Nigeria lead poisoning death toll rises

Enviromine

Publishing Date: 15 Nov 2010 5:09pm GMT
Author: Mining, People and the Environment

Health and Safety Pollution & Waste management

More than 400 children have now been killed as a result of lead poisoning associated with artisanal mining in Nigeria’s Zamfara State.

The pollution, which was first identified in March, has spread to at least five villages and one town with a population of more than 10,000 people.

The Blacksmith Institute, an international non-government organisation that tackles pollution problems said presently, at least 30,000 people in Zamfara are at risk for lead exposure by inhalation or ingestion.

The poisoning has resulted from artisanal gold mining in the region, which has included villagers processing ore in their own homes.

The US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found in July that two-thirds of households reported processing gold ore rich in lead inside family compounds and that 76% of these had begun doing so in the preceding 12 months.

The CDC found that lead concentrations in soil and dust ranged from 45ppm to >100,000ppm and that blood lead concentrations ranged from 33.3µg/dL to 445µg/dL.

The recommended guideline for blood-lead levels is 10µg/dL or less.

The Blacksmith Institute said that, work has now begun on cleaning up five villages previously identified although this work has been delayed by the rainy season.

Landfills for the hazardous waste are being constructed, and digging and safe disposal of contaminated soils in household compounds is about to begin.