A matter of approach: the retort's potential to reduce mercury consumption within small-scale gold mining settlements in Tanzania

Journal of Cleaner Production

Volumn 17, Issue 1, 2009, Pages 77-86

  Jønsson, Jesper Bosse ^a   Appel, Peter W U ^b   Chibunda, Raphael Tihelwa ^c  

^a UNIVERSITY OF COPENHAGEN   (Denmark)

^b GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF DENMARK AND GREENLAND   (Denmark)

^c SOKOINE UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE   (Tanzania)

Author keywords

Mercury; Retort; Small scale mining; Tanzania

Indexed keywords

GOLD; GOLD MINES; HEALTH; HIGHWAY SYSTEMS; MINERS; MINING; MINING LAWS AND REGULATIONS; PLANNING; RECYCLING; STRATEGIC PLANNING;

ACTION RESEARCH; GOLD EXTRACTION; GOLD MINING; GOLD RECOVERIES; MERCURY; MINING SETTLEMENTS; PARTICIPATORY APPROACHES; RETORT; SMALL-SCALE MINING; TANZANIA;

MERCURY (METAL);

EID: 50849092519     PISSN: 09596526     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2008.04.002     Document Type: Article

References (69)

1. Hilson G., and Yakovleva N. Strained relations: a critical analysis of the mining conflict in Prestea, Ghana. Political Geography 26 1 (2007) 98-119
2. Campbell B. Regulating mining in Africa: for whose benefit? (2004), Institute for African Studies, Uppsala
3. Yakovleva N. Perspectives on female participation in artisanal and small-scale mining: a case study of Birim North District of Ghana. Resources Policy 32 1-2 (2007) 29-41
4. Banchirigah S.M. How have reforms fuelled the expansion of artisanal mining? Evidence from sub-Saharan Africa. Resources Policy 31 3 (2006) 165-171
5. Hilson G., Yakovleva N., and Banchirigah S.M. 'To move or not to move': reflections on the resettlement of artisanal miners in the Western Region of Ghana. African Affairs 106 424 (2007) 413-436
6. Sinding K. The dynamics of artisanal and small-scale mining reforms. Natural Resources Forum 29 3 (2005) 243-252
7. Hinton J.J., Veiga M.M., and Veiga A.T.C. Clean artisanal gold mining: a utopian approach?. Journal of Cleaner Production 11 2 (2003) 99-115
8. Hentschel T., Nruschka F., and Priester F. Global report on artisanal and small-scale mining. Working Paper 70, Mining, minerals and sustainable development project (2002), International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), London
9. Jennings N.S. Small-scale mining: a sector in need of support. Mining Environmental Management 8 1 (2000) 17-18
10. Government of Tanzania. The mining act (1998), Ministry of Energy and Minerals, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
11. Government of Tanzania. The mining regulations (1999), Ministry of Energy and Minerals, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
12. Fisher E. Occupying the margins: labour integration and social exclusion in artisanal mining in Tanzania. Development and Change 38 4 (2007) 735-760
13. Mutagwaba W. Analysis of the benefits and challenges of implementing environmental regulatory programmes for mining: Tanzania case study. Journal of Cleaner Production 14 3/4 (2006) 397-404
14. Mwaipopo R, Mutagwaba W, Nyanga D, with Fisher E. Increasing the contribution of artisanal and small-scale mining to poverty reduction in Tanzania. A report prepared for the Department for International Development (UK), 2004.
15. Kitula A.G.N. The environmental and socio-economic impacts of mining on local livelihoods in Tanzania: a case study of Geita District. Journal of Cleaner Production 14 3-4 (2006) 405-414
16. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. Economic development in Africa. Rethinking the role of foreign direct investment. UNCTAD Report, 2005.
17. Phillips L.C., Semboja H., and Shukla G.P. Tanzania's precious mineral boom: issues in mining and marketing. African Economic Policy paper no. 68. Equity and Growth through Economic Research (2001)
18. Kinabo C. A socio-economic study of small-scale mining in Tanzania. In: Hilson G. (Ed). The socio-economic impacts of artisanal and small-scale mining in developing countries (2003), A.A. Balkema Publishers, The Netherlands
19. Chibunda RT, Pereka EA, Tungaraza C, Janssen CR. Toxicity of sediment collected from a small scale gold mining impacted river in Geita - Tanzania to Chironomus riparius. International conference on pesticide use in developing countries: environmental fate, effects and public health implications.
