Mining And Extractive Industries

UG to undertake study on mined lands

Accra, July 4, GNA - The Faculty of Science, University of Ghana, is undertaking a study into turning degraded and bare lands left unused after mining into productive use. This was announced by Professor Ebenezer O. Owusu, Vice Dean of the Faculty in Accra, on Monday. He was speaking to the Ghana News Agency, after the opening session of a month's training on environmental and social impacts of extractive industries, for 22 participants from the Duquesne University of the United States of America (USA). The training is part of the Emerging Leadership Training Programme (LEEP), an exchange programme between the University of Ghana and Universit= y of Duquesne. It is being organised by the Department of Science, Oceanography and Fisheries of the Faculty of Science of the University of Ghana, with funds from the State Department of the United States of America. The training, on the theme 93Emerging Young Professionals: Environmen= tal Issues in Ghana and United States of America", is the second component of the project, with Duquesne hosting the first component in May last year, in Pittsburgh, USA, where a Ghanaian delegation understudied the country's extractive industries. The participants will study the extractive industries in Ghana; develo= p policy briefs, make management recommendations and be exposed to the cultural and social set ups in Ghana. Prof. Owusu noted that the aftermath of mining in Ghana had been disastrous, that lands were left bare and unproductive, after mining and "these lands could be used for something productive instead of being left there serving as death traps to affected communities." He explained that the study underway had shown that such mined lands could be used for aqua-culture and the cultivation of oil palm, while the dangerous chemicals used for the mining could be detoxified from the land t= o prevent any contamination to the fishes and the palm fruits. Prof. Owusu urged the participants to develop policy briefs that would ensure that degraded lands were cultivated into productive use for the benefit of the affected communities. Dr Francis Nunoo, Head of the Oceanography and Fisheries Department, Faculty of Science, University of Ghana said, the training programme in Ghana was crucial, at a time when Ghana was extracting oil offshore, and must ensure that her extraction was handled in a manner that would benefit the nation and not harm the environment or have other unforeseen negative societal impacts. He noted that the exploitation and management of natural resources in Ghana were tightly integrated into cultural, social and economic lives of the people. Dr Stan Kabala, Associate Director of Centre for Environment and Research and Education, commended the University of Ghana for the warm reception and pledged to ensure that participants brought to bear their numerous experiences and make an impact to Ghana's extractive industries. The participants will take time off to visit some of Ghana's tourist sites.

Out of The Box: Rare Earths in Pacific Ocean : Don't Get Too Excited

Early in my professional career, I headed up a team at the United Nations which helped fund, coordinate and aggregate international research on the geology and economics of subsea minerals, including managanese nodules, subsea massive sulphides (SMS), and subsea muds. A member of my team now heads up the International Seabed Authority as its Secretary-General. This was a heady, exciting time as worldwide science and engineering teams from many countries opened up a new frontier for potential mineral resources. Unfortunately, international politics, economics, and price declines of key minerals from terrestrial sources all led to the promise of these subsea resources being postponed. The potential is a lot closer now, but we still don't have a real production operation to use as a data point. The Japanese subsea muds are scientifically interesting, but of little import beyond that for the foreseeable future. Nautilus Minerals (TSE:NUS) has developed an SMS site in the Bismarck Sea, within the territorial waters of Papua New Guinea. The deposit is called Solwara I, and it received its final environmental clearance from the PNG government on December 29, 2009. Indicated reserves in Solwara I are 870 kilotonnes, and inferred reserves are 1,300 kilotonnes. Mineralisation of the deposit comprises a matrix of Cu-Zn-Ag-Au as target minerals. The work done on this project has been exemplary, and to have passed the stringent environmental regulatory framework of PNG is a testament to the corporate collaborative culture, something which U.S. extractive industries lack. Capital expenditures for the system from subsea mining to delivery of dewetted ore to the dock is estimated at about $400 million, with operating costs at $64 per tonne. The subsea collection system has been designed by an industry leading company, and a subsidiary of GE's Oil and Gas segment will operate the subsea lift pumping system.

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