Assessment of asbestos contamination in soils at rehabilitated and abandoned mine sites, Limpopo Province, South Africa
| Autor: | Mapadi Olifant, Deshenthree Chetty, Stanley Masikhwa, Guy G. Freemantle |
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| Rok vydání: | 2022 |
| Předmět: |
Mesothelioma
Environmental Engineering Asbestos Serpentine Grunerite Health Toxicology and Mutagenesis Asbestos Crocidolite Asbestos Mining Asbestos Asbestiform Contamination medicine.disease_cause Pollution Archaeology Soil South Africa Soil water Chrysotile medicine Humans Environmental Chemistry Environmental science Asbestos Amosite Waste Management and Disposal Abandoned site |
| Zdroj: | Journal of Hazardous Materials. 429:127588 |
| ISSN: | 0304-3894 |
| Popis: | Prior to its termination, asbestos mining in South Africa was centred on the large crocidolite fields of the present day Northern Cape, the amosite (grunerite)-crocidolite fields of Limpopo, and chrysotile fields of Mpumalanga provinces. The legacy of these activities continues to affect surrounding communities in contemporary South Africa. The asbestos fields of Limpopo host two important former mining areas at Penge and at the Bewaarkloof near Chuenespoort. A large abandoned site is located southeast of Penge at Weltevreden, where there is no evidence of any rehabilitation. Two former mines, Lagerdraai and Uitkyk, are rehabilitated sites in an extensive string of closed mines that operated in the southern Bewaarkloof. Samples from the abandoned and rehabilitated mine sites were studied using semi-quantitative X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) to determine asbestos contamination levels in soils, and to assess distribution patterns of asbestos mineral species in the surrounding soils. Only where below detection (typically 1-3 mass%) from XRD, samples were assessed optically. The Weltevreden site, with no observable rehabilitation efforts, contrasts with the rehabilitated sites at Lagerdraai and Uitkyk. The predominant asbestiform mineral species at each site were successfully identified, with underlying geological asbestos mineral distribution trends recognised in the soils at the Bewaarkloof. Trace amounts of asbestiform minerals were identified in soils downstream of the Weltevreden mine, as well as in surrounding hillsides. The results indicate that XRD is a potentially useful tool for benchmarking sites yet to be rehabilitated as well as monitoring the effectiveness of previous rehabilitation efforts. The method is also a suitable first-pass for target areas that may require more detailed, time-consuming, and costly analysis. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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