AdvertisementNew Silica Rules Languish In Regulatory Black HoleFebruary 01, 2012Nell GreenfieldboycefacebookEmailControlling dust from activities like this was on the minds of those in the Department of Labor in the 1930s, as silicosis, a lung disease, was taking a toll on American workers. Above, a worker jackhammers into rock in Lassen National Forest in California in 1934, preparing to shoot explosives. (Oregon State University Libraries)