PAPFor

Wealth and variety of mining resources

Yuzhou — 2022-10-23T13:32:07Z

Mining activities globally are estimated to be responsible for about 7% of forest loss (FAO, 2020). The soil of the African continent is estimated to contain 30% of the world's mineral reserves.

In West Africa, strategic resources for the world market, such as gold, diamonds, iron and bauxite, are located right in the tropical forest zone.

Mining in and around the Guinean forests is traditionally divided into different types, from both an economic and an environmental point of view:

Artisanal mining, which mainly concerns gold and diamonds, sometimes heavy minerals (zircon, rutile) and, rarely, uranium.
Semi-industrial or "small-scale" mining. This includes gold but also phosphate and locally heavy minerals or semi-precious stones. In English-speaking countries (Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone), artisanal and small-scale mining are generally grouped together (described as ‘ASM').
Industrial operations, which can be distinguished between :
- Precious metals (e.g., gold, diamonds): low-grade ore mined and processed on site. Rare earths and associated metals (niobium, tantalum, lithium, etc.) fall into this category, as does uranium. For these operations, most of the excavated rock remains in situ.
- Heavy ore, such as iron, bauxite and manganese: transported as-is (or after a slight enrichment on site), to a minerals port or possibly to an industrial zone where it is processed. These operations require specific transport infrastructure (ore trains). The exploration and exploitation of these substances in West Africa is primarily carried out by international mining companies with significant state involvement.
- Other substances, mainly phosphate (either transported or processed on site) or base metals (copper, lead, zinc).
In the quarry sector, "raw" materials (sand, gravel, crushed stone, ornamental rocks, etc.), which are used without major transformation, are distinguished from materials that need transformation (gypsum (plaster) and cement limestone).

Iron mining in the Nimba Mountains has left significant impacts. This area was covered in primary forest before it was mined. East Nimba Nature Reserve, Liberia. © M. Languy

Le secteur minier en quelques chiffres pour les pays forestiers guinéens

L'exploitation minière contribue aux PIB nationaux de ces pays de manière plus au moins importante. En Haute Guinée, cette contribution est parfois très significative tel que pour la Guinée avec un peu moins de 20%. La basse guinée est plus tributaire de la production de pétrole et de gaz. La contribution du secteur minier au PIB du Nigeria atteint à peine 0,2%, avec ses carrières et autres minéraux divers.

	Principaux minerais	Contributions sur secteur minier au PIB (%)
Côte d'Ivoire	Or, granite, manganèse, phosphate, nickel	4,8 (2018)
Ghana	Or, manganèse, bauxite, diamant	6 (2017)
Guinée	Bauxite, or, carrière, fer, diamant	18,4 (2018)
Libéria	Fer, or, diamant	6,9 (2019)
Nigeria	Carrières et autres minéraux	0,2 (2018)
Sierra Leone	Fer, diamant, bauxite, rutile	4,7 (2017)

Principaux minerais et contributions du secteur minier au PIB dans les pays forestiers guinéens (Sources : rapports ITIE, 2017-2018-2019)

Ces pays sont repris parmi les pays producteurs mondiaux d'or, de diamant, de fer et de bauxite, minerais pour lesquels on les retrouve régulièrement dans le TOP 20 des producteurs mondiaux.

	Côte d'Ivoire	Ghana	Guinée	Libéria	Sierra Leone	Nigeria
Fer	-	-	-	25	19	39
Bauxite	-	15	3	-	13	-
Or	29	7	18	47	89	49
Diamant	21	14	15	16	12	-

Figure 32 : Classement des états producteur dans le monde Pour en savoir plus : https://atlasocio.com/
Classement des états producteur dans le monde, cas des pays forestiers guinéens (Sources : World mineral statistics | Minerals UK - British Geological Survey, 2017)

Exploitations minières dans les six paysages PAPFor

Plusieurs pays ont mis leur cadastre minier en libre accès sur Internet, tel que :

Au Libéria, Liberia National Concession Map Portal :
Selon ce portail, quatre « Mineral Development Agreements » (Mital Steel, Aureus Mining, Amlib-Libera, Chinia, Union, Investment Liberia) sont repris pour de l'or et du fer (en particulier à proximité des paysages PAPFor Gola-Foya et Mt Nimba) et de nombreuses licences d'exploration sont reprises sur l'ensemble du pays pour l'or, le fer, les métaux de base et minerais divers. Pour ces licences d'exploration, outre Gola-Foya et Mt Nimba, le paysage PAPFor Taï-Grebo-Krahn-Sapo est également très concerné.

