Environment

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The Sadiola Hill Gold Mine is located in the Kayes region of Mali, West Africa, where there are two distinct seasons: a short wet one from June to early September and a longer hot and dry season from October to May. The region is subject to dust ‘pollution’ from the Harmattan, a dry dusty wind that blows along the north-west coast of Africa and which can reduce visibility to less then 50 metres. This can be exacerbated by construction and mining activities such as those at Sadiola and Yatela.

Dust was a significant issue during the construction of the mines. Emissions continue to emanate from the mine pits and the waste rock dumps, but it is dust caused by traffic between the mines – situated about 30 kilometres apart – that is of greatest concern to neighbouring communities.

The national road between Sadiola and Yatela mines is a dirt road which passes through several rural villages. Trucks use the road to deliver raw materials, buses transport employees to and from work, and supervisor vehicles shuttle between the mines. Secondary traffic comprises private cars, trucks and taxis, all of which use the same road on a regular basis. This assortment of traffic stirs up significant quantities of dust which form clouds of very fine dust particles which, particularly bad during the dry season, are both a health and a safety hazard. Respirable dust (particles of less than 10 microns – equivalent to about one seventh of a human hair) pose the greatest health risk because the particles can be easily inhaled.

The two villages most affected by dust emissions – Kourketo and Sadiola with a population of about 14,000 – are located on the route between the Sadiola and Yatela mines. Residents’ complaints have been addressed both through the community Stakeholder Committee which liaises with the mine on behalf of the community, and directly to the community development manager at the mine.

Several measures are being implemented to minimise dust levels in and around the mines. They include:

• road watering – a contracted water bowser is used to spray sections of the road between Sadiola village and the tarred mine road, as well as roads inside Neteko village. During the dry season, approximately 96,000 litres of water are used per day for dust suppression;
• haul road watering – pit water from the dewatering programme is used to suppress dust on the access and haul roads inside the mining area;
• application of binding agents in the form of molasses and lignosulphonate – in 2004, both molasses and lignosulphonate were applied in trials at Sadiola and Kourketo villages respectively. Lignosulphonate has proven to be more efficient than molasses, which tends to get washed away quickly; and
• traffic relocation – a new road is being constructed to divert mine traffic off the national road and on to a new private road that is situated away from neighbouring villages.

At the last two stakeholder workshops, communities voiced their appreciation of the mine’s efforts to manage dust emissions at the operations and in their communities. They also expressed a desire that the entire road between Kayes and Sadiola be tarred. This, however, would be the responsibility of national government.