One has suggested a drastic remedy.

David Winderlich, independent member of the Legislative Council, called for the state government to ban Penrice from mining on hot and windy days.

Mr Winderlich and Ivan Venning – the Member for Schubert – have both highlighted Penrice dust as a health and environmental issue.

They believe Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) tests show the mine has produced dangerous levels of fine-particle dust – in breach of the National Environment Protection Monitoring standard.

The results were recorded by a ‘hotspot caravan’ that has been located near the mine for the past nine months.

Penrice Soda Holdings, the company that owns the Barossa mine, has rejected the figures.

Guy Roberts, Penrice managing director and chief executive officer, revealed the mine’s own EPA dust monitors had not recorded any dust emissions that breached standards.

“We deny these exeedences,” Mr Roberts said.

“The supposition is those results picked up by the hotspot caravan were due to outside mine factors.”

The ‘hotspot caravan’ monitoring station was put in place on March 31, for a period of 12 months.

Mr Venning said it was installed after appeals by nearby neighbours.

But he was worried the monitor did not meet national standards.

“The EPA is supposed to be the community’s watchdog authority with regard to environmental issues, but in this case it appears they have dropped the ball,” Mr Venning said.

“Is this body serious about enforcing environmental standards or are they merely a toothless tiger?”

Meanwhile, the mine has already committed to install a new dust suppressant system in coming months.

This will come at a cost of $200,000 and be located inside the mine’s aggregate crushing plant – one of the known sources of dust emissions.

This move follows trials of a water soluble, biodegradable foaming dust suppressant system.

However, Mr Venning urged the mine to do more.

He wants the crusher and conveyer belts enclosed, to help reduce dust emissions.

“No one including myself wants to see the mine closed,” Mr Venning said. “Everyone is aware of the employment the mine provides for locals and that the soda ash extracted from the mine is used to make glass bottles – in particular wine bottles.”

Mr Venning believes the mine can fit in with the community.

“But measures need to be taken to ensure this happens,” he said.

Processing of bulk solids inevitably leads to generation of fugitive dust on many sites. Often, it is not possible to contain dust at all stages of the process and dust emissions become inevitable. The Environment Agency is becoming increasingly strict on dust nuisance and will serve closure notices or award punitive damages to offenders.

Using The Renby Fogging System to suppress dust can avoid this. The systems can be fitted locally to the dust source, for instance, a transfer chute or as a general system to suppress dust in a warehouse for example. Specially designed nozzles produce atomised water to droplet sizes of a few microns. Dust adheres to these droplets and falls out of the air. The system is very economical to purchase and operate.

With low power consumption, fog is an essential and cost effective tool in the battle against dust pollution. Doing nothing is not an option and can lead to company closure.

Contact Renby now to find out more about fog and other dust control measures.

Observations of dust emissions from haul trucks prove that if the dust emissions are unrestrained, they can be a safety danger by means of impairing the operator’s visibility. This increases the likelihood for haul truck accidents. Yet, the greatest long-term health risk of dust generated from hauling operations is due to breathing of the respirable dust [median diameter <4 micrometers (μm)] and thoracic dust, which is equivalent to the EPA’s definition of PM10 [particulate matter with a median diameter <10 μm]. Exposure to respirable dust has always been considered a health hazard on surface mining operations, particularly if silica dust is there.

There are two legislative acts that control the air quality designed for mining operations: the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969 and the Clean Air Act of 1970. The Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969 established the restrictions meant for dust in the work place for healthiness and safety purposes. The Clean Air Act of 1970 controls air emissions from facilities from an environmental viewpoint. Characterizing fugitive dust emissions from haul trucks may help mine operators grasp the effects of exposure.

The Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969 recognized a maximum value for coal respirable dust of 2 mg/m3 for coal excavation employees. The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) enacts and enforces mine employee safety and health standards to ease mine employee injuries in addition to work-related diseases. If silica is encountered in the course of the sampling process then the applicable respirable dust standard is reduced to the amount of 10 divided by the percentage of quartz appearing in the dust. Representing non-coal mine personnel, the appropriate standard is the respirable dust standard of 10 divided by the sum of the quartz proportion plus 2. Both of these dust standards are designed to limit worker respirable crystalline silica (quartz) contact to 0.1 mg/m3 or less for the shift. Observance with these dust standards is projected to lessen a worker’s chance of work-related lung disease over an average life expectancy. Additionally, MSHA’s nuisance dust limit (total dust) for non-coal miners is 10 mg/m3.

Soils Control International has accomplished the same results with their product, Top-Seal Dust Control 

DuPont Australia’s groundbreaking work to reduce dust emissions from trains carrying coal and to improve air quality recently earned two industry awards:

* The Australian Mining Prospect Award for Excellence in Environmental Management
* The Australian Bulk Handling Award for Dust Control Technology

“Dust emissions from trains transporting coal are a serious problem for the mining industry and a constant source of complaint from communities near rail lines,” said Leong Mar, Technology Centre manager. “Australia’s hot, dry climate significantly increases the potential for dust during the trip from the mine to the port.”

DuPont and Anglo Coal worked on a joint project at Callide Mines that cut coal dust emissions from 50% to 90%, depending on coal characteristics and conditions. A spray system treats the surface of loaded coal with DuPont™ Dusgon® dust suppression agent. The design is seamlessly integrated with normal operations and provides tangible benefits to the workers, local community and the environment.

DuPont Australia Managing Director Hutch Ranck said the awards reflect the company’s commitment to developing products that protect people and the environment.

“Congratulations are in order to the dust suppression team for their determination and perseverance in successfully commercializing this technology, which has won industry recognition,” Hutch said.

Visit SCI and look at Top-Seal for your coal dust control