The Editor invites feedback from readers of. Earthworks on any of the articles that appear in this or earlier issues. In particular, the DFID would like to hear your ...
ISSUE 9 November 1999
issues
Earthworks
■ EDITORIAL page 2 ■ MINERALS FROM WASTE Re-use of quarry fines page 3
■ IODINE DEFICIENCY DISORDERS The effects of environmental iodine page 3
■ SOIL FERTILITY Lime and phosphate for agricultural use page 7
■ ARSENIC IN GROUNDWATER Studies in the Bengal Basin pages 4 and 5
■ CERIUM The link with infantile heart disease page 8
■ GOLD PROCESSING Mercury-free methods Enhanced recovery page 6
Cover picture: Sluice used in traditional small-scale gold mining, Guyana. (see p.6) Mike Styles BGS, © NERC
EARTHWORKS
Engineering Knowledge and Research Strategy: 2000 to 2005 The following statement has been provided by DFID: ngineering Knowledge and Research (KaR) forms a substantial component of the Department for International Development’s overall programme of research. A new Engineering KaR strategy has recently been prepared in response to the Government’s White Paper on International Development (1997). The new strategy builds on the strength and experience of the previous programme which has been applied for the last five years. The strategy comprises six sectoral components: Energy, Geosciences, Information and Communications Technology, Transport, Urbanisation, Water Supply and Sanitation. Up to five sub-themes have been defined within each sector to focus the research programme on DFID’s objectives. The sub-themes may be modified during the KaR programme to better respond to the target strategies which DFID is currently preparing. These show how DFID will address the International Development Targets, the main measures of progress towards the objectives of the White Paper.
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DFID’s aim requires that the outcomes of our research programme should have increasingly clear direct or indirect impacts on the elimination of poverty. In addition the new strategy lays particular emphasis on the following aspects. ●
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Contribute to the global pool of engineering knowledge in line with DFID objectives. Thus a key element of the strategy will be to strengthen collaboration with other agencies with compatible objectives. Strengthen links to the demand for information knowledge from the North by the South. This will involve more informative feedback on current research and past outcomes, greater collaboration with representative organisations from the South and closer understanding of the requirements of beneficiaries. Linked to a better understanding of demand is a strong commitment to improve the dissemination of engineering information and knowledge. We
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shall commission studies to better understand how engineering knowledge is used and how we may help organisations and individuals in the South to more effectively access, adapt and adopt available information and knowledge. We shall establish dissemination frameworks within which research outcomes will be made available more effectively. In view of the innovative aspects of the programme, monitoring and evaluation will be strengthened to improve learning from the successful initiatives.
The Engineering KaR programme will be managed within the Infrastructure and Urban Development Department under the responsibility of the Deputy Chief Engineering Adviser. Specialist advisers will be responsible for each sectoral component of the programme. Implementation of the strategy continues to be guided by an international steering group which will advise on improving the response to our overall objectives. The group will advise on the selection of projects submitted as competitive applications in respect of the sectoral sub-themes. A new component will commission specific activities to address key knowledge gaps within the scope of the programme. DFID will seek to identify such gaps in consultation with relevant international specialists in the sectors concerned.
Letters to the Editor DFID supports the Eleventh International Conference of the Geological Society of Africa
he Editor invites feedback from readers of Earthworks on any of the articles that appear in this or earlier issues. In particular, the DFID would like to hear your views on the work carried out under the Knowledge and Research (KaR) programme and to learn of take-up of project results. Comments on important engineering-related issues and problems in developing countries, and suggestions for research, are also welcome. Such information may help formulate new KaR projects and identify possible links between collaborating organisations in the UK and internationally. Depending on the response, a Letters feature may be included in future issues. Please address your comments (letter, fax or E-mail) to the Editor Earthworks at the contact address provided on the back of this newsletter.
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KaR information he web site at www.bgs.ac.uk/dfid-kar-geoscience has summaries of projects and will in future include downloadable versions of full reports. It also gives on-line access to this and earlier editions of Earthworks. No charge is made for single hard copies of KaR reports for use by government agencies, educational establishments, research institutions, NGOs and other non-profit making institutions in countries eligible for British aid. Other organisations and individuals can purchase copies from the lead organisation.
