Dozens of schools and preschools across Australia and New Zealand have been fully or partially closed after a warning over asbestos risks in children’s sand.
A recall notice for the coloured products, which were found to contain traces of tremolite asbestos, was issued by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) on Wednesday.
The regulator said there was a “low” risk that the asbestos could become airborne or fine enough for inhalation, but it “may still pose a risk”.
New Zealand’s Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) has also urged people to stop using the sand and arrange for safe disposal “through licensed professionals”.
On Friday, at least 15 schools and seven preschools in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) – where Canberra is situated – were fully closed, with six others partially closed as a precaution. There are also reports of a school closure in Queensland.
In New Zealand, the Ministry of Education said on Friday that five early learning services and two schools would close temporarily while licensed professionals addressed possible asbestos contamination, public broadcast RNZ reported.
In an earlier statement on Wednesday, MBIE product safety spokesperson Ian Caplin urged those who had bought the products to “act immediately”.
“Stop using the sand, contain it, secure it in a safe place and arrange for safe disposal through licensed professionals, a list of these is available on the WorkSafe website,” he said.
The ACCC said tremolite asbestos, a naturally occurring asbestos, had been detected in some samples after laboratory testing.
But it added that respiratory asbestos had not been detected in any of the samples and the release of respiratory asbestos fibres from the sand was “unlikely” unless it was “processed by mechanical means” such as crushing or pulverising.
Asbestos becomes dangerous when fibres are breathed in. They can damage the lungs and cause diseases including cancer.
Importing or exporting asbestos or goods containing asbestos is prohibited under both Australian and New Zealand law.
The sand products, which are imported from China and sold throughout Australia between 2020 and 2025, are sold by several stationery supply chains, including one of the country’s most popular retailers, Officeworks.
The products set out in the recall notice are labelled as Kadink Sand (1.3kg), Educational Colours – Rainbow Sand (1.3kg) and Creatistics – Coloured Sand (1kg).
The BBC has contacted supplier Educational Colours Pty Ltd – which issued the recall – for comment.
Officeworks said it had stopped selling the Educational Colours products after tests detected the asbestos, according to Australian broadcaster ABC.
It added that it had obtained an independent health and safety risk assessment which found that “the safety risk associated with these products is negligible”.
New Zealand’s MBIE said it had been notified that a voluntary recall for two products sold in the country – EC Rainbow Sand (1.3kg) and Creatistics – Coloured Sand (1kg products) – was underway.
It added that it was taking “precautionary action” while it established the extent of the risk posed by the “potentially contaminated product”.
Yvette Berry, the ACT’s education minister, said on social media that the products were “used at some of our public schools for sensory play, and arts and crafts”.
“I understand that this news might be upsetting for families,” she added. “Closing schools will allow testing and remediation to occur as soon as possible”.
A spokesperson for the state of Victoria confirmed no state schools will close there over the warning, saying they’d been advised “the health risk from the use of these products is low”.
“As such, there is no indication of a need to close schools or early childhood services at this time,” they added.
The spokesperson said officials were working “swiftly” to identify schools and early childhood services that may be using the recalled products, and will then support them to follow the remediation advice from relevant authorities.
In New South Wales, where there have also been no school closures, a safety alert was sent to all public schools to “immediately and safely remove these sand products if they have them”.
“The health, safety, and wellbeing of students, staff, and the school community is the department’s highest priority,” they added.
