Lead poisoning: Zamfara clean-up to cost $4million

About US$4m is required for an immediate clean-up of the environment to save the lives of thousands of children in the northern Nigerian state of Zamfara where villages have remained contaminated with Lead, the Human Rights Watch has said.


The group in a news conference in Lagos, Tuesday, said that the amount would also cover the implementation of safer mining processes as well as testing and treatment of all children at risk for Lead poisoning.


While launching a new video, 'A Heavy Price: Lead Poisoning and Gold Mining in Zamfara State'; the group stated that the federal government has remained mum on the epidemic which has claimed the lives of more than 400 children, according to official estimates. 




Artisanal gold mining - small scale mining done with rudimentary tools - is common in gold-rich Zamfara State.


In 2010, unsafe mining practices in dozens of villages in the state led to the "worst Lead poisoning epidemic in modern history." 


Exposed to Danger


Recent findings by Human Rights Watch in Zamfara State showed that children are exposed to Lead dust when they process the ore in the mines, when their miner relatives return home covered with Lead dust, and when the Lead-filled ore is manually or mechanically crushed at home.


"Between 1,500 and 2,000 children under the age of 5 have been exposed to extremely high level of Lead for at least two years," said Babatunde Olugboji, deputy program director at Human Rights Watch.


Healthcare workers in Zamfara told the Human Rights Watch that there have also been high rates of infertility and miscarriage among affected adults. 


"There seem to be an issue of mother to child transmission (of the chemical) going on now. This is a very delicate situation," Mr. Olugboji added.


Medical workers in Nigeria reported that the Lead concentration in the Zamfara State ore is so toxic that in 2010, villages like Abare, Dareta, Duza, Sunke, Tungar Daji, Tungar Guru, and Yargalma recorded unprecedented high levels.


"The mortality rate was estimated as high as 40 percent among children who showed symptoms of Lead poisoning," said Mr. Olugboji.


Jane Cohen, a researcher at Human Rights Watch, said that immediate remediation efforts and the co-operation of the federal government are vital to providing a lasting solution. 


"Remediation needs to start immediately, before the next rainy season," said Ms. Cohen.


"If remediation begins but is not completed, the rainy season would actually make a dire situation much worse," she added.


The Zamfara State government, in partnership with international organizations like Medecins Sans Frontiers and the United States Center for Disease Control, has treated over 1,500 children with acute Lead poisoning. 


However, thousands more children urgently need the life-saving chelation therapy treatment that removes the Lead from the body via urination.


'Uncommitted federal government'


Ms. Cohen said that efforts to get the commitment of the federal government have not been successful.


"There have been several visits from high profile federal government officials but no real commitment," she said.


"We have met with the Minister of Mines and Steel several days ago.


"His response to us was that they know about the situation...but currently the ministry does not have resources to commit to this," said Ms. Cohen.


In the short video, which tries to show the impact of Lead poisoning on the lives of the locals in Zamfara State; Amina, 20, narrates how she lost three of her six children to Lead poisoning.


"By failing to address this epidemic, the Nigerian government is needlessly sacrificing its children," said Mr. Olugboji.

“The worst lead poisoning epidemic in modern history” – The situation in Zamfara

Thousands of children in northern Nigeria need immediate medical treatment and dozens of villages remain contaminated two years into the worst lead poisoning epidemic in modern history, Human Rights Watch said today while releasing a video on the issue. Four hundred children have died, according to official estimates, yet environmental cleanup efforts have not even begun in numerous affected villages.

Artisanal gold mines are found throughout Zamfara State in northwestern Nigeria, and high levels of lead in the earth and the use of rudimentary mining methods have resulted in an epidemic of lead poisoning among children, Human Rights Watch said. Research by Human Rights Watch in Zamfara in late 2011 found that children are exposed to this lead dust when they process ore in the mines, when their miner relatives return home covered with lead dust, and when the lead-filled ore is manually or mechanically crushed at home. Children can also be exposed to toxic lead in contaminated water and food. Healthcare workers in Zamfara State told Human Rights Watch that there have also been high rates of infertility and miscarriage among affected adults.

“Zamfara’s gold brought hope for prosperity, but resulted in death and backbreaking labor for its children,” said Babatunde Olugboji, deputy program director at Human Rights Watch. “People living in Zamfara State should not have to trade their lives, or their children’s lives, for the chance to mine gold and make a living.”

The Zamfara State government, in partnership with international organizations such as Medecins Sans Frontieres and the United States Centers for Disease Control, has treated more than 1,500 children with acute lead poisoning, but thousands more children urgently need the life-saving chelation therapy treatment that removes lead from the body, Human Rights Watch said. Unless their homes are cleaned up and their relatives have access to safer mining techniques that minimize exposure to lead-contaminated dust, treatment will not be effective as children will be repeatedly re-exposed.

Lead is highly toxic and can interrupt the body’s neurological, biological, and cognitive functions. Children are particularly susceptible, and according to the World Health Organization, high levels of lead exposure can cause brain, liver, kidney, nerve, and stomach damage, as well as permanent intellectual and developmental disabilities. Lead poisoning is rarely fatal, but medical workers in Nigeria reported that the lead concentration in the Zamfara State ore is so toxic that in 2010 in villages such as Abare, Dareta, Duza, Sunke, Tungar Daji, Tungar Guru, and Yargalma, the mortality rate was estimated as high as 40 percent among children who showed symptoms of lead poisoning.

In late 2011, the Zamfara State government took an important step when it put together a clean-up team, Human Rights Watch said.  The team is now cleaning up the largest and most contaminated village, Bagega, which is estimated to have at least 2,000 children in need of treatment. However, the scope of contamination in the region requires a sustained and comprehensive effort that will be difficult for the state government to manage without adequate funds, personnel, and expertise.

“For the past two months we’ve seen a renewed state government commitment to cleaning up heavily lead-contaminated areas in Zamfara,” Olugboji said. “This effort needs to be sustained and expanded, and international donors should help ensure that all affected children and villages are reached.”­­

Children as young as 8 work in Zamfara’s informal mining sector, dropping down into the mines, processing the ore, using mercury to extract the gold, and selling goods at the processing site. Much of this work, which can be extremely hazardous, qualifies as among the worst forms of child labour under international law, Human Rights Watch said.

Nigeria is party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and to the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Both treaties obligate Nigeria to protect the health of its children and to ensure their physical and mental development to the maximum extent possible. Nigeria has also ratified International Labor Organization Convention No. 182 on the worst forms of child labor, which protects children from hazardous labor, such as exposure to hazardous substances, agents, or processes.

“By failing to address this epidemic, the Nigerian government is needlessly sacrificing its children,” Olugboji said. “The federal and state governments need to educate people about the risks of lead, put safer mining programs in place, end child labor in gold mining, and dramatically expand treatment and environmental cleanup programs.”

By Human Rights Watch vi YNAIJA