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John Bennett he DFID generously supported African participation at GSA11 which took place at the University of Cape Town, South Africa, from 29 June to 2 July 1999. This was the first conference of the Geological Society of Africa (GSAf) to be held in South Africa and was organised by the GSAf VicePresident for Southern Africa, Dr Marian Tredoux. The theme of the meeting was 'Earth Resources for Africa', in recognition of the notion that the responsible and sustainable development of the natural resources of the continent should contribute importantly to its wealth-creation capability and thus to socio-economic development in the new millennium. The meeting attracted some 180 delegates drawn from 23 anglophone and francophone African countries (Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe), and from Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Holland, Norway, Romania, Russia, Sweden, UK and USA.
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A selection of the full papers will appear in the Journal of African Earth Sciences and the African Geoscience Review. GSA11 was preceded by workshops covering a range of topics relevant to the theme of the conference, including geoscience education, resource exploration techniques (minerals, water), and progress on the Tectonic Map of Africa (Commission for the Geologic Map of the World). GSA11 also allowed the GSAf to conduct its own business meetings and provided the forum for the society’s General Assembly, which was attended by more than 50 members. Forthcoming events include the society’s next international conference (to be hosted by Cameroon in 2001), the 18th Colloquium of African Geology (to be held in Graz, Austria in 2000), a Minerals Forum (to be hosted by Guinea in 2000) and GeoLuanda 2000 (to be held in Luanda). The GSAf welcomes new members (individual and institutional) who are supportive of its aims, wherever they may live. Those interested in membership or in receiving details of forthcoming events should contact the contributor of this report via the Editor of Earthworks.
Issue 9
November 1999
EARTHWORKS
Minerals from waste
Current projects
David Harrison, British Geological Survey, Project R7416
R7115, G1 Best practice in small-scale gemstone mining. (Daniel Start, Intermediate Technology)
uring mining and quarrying, large volumes of mineral residues are generated, mainly as finegrained materials. Such waste materials produced as a by-product of mining and quarrying in developing countries not only pose a threat to the environment but also represent a valuable resource that could be used in a range of local, secondary industry thereby creating opportunities for new sustainable livelihoods for the rural poor. This new project aims to improve the sustainability of current and former mining and quarrying communities by investigating the utilisation of mine waste as a source of construction and industrial minerals. In order for a particular reclamation operation to be successful, it must be both economically and environmentally viable. Evaluation of the waste quality, as well as socio-economic and environmental benefits and costs, will therefore be at the heart of the study. The first phase of the project will involve a scoping study to provide a preliminary assessment of the potential of mineral wastes and an appreciation of the socio-economic issues involved in their utilisation. This will be followed by pilot studies of selected mineral wastes in the collaborating countries
R7116, G1 Evaluating possible uses of Zimbabwean phosphate based wastes. (Ottos Ruskulis, Intermediate Technology)
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(Namibia and Costa Rica). The three year project will be completed in 2003 with production of a Handbook for Mine Waste Utilisation. Project workshops to present the findings of the research will be given in southern Africa and central America. The BGS-led project will involve a multidisciplinary team with specialists from the BGS, the Mining and Environment Research Network (MERN) at the University of Bath led by Professor Alyson Warhurst, and Camborne School of Mines (University of Exeter) led by Professor Peter Scott.
Issue 9
November 1999
R7354, G1 Mercury-free coal-gold agglomeration (CGA) process for gold. (Professor Michael Mingos, Imperial College of Science Technology and Medicine)
R7410, G1 Low-cost lime for small-scale farming (FARMLIME). (Clive Mitchell, British Geological Survey)
David Harrison, BGS © NERC
Stockpiles of quarry fines from large scale crushed rock aggregate production.
