Sand and Sand-Based Toys
AU - Terri-Ann Berry
AU - Joanne Low
AU - Gregor Steinhorn
AU - Jason Milner
AU - Elena Belluso
AU - Jasmine Rita Petriglieri
AU - Silvana Capella
AU - Frank Ehrenfeld
AU - David McBride
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/29
PB - ChemRxiv
DO - 10.26434/chemrxiv.15006130/v3
UR - https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15006130/v3
AB - Over the last century, human exposure pathways for asbestos have changed from those associated with direct interaction with the minerals (e.g. mining) to secondary exposure from a variety of asbestoscontaining materials, including those linked to para-occupational, domestic and environmental pathways. In 2025, the discovery of asbestos in children’s toy sand products caused panic, stress and fear amongst the community. Although there is no safe level of asbestos exposure, these products were deemed to be low risk by some due to uncertainty around whether fibres could become airborne during play. In this experimental study, contaminated sand samples were “played with” inside a Class A asbestos enclosure by an asbestos technician wearing protective equipment. Air samples collected were analysed using a combination of light and electron microscopy undertaken by two independent laboratories. 90% of tested craft sands released asbestos fibres into the air during play activities. Some fibres met the criteria for respirability. Air samples taken during experiments using moulding sand samples did not show any airborne asbestos fibres; however, analytical detection limits for this study were high. This demonstrates that the potential risk from asbestos in the product can create a real risk from fibres in the air; however, the magnitude of this risk has yet to be determined by further research. Nevertheless, no amount of risk of asbestos exposure through toys is acceptable so the most practical way to eliminate this risk would be to avoid the use of artificial sand products in toys or similar consumer products.
ER -