Cadastre minier au Libéria (09-2021) : http://portals.landfolio.com/Liberia/

En Côte d'Ivoire, Portail cartographique du Cadastre Minier de la Côte d'Ivoire :
Selon le portail, les permis miniers en exploitation concernent en particulier l'or et le manganèse. Il y a de nombreux permis de recherche et demandes de permis concernant une large gamme de minerais. Le sud-ouest du pays, qui correspond au paysage PAPFor Taï-Grebo-Krahn-Sapo, est moins couvert par le secteur minier. Dans ce paysage, on peut citer les sociétés minières telles que : Société des mines de Floleu, Société des mines d'Ity, Tiebaya Gold, Sodemi, Loady Exploration, Sahaurum Côte d'Ivoire, Notre Dame Resources Côte d'Ivoire, La Mancha CI, GEMICA, etc.

Extrait du cadastre minier en Côte d'Ivoire (09-2021) : https://portals.landfolio.com/CoteDIvoire/FR/

En Guinée, Portail cartographique du cadastre minier de la République de Guinée :
Selon le portail, les permis miniers en exploitation concernent en particulier le fer, la bauxite, l'or et le diamant. Il y a de nombreux permis de recherche et demandes de permis concernant ces minerais mais également des zones stratégiques de réserves en métaux de bases. Dans les trois paysages PAPFor en Guinée (Mont Nimba, Wologizi-Wonegizi-Ziama, Outamba-Kilimi-Kuru Hills-Soya), on peut citer les sociétés minières telles que : Société Euro Nimba, Société Génie Civil Guinée, Simfer, Société des Bauxites de Guinée, Société des Bauxite de Kindia, Société Belzone Holdings, Société des bauxites de Dabola-Tougue, etc.

Extrait du cadastre minier en Guinée (09-2021) : https://guinee.cadastreminier.org/en/

Pour le Nigeria, le portail du cadastre minier apparait en phase de développement : https://portal.minesandsteel.gov.ng/
Le Paysage PAPFor de Cross River, est particulièrement concerné par l'exploitation minière de baryte, ou barytine (https://deltaanalyst.wordpress.com/2018/03/28/state-by-state-list-of-solid-mineral-deposit-in-nigeria/), une matière première très recherchée dans les explorations de pétrole et de gaz et par les industries pharmaceutiques, de la peinture et du papier mais connue pour la problématique de contamination des sols et des eaux par les métaux lourds associés aux mines abandonnées.

Pour la Sierra Leone, le portail du cadastre minier apparait également en phase de développement : http://www.nma.gov.sl/mining-cadastre-office/
Dans les paysages PAPFor Gola Foya et Outamba-Kilimi-Kuru Hills-Soya, la majorité des communautés qui vivent autour des aires protégées sont principalement des agriculteurs de subsistance, une minorité a historiquement pris part à l'exploitation minière (d'or, voire de de diamants) en tant qu'activité saisonnière pour la source complémentaire de revenus. Ces activités se sont développées et les mineurs extrayaient maintenant illégalement de l'or et des diamants à l'intérieur des limites des aires protégées.

Artisanal and small-scale mining

Yuzhou — 2022-10-23T13:32:00Z

Artisanal and small-scale mining can be defined (OECD) as mining that involves mainly simplified forms of exploration, extraction, processing and transportation, and manual labour, with limited mechanisation. It is generally a low capital-intensive operation using labour-intensive technologies.

The sector is largely informal but provides an income for millions of people worldwide. Regulation of the sector is often inadequate and it is difficult to estimate its true contribution to a country's economy (Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, 2021).

