Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Jikowale, and Lata 2007). Respiratory problems are also widespread in
the Vatukoula community, and many believe that these symptoms are
related to the air pollution that, prior to the mine's closure in 2006, regu-
larly emanated from the mine's roaster stack for decades.
Our 2007 study conducted fi rsthand empirical research into the per-
ception of environmental and health risks in the communities surround-
ing the Vatukoula mine. Primary data were obtained through a survey
questionnaire designed to quantify and evaluate perceived risks (
n
= 340,
representing approximately 24 percent of the target population). Con-
currently, environmental samples were collected to assess the extent of
environmental impacts at the study site. The study revealed that over 80
percent of all Vatukoula residents feel it is likely that air pollution has
harmed their health, and more than 60 percent of all residents experi-
enced severe respiratory symptoms at least once during the previous
month. The head teacher at Vatukoula Primary School, which is located
within sight of the mine's roaster stack, explained that when the mine
was operating, the children and teachers were also affected by sulfur
dioxide emissions. Teachers were often forced to close all the school
windows from 8 a.m. until the early afternoon to avoid exposure to
emissions, and several teachers requested transfers to different locations
because of their environmental concerns (Head Teacher, personal com-
munication, July 30, 2007). The pollution of rivers and streams and
drinking-water pollution were also of great concern to most residents,
with 88.6 percent of the people “somewhat” or “very” worried about
the former and 86.7 percent “somewhat” or “very” worried about the
latter.
The transportation, storage, and disposal of mining waste pose
additional environmental risks for the Vatukoula community. Six large
tailings dams are located in the region. These dams are designed to
store industrial waste, or tailings, which are produced during mineral
processing. Some residents live only meters away from the dam walls.
Releases and failures of similar tailing dams have been documented
across the globe. The majority of major mining-related environmental
incidents worldwide have been the result of dam overtopping, breaching,
geotechnical failure, or earthquakes (Akcil, 2006). In 2000, the Aural
gold mine in Romania experienced a dam failure that caused leaching of
mine wastes into the Danube river system. In 1988, the Kumtor mine in
Kyrgyzstan recorded a spill of 100 tons of cyanide (Stenson 2006). While
many developed countries maintain strict regulations on the storage
and disposal of wastes from gold mines, mining corporations in the