20. Taylor H., Appleton J.D., Lister R., Smith B., Chitamweba D., and Mkumbo O. Environmental assessment of mercury contamination from the Rwamagasa artisanal gold mining centre, Geita District Tanzania. The Science of the Total Environment 343 1-3 (2005) 111-133
21. Van Straaten P. Human exposure to mercury due to small scale gold mining in northern Tanzania. The Science of the Total Environment 259 1-3 (2000) 45-53
22. Hilson G. Abatement of mercury pollution in the small-scale gold mining industry: restructuring the policy and research agendas. The Science of the Total Environment 362 (2006) 1-14
23. Spiegel S.J., and Veiga M.M. Building capacity in small-scale mining communities: health, ecosystem sustainability, and the global mercury project. EcoHealth 2 4 (2005) 361-369
24. Veiga MM, Metcalf SM, Baker RF, Klein B, Davis G, Bamber A, et al. Manual for training artisanal and small-scale miners. Removal of barriers to introduction of cleaner artisanal gold mining and extraction technologies. Global Mercury Project, 2006.
25. Babut M., Sekyi R., Rambaud A., Potin-Gautier M., Tellier S., Bannerman W., et al. Improving the environmental management of small-scale gold mining in Ghana: a case study of Dumasi. Journal of Cleaner Production 11 2 (2003) 215-221
26. Maponga O., and Ngorima C.F. Overcoming environmental problems in the gold panning sector through legislation and education: the Zimbabwean experience. Journal of Cleaner Production 11 2 (2003) 147-157
27. Veiga MM, Baker R. Protocols for environmental and health assessment of mercury released by artisanal and small scale miners. Removal of barriers to introduction of cleaner artisanal gold mining and extraction technologies. Global Mercury Project, 2004.
28. Hylander L.D., and Plath D. Microscopy and certification as tools for environmentally benign, mercury-free small-scale gold mining. The Science of the Total Environment 368 (2006) 371-383
29. Lacerda L.D. Updating global Hg emissions from small-scale gold mining and assessing its environmental impacts. Environmental Geology 43 3 (2003) 308-314
30. Hilson G., and Pardie S. Mercury: an agent of poverty in Ghana's small-scale gold mining sector?. Resources Policy 31 2 (2006) 106-116
31. Agency for Toxic Substances and Diseases Registry. Toxicological profile for mercury. Available from: (1999), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Atlanta, Atlanta.
32. United Nations Environment Programme. Global mercury assessment (2002), UNEP Chemicals, Geneva
33. Clarkson T.W., Magos L., and Myers G.J. The toxicology of mercury-current exposure and clinical manifestations. New England Journal of Medicine 349 (2003) 1731-1737
34. World Health Organization. Safety evaluation of certain food additives and contaminants. The fifty-seventh meeting of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives. WHO Food Additives Series 48 (2007)
35. Davidson P.W., Myers G.J., Cox C., Axtell C., Shamlaye C., Sloane-Reeves J., et al. Effects of prenatal and postnatal methyl mercury exposure from fish consumption on neurodevelopment: outcomes at 66 months of age in the Seychelles Child Development Study. Journal of American Medical Association 280 (1998) 701-707
36. Grandjean P., Weihe P., White R.F., Debes F., Araki S., Yokoyama K., et al. Cognitive deficit in 7-year old children with prenatal exposure to methylmercury. Neurotoxicology and Teratology 19 6 (1997) 417-428
37. Berglund M., Lind B., Björnberg K.A., Palm B., Einarsson O., and Vahter M. Inter-individual variations in human mercury exposure biomarkers: a cross sectional assessment. []. Environmental Health: A global Access Science Source 420 (2005)
38. Mol J.H., Ramlal J.S., Lietar C., and Verloo M. Mercury contamination in freshwater, estuarine, and marine fishes in relation to small-scale gold mining in Suriname, South America. Environmental Research Section A 86 (2001) 183-197
39. Leino T., and Lodenius M. Human hair mercury levels in Tucurui area, State of Para, Brazil. The Science of the Total Environment 175 (1995) 119-125
40. Lacerda L.D., Pfeiffer W.C., Marins R.V., Rodrigues S., Souza C.M.M., and Bastos W.R. Mercury dispersal in water, sediments and aquatic biota of a gold mining tailings deposit drainage in Pocone, Brazil. Water Air Soil Pollution 55 3-4 (1991) 283-294
41. Appleton J.D., Weeks J.M., Calvez J.P.S., and Beinhoff C. Impacts of mercury contaminated mining waste on soil quality, crops, bivalves, and fish in the Naboc River area, Mindanao, Philippines. The Science of the Total Environment 354 (2006) 198-211