Chris Johnson, British Geological Survey, Project R7411
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R7181, G1 Design and pilot implementation of a model scheme of assistance to small-scale miners. (Jeffrey Smith, Wardell Armstrong)
R7370, G1 Local phosphate resources for sustainable agriculture. (Don Appleton, British Geological Survey)
Environmental controls in iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) odine deficiency is the world’s most common cause of mental retardation and brain damage with 1.6 billion people at risk, 50 million children affected and 100 000 sufferers born every year. The negative effects of impaired mental function have a significant impact on the social and economic development of communities, causing low productivity and a drain on social service resources. The solution to the problem is relatively simple and intervention practices such as the iodisation of salt are widely used. However, whilst the problem of IDD has been extensively investigated from a medical perspective, and procedures for monitoring and measuring the iodine status of local populations are well established, iodine’s behaviour and distribution in the local environment are less well understood. Many IDD areas of the world occur in environments that are apparently not iodine deficient, and it still has to be determined whether goitrogens or the unavailability of iodine through the food chain is the crucial factor. Much of the published knowledge on iodine geochemistry is based on pre-1970 research undertaken
R7120, G1 Recovering the lost gold of the developing world. (Mike Styles, British Geological Survey)
before routine analytical methods for determining iodine at the low naturally occurring levels were available. More recent knowledge of the behaviour of hazardous radioactive isotopes of iodine gained from studies connected to nuclear industry can also be applied to better understanding of the geochemical behaviour of iodine. This new study seeks to develop a better understanding of the migration of iodine in the environment particularly in the food chain. If the environmental characteristics (e.g. pH, organic composition, other major and minor elements) that control the availability and distribution of this essential trace element were better understood, sustainable remedial measures could be implemented that would improve the iodine status of the local population and lessen the risk of IDD. This knowledge of how to best improve the local environment’s iodine status could be then be used, along with the current medical intervention techniques, to reduce the number of people in the world that are at risk from the disabilitating effects of iodine deficiency.
R7416, G1 Sustaining communities through mine waste reclamation. (David Harrison, British Geological Survey) R6491, G2 Environmental arsenic exposure: health risks and geochemical solutions. (Barry Rawlins & Pauline Smedley, British Geological Survey) R7118, G2 Cost-effective evaluation of hazards from mine waste. (Ben Klinck, British Geological Survey) R7411, G2 Environmental controls in iodine deficiency disorders. (Chris Johnson, British Geological Survey) R7117, G4 New hydroponoic and construction uses for porous volcanics (VOLCON). (Steve Mathers, British Geological Survey) R6839, G5 Implementation strategy for landslide hazard preparedness. (David Greenbaum, British Geological Survey) R7198, G5 Appropriate technology for low-cost geological mapping. (Eugene O’Connor, British Geological Survey) R7199, G5 Strategies and systems for maximising geoscience data value. (John Laxton, British Geological Survey) R7200, G5 The societal value of geoscience information in LDCs. (Tony Reedman, British Geological Survey) G5 Protecting vulnerable small islands by improved forecasting and warning. (Professor Bill McGuire, Benfield Greig Hazard Research Centre)
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EARTHWORKS
Arsenic in groundwaters of the Bengal Basin Pauline Smedley & David Kinniburgh, British Geological Survey t has become apparent in recent years that groundwaters can contain naturally high concentrations of arsenic, sometimes exceeding the national drinking water standards. The main problem is that arsenic has not been routinely tested for in the past so existing supplies may be affected without the knowledge of the water provider or consumer. Furthermore, it is difficult to predict exactly which areas might be affected so an extensive screening survey of all sources may be necessary. Unfortunately, many of the most seriously affected arsenic problem areas are found in developing countries which often lack the necessary infrastructure for carrying out rapid screening surveys on the scale required. The largest problem so far identified is in the deltaic region of West Bengal and Bangladesh where many millions of people are drinking water containing arsenic at concentrations above the Indian and Bangladesh drinking water standard (0.05 mg/l). The BGS became involved in Bangladesh in early 1997 as part of a DFID-funded project and are currently completing this study in collaboration with the Government of Bangladesh’s Department of Public Health Engineering. The project is aimed at identifying the scale of the problem and its underlying causes. A Phase 1 report was completed in January 1999 in collaboration with Mott MacDonald Ltd and a final report will be published in 2000. A summary of the early findings can be found on the BGS web site.
Groundwater in Bangladesh and West Bengal is used extensively for the rural drinking water supply as well as for irrigation. Many of these supplies have serious arsenic contamination. The arsenic is of natural origin and has probably been present in the groundwater for thousands of years. However, most of the wells have only been drilled in the last 10–30 years; hence the relatively recent manifestation of arsenic-related diseases. These were first diagnosed in patients from West Bengal in 1983, mostly from the Bangladesh border region east of the Bhagirathi River. Arseniccontaminated groundwater was first identified in Bangladesh in 1993 in a village adjacent to the arsenic-affected district of Malda in West Bengal. More extensive contamination in Bangladesh was confirmed in 1995 when additional surveys showed high arsenic contamination in wells across much of southern and central Bangladesh. At the same time, cases of chronic arsenicosis were being recognised by health professionals. Since 1995, evidence of the
A tubewell in the soft sediments of Bangladesh.
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the total arsenic concentration ranged from
