A Cross-Sectional Survey on Knowledge and Perceptions of Health Risks Associated with Arsenic and Mercury Contamination from Artisanal Gold mining in Tanzania.

An estimated 0.5 to 1.5 million informal miners, of whom 30-50% are women, rely on artisanal mining for their livelihood in Tanzania. Mercury, used in the processing gold ore, and arsenic, which is a constituent of some ores, are common occupational exposures that frequently result in widespread environmental contamination. Frequently, the mining activities are conducted haphazardly without regard for environmental, occupational, or community exposure. The primary objective of this study was to assess community risk knowledge and perception of potential mercury and arsenic toxicity and/or exposure from artisanal gold mining in Rwamagasa in northwestern Tanzania. A cross-sectional survey of respondents in five sub-villages in the Rwamagasa Village located in Geita District in northwestern Tanzania near Lake Victoria was conducted. This area has a history of artisanal gold mining and many of the population continue to work as miners. Using a clustered random selection approach for recruitment, a total of 160 individuals over 18 years of age completed a structured interview. The interviews revealed wide variations in knowledge and risk perceptions concerning mercury and arsenic exposure, with 40.6% (n=65) and 89.4% (n=143) not aware of the health effects of mercury and arsenic exposure respectively. Males were significantly more knowledgeable (n=59, 36.9%) than females (n=36, 22.5%) with regard to mercury (x²=3.99, p<0.05). An individual's occupation category was associated with level of knowledge (x²=22.82, p=<0.001). Individuals involved in mining (n=63, 73.2%) were more knowledgeable about the negative health effects of mercury than individuals in other occupations. Of the few individuals (n=17, 10.6%) who knew about arsenic toxicity, the majority (n=10, 58.8%) were miners. The knowledge of individuals living in Rwamagasa, Tanzania, an area with a history of artisanal gold mining, varied widely with regard to the health hazards of mercury and arsenic. In these communities there was limited awareness of the threats to health associated with exposure to mercury and arsenic. This lack of knowledge, combined with minimal environmental monitoring and controlled waste management practices, highlights the need for health education, surveillance, and policy changes

Sustainability assessment of red sand as a substitute for virgin sand and crushed limestone

This article assesses the sustainability benefits of replacing virgin sand and crushed limestone with Red Sand for road construction and top dressing. The sustainability of Red Sand was assessed using a triple bottom line analysis that includes economic, social, and environmental objectives. Each of these objectives consists of a number of headline performance indicators, with each being the aggregate of key performance indicators that measure whether Red Sand applications foster or impede sustainability. Red Sand is a newly developed product that is expected to be commercially available in 2014. It is produced by washing and carbonating the coarse fraction of the residue produced by the Bayer alumina refining process. Our assessment indicates that replacing virgin sand and crushed limestone with Red Sand will provide a range of financial and environmental benefits. For example, some environmental impacts associated with using virgin sand and crushed limestone, such as loss of biodiversity and land degradation, can be avoided by substituting Red Sand. Also, the use of Red Sand for road construction and top dressing is expected to conserve land and raw materials for future generations, thus enhancing intergenerational social equity. The energy consumption associated with producing Red Sand is projected to be lower than that required to quarry virgin sand and crushed limestone, thereby conserving energy and reducing the overall greenhouse impact of road construction and top-dressing applications that use virgin sand and crushed limestone. The greenhouse benefit of Red Sand is further enhanced by avoiding the loss of vegetation associated with sand and limestone quarrying. There are also intangible benefits expected from the substitution of Red Sand, including ecological, aesthetic, and recreational benefits associated with bushland conservation, a significant issue in areas surrounding metropolitan Perth