42. Lombong D., Kumampung J., Rimper J., Arai T., and Miyazaki N. Emissions and environmental implications of mercury from artisanal gold mining in north Sulawesi, Indonesia. The Science of the Total Environment 302 (2003) 227-236
43. Ogola J.S., Mitullah W.V., and Amulo M.A. Impact of gold mining on the environment and human health: a case study in the Migori gold belt, Kenya. Environmental Geochemistry and Health 24 (2002) 141-158
44. Van Straaten P. Mercury contamination associated with small-scale gold mining in Tanzania and Zimbabwe. The Science of the Total Environment 259 (2000) 105-113
45. Veiga M.M., Maxson P.A., and Hylander L.D. Origin and consumption of mercury in small-scale gold mining. Journal of Cleaner Production 14 3-4 (2006) 436-447
46. Hilson G., and Van Der Horst R. Technology, managerial, and policy initiatives for improving environmental performance in small-scale gold mining industry. Environmental Management 30 6 (2002) 764-777
47. Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland. Borax replacing mercury in small-scale mining. Available from:. on 8.03.08
48. Appel P.W.U., Dyikanova C., Esengulova N., and Tagaeva A. Baseline survey of artisanal and small-scale mining and teaching seminars for small-scale miners in Kyrgyz Republic 2003. Available from:. Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (2003). on 8.03.08
49. Vieira R. Mercury-free gold mining technologies: possibilities for adoption in the Guianas. Journal of Cleaner Production 14 3-4 (2006) 448-454
50. Priester M., Hentchel T., and Benthin B. Tools for mining: techniques and processes for small-scale mining (1993), Vieweg: Gate Publications
51. Tesha AL, personal communication, April 1, 2007.
52. Dreschler B. Small-scale mining and sustainable development within the SADC Region. Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development Project (2001), International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), London
53. Mwami J.A., Sanga A.J., and Nyoni J. Tanzania children labour in mining: a rapid assessment. International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (2002), International Labour Organization, Geneva
54. Veiga MM. Equipment specification for the demonstration units in Tanzania. Removal of barriers to introduction of cleaner artisanal gold mining and extraction technologies. Global Mercury Project, 2004.
55. Tesha AL. Information about the project site in Tanzania. Removal of barriers to introduction of cleaner artisanal gold mining and extraction technologies. Global Mercury Project, 2003.
56. Hypolito R. The Hypolito retort - making mercury recovery safe. Appropriate Technology 17 2 (1990) 20
57. Hilson G., Hilson C.J., and Pardie S. Improving awareness of mercury pollution in small-scale gold mining communities: challenges and ways forward in rural Ghana. Environmental Research 103 2 (2007) 275-287
58. Itika A, personal communication, October 11, 2006.
59. Tesha AL, personal communication, October 11, 2006.
60. Manaku G, personal communication, May 27, 2007.
61. Wicklein R.C. Designing for appropriate technology in developing countries. Technology in Society 20 (1998) 371-375
62. Niehoff AH, Anderson JC. The process of cross-cultural innovation. Professional paper 36-37. Virginia: Clearinghouse for Federal Scientific and Technical Information; 1967.
63. Ellis G., and Hanson B. Evaluating appropriate technology in practice. Journal of Contemporary Asia 19 1 (1989) 33-47
64. Date A. Understanding appropriate technology. In: Ghosh P.K. (Ed). Appropriate technology in third world development (1984), Greenwood Press, Westport (CT)
65. Dunmade I. Indicators of sustainability: assessing the suitability of a foreign technology for a developing economy. Technology in Society 24 (2002) 461-471
66. . Material safety data sheet. Zinc peroxide MSDS. Available from: 4.03.08.
67. Singo P. The ancient ways versus technological development in custom gold processing. CASM and gold mining and minerals development trust workshop: small-scale mining is here to stay, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, 2004.
68. Ministry of Energy and Minerals. Mineral policy of Tanzania. Dar es Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania, 1997.
69. Taylor G, personal communication, March 31, 2007.