Real Risk

[

] 75

N THE

UNDUCHI

area of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, there are

21 companies undertaking quarrying activities – the crush-

ing machines used in the extraction of rocks produce dust

that spreads all over the area. Dust pollution is widely spread in

the settlement, especially during dry season. Dust comes from

many sources, including the crushing machines.

Dust is also produced by the area’s 1,500 small-scale miners,

who crush gravel and stones by hand. Two different types of small-

scale miners have been observed in the area. The first group

constitutes those who stay in the area and the second group is

those who stay outside the area and they only go in for quarrying

activities. Some of the miners who constitute the first group under-

take their mining activities right from their residential houses.

On average, 200 lorries go in and out of the settlement every

day to load stones, gravel and crush dust for building purposes.

These moving vehicles produce yet more dust, which again spread

all over the settlement.

Dust pollution immediately affects the people who stay in the

area. In a survey of 30 households, 90 per cent indicated that

they live and work within the area and small-scale mining activ-

ities were their main employment opportunity. This means that

this section of the population is affected by dust pollution day

and night, thus putting them at very high risk of acquiring

diseases associated with dust pollution, such as tuberculosis (TB).

Observation in the area has revealed accumulations of dust over

the walls, windows and doors of local houses.

Children are the section of the population that is most vulner-

able to the effects of dust pollution. In every household visited

during fieldwork, the majority of children met were coughing,

and their bodies were covered in dust. A discussion with the

physician who runs a private dispensary nearby revealed that

people who are exposed to dust pollution are likely to acquire

respiratory diseases. Records from a nearby Mecco dispensary

revealed the presence of respiratory diseases.

Disaster risks at the quarry site

and local coping initiatives: the case of

Kunduchi in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Benedict Malele, Senior Planning Officer,

University College of Lands and Architectural Studies, Tanzania

Source: Mecco Dispensary Records, Dar es Salaam, March 2006

Reported cases of injuries, respiratory and skin diseases