Assessment of heavy metals and radionuclides in dust fallout in the West Rand mining area of South Africa

Dudu, Violet P.; Mathuthu, Manny; Manjoro, Munyaradzi

doi:10.17159/2410-972x/2018/v28n2a17

Cited by 14 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…To examine the potential health impacts that could be posed by the heavy metals, enrichment factors were calculated. According to Dudu et al [ 41 ], the enrichment factor (EF) method is one way of quantifying the anthropogenic pollution of a given site. The assumption made in calculating EF is that the ratio is 1 for elements not above crustal average.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dust Deposition Impacts at a Liquidated Gold Mine Village: Gauteng Province in South Africa

Mpanza

Adam

Moolla

2020

IJERPH

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The windy season brings numerous community complaints for gold mining companies situated in the Witwatersrand due to windblown dust from partially rehabilitated tailings storage facilities (TSFs). For communities encroaching onto TSFs, windblown dust is perceived as a health hazard and an environmental challenge. In a study conducted in 2017 by the Lawyers for Human Rights, the community of a gold mine village perceived tailings storage facility 6 (TSF6) and other surrounding tailings storage facilities which are partially rehabilitated to be a health and socio-economic threat. Since 2013, when a nearby gold mining company was liquidated, this community has been complaining about dust fallout. To validate the claims made by the community this paper reports on the dust deposition impacts, and respiratory illnesses risk posed by wind-blown generated dust. The study conducts an air quality assessment using dispersion modelling of windblown dust. Surface material from the TSFs was sampled, analysed for silica and heavy metal content using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) respectively. This study finds that PM10 dust fallout, high in silica and uranium content, could potentially pose health threats to the surrounding community. The study further shows that dust deposition is the highest in July–October, with TSF6 posing a nuisance while TSF1 represents a potential health threat owing to its particle size distribution for the surrounding gold mine village community. Potential receptors of the air pollution by dust in this study area include neighbouring property owners, business owners of the nearby shopping centre, the school and the clinic. This study further finds that sudden mine closure due to mine liquidation results in unrehabilitated tailings storage facilities which exacerbates dust deposition.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dust Deposition Impacts at a Liquidated Gold Mine Village: Gauteng Province in South Africa

Mpanza

Adam

Moolla

2020

IJERPH

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“…South Africa, which has one of the most diverse and comprehensive farming systems in Africa, is known for its mining and industrial activities, resulting in radioactive waste littered in farmlands and communities ( 7 ) . South Africa is a water-scarce country, having about 12% of the country’s land suitable for growing rain-fed crops with 3% considered fertile, and about 1.3 million ha of land under irrigation, which represents 60% of the total water use per sector, according to Baleta and Pegram ( 8 ) , contributing significantly to the food chain, which serves as direct exposure source through ingestion of food crop.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Radiological assessment of irrigation water used in Rustenburg, South Africa

Olagbaju,

Wojuola,

Tshivhase

2023

Radiation Protection Dosimetry

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Water is an essential input in agricultural production, which is why it plays an important role in food security. According to the World Bank, water irrigated agriculture represents about 20% of the total cultivated land and 40% of the total food produced globally. This makes water a direct and indirect route of radiation exposure to humans via contact, ingestion and consumption of agricultural products. Radiological assessment of irrigation water around Rustenburg, one of the mining and industrial cities in South Africa, is investigated in this study. The activity concentrations of 238U, 232Th and 40K in irrigation water samples were determined using the total mass elemental concentrations of uranium, thorium and potassium, measured using inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy. The activity concentrations of 238U and 40K range from 1.24 × 10−04 to 1.09 × 10−02 Bq/l, and 7.07 × 1000 to 1.32 × 10+01 Bq/l, with mean activity concentrations of 2.78 × 10−03 and 1.16 × 10+01 Bq/l, respectively. The activity concentration of 232Th was found below the detection level in all sampled irrigation water. Estimated annual effective dose because of ingestion because of 238U and 40K was also found to be below 120 μSv/y for 238U and 232Th, 170 μSv/y for 40K and a total of 290 μSv/y by the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation. The estimated radiation dose and lifetime cancer risk indices indicate insignificant radiological risk, making the irrigation water safe for domestic and agriculture purposes.

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“…Particulate matter refers to a mixture of atmospheric solid and liquid particles that vary in number, morphology (size, shape, and surface features), chemical composition, density, solubility, and origin. Particulate matter also represents suspended dust that is settleable or can be deposited at a particular site in the atmosphere and referred to then as dust fallout (Dudu et al, 2018;Liebenberg-Enslin et al, 2020;Pope & Dockery, 2006). Dust fallout or dust in general is constantly emitted into the ambient air from a variety of activities and sources that can be natural or anthropogenic.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A wide variety of pollutants and/or microbial diversity has been associated with dust and/or dust fallout particles (Al-Barakah et al, 2014;Gonzalez-Martin et al, 2014). Chemical pollutants that are of concern that can be absorbed or incorporated into dust of a given location (with respect to their origin) include a variety of trace metals (i.e., arsenic, chromium, nickel, lead, copper, cadmium, and mercury) (Kgabi, 2010;Kgabi et al, 2012;Lanzerstorfer, 2021;Popoola et al, 2012), radionuclides mostly linked to mining sites and its associated processes (i.e., radium and thorium) (Dudu et al, 2018) as well as other contaminants. Previous studies have shown that dust and/or dust fallout particles have been correlated with viable microorganisms or cells (i.e., non-pathogenic, and pathogenic bacteria, viruses, and fungi) which can emanate from humans and plants in addition to other sources such as pets (Babu et al, 2017;Chen et al, 2023;Malli Mohan et al, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Bacteria, Morphological Characteristics, and Elemental Composition of Dust Fallout

Mweendi,

Shafodino,

Munyaradzi

et al. 2023

GEP

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Dust fallout can have diverse impacts ranging from major health problems to environmental concerns. It can harbour disease-causing microorganisms and toxic heavy metals, and it is therefore critical to establish the microbial and the mineral compositions of the dust fallout in a particular site and elucidate the possible related health implications for humans and the entire environment. In this study, dust fallout samples were collected from Arandis, a town in the Erongo region (Namibia), using the American Society for Testing and Materials standard method (ASTM D1739) for collection and analysis of dust fallout (settleable particulate matter). The identification of present viable bacteria was done through culturing and isolation techniques and the morphological characteristics, and the elemental composition of the dust fallout were determined using the Stereomicroscope and the X-ray fluorescence, respectively. The results showed that the most dominant bacteria contained in the fallout dust were the Bacillus species. The morphological characterisation revealed that the present particles were mixed black, brownish, greenish, and crystal particles with irregular, cubical, flocks and flake shapes. The elemental investigations indicated that the dust fallout contained Hg, As, Fe, Ni, Cr, Mn, Al and Pb occurring in varying concentrations and the status of pollution of the dust fallout ranged from low to severe concerning the inconsistent heavy metal indices that are the contamination factor, pollution load index and the enrichment factor.

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Assessment of heavy metals and radionuclides in dust fallout in the West Rand mining area of South Africa

Cited by 14 publications

References 36 publications

Dust Deposition Impacts at a Liquidated Gold Mine Village: Gauteng Province in South Africa

Dust Deposition Impacts at a Liquidated Gold Mine Village: Gauteng Province in South Africa

Radiological assessment of irrigation water used in Rustenburg, South Africa

Assessment of Bacteria, Morphological Characteristics, and Elemental Composition of Dust Fallout

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