The Environmental Challenges of Mining in Nigeria
Minerals have the potential to liberate my country from financial instability. Yet current plans are rapidly harming the environment.
The mining industry in Nigeria has long fascinated me. I became enthralled by the discovery of varieties of minerals, besides the long-known crude oil. As you can see in the map below, Nigeria is literally a gold mine —in fact, we have an almost complete A-to-Z of minerals from Asbestor to Zinc. These minerals have great potential to liberate my country from our financial instability and our sole dependence on crude oil for growth. In theory, each region should be able to generate loads of income for itself, with the abundance of these mineral resources so widespread.
And yet, that hasn’t been the case. It is sad to note that since the rapid growth of mining, Nigeria’s GDP has hardly received any significant contributions from the mining industry (just 0.3%). The industry remains underdeveloped with the rampant practice of artisanal mining still ongoing with major environmentally unsustainable methods, and often fatal lack of protection for the miners themselves. Unfortunately, the map of environmental degradation now closely matches that of the mineral discoveries.
The aim of this article though is not to discuss Nigeria’s economic growth or deterioration, but to explore how the small and large scale mining activities are impacting and would still impact climate change in my country in the nearest future.
The Nigerian mining industry began as an organized activity in 1903 when the British colonial government formed the Mineral Survey of the Northern Protectorates. But it’s recent history is one of privatisation and foreign overseas investors. Investment plans on the Government’s Geological Survey Agency website state that: “The current global financial crisis has presented an immense opportunity for investing in the mining sector in Nigeria. Nigeria is now more than ever welcoming to investors.”
As a Nigerian I should be screaming hurray, right? But no, I won’t. This is because some of the already implemented plans are rapidly harming the environment. The first and scariest of them is the massive deforestation.
Before mining can begin proper, large expanses of forest where the mineral resources are located, are cleared without mercy. This is done to enable easy access, exploration and departure. In the process, carbon dioxide which had previously been stored in the trees are released back into the atmosphere. Meanwhile the ongoing carbon dioxide drawdown of the trees has been lost.
Some mining methods also directly contribute to environmental catastrophe like “Mercury Amalgamation” in gold mining. As described by UNEP, when mercury comes into contact with gold particles in sediments or crushed ore, it forms “amalgam” — a soft mixture of roughly 50% mercury and 50% gold. To recover gold from the amalgam, it is heated to evaporate the mercury, leaving the gold behind. While it does not directly contribute to GHG emissions, the cumulative impacts of mercury emissions during the mining process leads to the pollution of soil, water, vegetation and wildlife, all of which are under threat from climate change.
The practice also threatens human health, too. Mercury is a powerful neurotoxin, yet it is often handled with bare hands — as in the photos below. While the evaporation process causes “Mercury vapor concentrations in the air around sites where the amalgams are burned, [which] almost always exceed the WHO limit for public exposure of 1,000 nanogram/cubic meter.”
The toxic activities from this sector has also led to harming people through respiratory diseases, cancer, kidney diseases and skin diseases.
As Nigeria’s mining sector becomes more robust, it is important that plans are made by the government to ensure that it is environment and climate friendly. Instead of mercury amalgamation for example, mercury-free gold mining methods such as gravitational separation and magnetic separation can be adopted. Gravitational separation uses centrifuges or vibrating tables to separate gold from ore, while the magnetic separation uses a magnet.
Strict laws for sustainable mining should be established for longevity and continuity. Both public and private mining companies should endeavor to rehabilitate areas previously used for mining by replanting cut down trees — and even more.
I particularly love the idea of Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU). Whereas the more commonly talked about Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is the process of capturing carbon dioxide emissions and permanently storing them thousands of feet underground, CCU uses the CO2 to make things such as building materials. According to the IEA, several North American companies, including CarbonCure, CarbonBuilt and Solidia Technologies, lead the development and commercialisation of carbonated concrete production through CO2-curing.
CCU can also be used for alternative fuel production, which could be immediately beneficial to the domestic market in Nigeria — and indeed could help fuel the (cleaner) mining operations to come. The IEA informs that some CCU plants uses CO2 for the production of fuels and chemicals and are in operation today, with a chemical plant in the United States to produce ‘e-methanol’ in January 2024. And a planned flagshipOne e-methanol plant in Sweden which will to start capturing CO2 from a biomass-fired combined heat and power plant in 2025.
Individuals are not left out of this either. We can also do our little bit by spreading awareness of the harmful effects of mining on the climate and human health and advocating for changes in mining policies.
We must also strive to invest in companies that adopt or are willing to adopt safe mining practices and intentionally choose to purchase end products with minimal environmental footprints. With collective and consistent efforts, Nigeria’s mining sector can surely be made to contribute more to the country’s economy, while protecting its environmental wealth at the same time.