In West Africa, this type of mining is mainly carried out by gold miners (artisanal gold mining) or diamond miners (artisanal diamond mining), although artisanal operations do exist in other areas (river or beach sand, semi-precious stones, etc.). Gold panning is by far the dominant illegal activity, involving several thousand people.

West African countries are trying to limit and regulate artisanal mining (gold panning and diamond mining) but these activities are still often carried out illegally in areas that are off-limits to exploitation, particularly in protected areas.

This type of mining is also generally ‘unprofessional', without modern techniques or any concern for the environment. When a gold mining commences at a site, several hundred or even several thousand miners move into a previously uninhabited area.

In addition to the usual impacts of mining, artisanal and small-scale gold and diamond mining in forested areas often requires the areas to be cleared in advance, leading to forest degradation, habitat loss, land degradation, increased storm water runoff, and soil erosion.

An abandoned diamond exploration site in Gola Forest NP, Liberia. © M. Languy

Local bushmeat markets develop around artisanal mining sites and have a negative impact on animal populations. Endangered species such as chimpanzees are not spared, mainly because of the particularly intense poaching around artisanal mining camps where bushmeat is usually the main source of protein.

Traditionally used in gold panning, mercury is used to separate gold from rocks or sand, as it adheres to the gold, forming an amalgam, which is then heated to evaporate the mercury and leave the gold. Cyanide can also be added to recover (additional) gold from already processed tailings.

Without proper management measures, elemental mercury can therefore be released to air, land, surface and groundwater in liquid and gaseous form during ore processing and amalgam burning.

This elemental mercury can transform into an organic form that becomes concentrated as it moves up the food chain, causing neurological damage and other adverse effects in humans. Some gold miners add cyanide to mercury, which accelerates the dispersion of mercury into the air and aquatic environments. This is because cyanide-mercury complexes are water-soluble and highly mobile in water. When the mercury cyanide complexes break down, the mercury is released into the water, or disperses into the air.

The threats of the mining sector

Yuzhou — 2022-10-23T13:28:38Z

Water management and pollution

Mining and mineral processing require large volumes of ground- and/or surface water.

This demand can have negative impacts on regional freshwater systems and watersheds:

Depletion of water resources
Degradation of water quality: due to chemicals or mining waste
Changes in groundwater patterns and river systems.

When tailings from mining are released into water following processing, a high sediment load is added to the water and can have the following harmful consequences: loss of vegetation and animal species sensitive to the reduction in available light, accelerated erosion, changes to the water course, nutrient balance and fish migration patterns, reduction in fishery resources, disappearance of wetlands.

Finally, a phenomenon of acidic water can occur due to sulphuric acid being produced by the contact of certain minerals with air. This contributes locally to the global phenomenon of freshwater acidification.

Neighbouring communities suffer the consequences as they depend on the same rivers and aquifers for washing, drinking water, cooking and agricultural needs.

Soil pollution and land degradation

Tailings and by-products of mining operations accumulate and, depending on the extraction process, may contain acidic compounds, heavy metals etc., which will generally render the land unsuitable for any future use. As well as contaminating water courses, these waste products can seep into the soil and thus seriously pollute the environment.

The loss of forest cover also leads to land degradation, increased storm water runoff, loss of fertility and soil erosion.

Air pollution

Mining operations affect air quality through the accumulation of toxic elements. These pollutants can affect the health of people living near the mine site. Respiratory diseases and allergies can be triggered by inhalation of the airborne particles.

Increased pressure on the surrounding forests

In both its industrial and artisanal forms, mining inevitably attracts an influx of people (workers, their families as well as a whole economic sector that develops around the sector), increasing pressures on the surrounding forest resources both of wood (firewood) and non-wood (bushmeat, fish, etc.) origin.

Mining and climate change

The mining sector is responsible for a large proportion of greenhouse gas emissions. In addition to the loss of forest cover, the main sources of GHG emissions are energy requirements, transport, some mineral processing and waste management.