Rpublique du Sngal - the International Lead Management Center Site

United Nations Common Fund for Commodities
and
The International Lead Zinc Study Group
Technical expert mission in Senegal to Finalize Plans to set up a Collection
Center for Used Lead Acid Batteries in Dakar consistent with the Basel
Convention Technical Guidelines and to Integrate the activities of the Center
with Domestic Recovery of the Used Batteries in a manner that is
Environmentally Sound
Dakar, Senegal, 28 – 31 March 2010
Report prepared for the International Lead Zinc Study Group
(June 2010)
Brian Wilson
International Lead Management Centre
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1. Introduction
On 15 April 2008, the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources in Senegal
made an official request for technical assistance to the Secretariat of the Basel
Convention (SBC) concerning a case of contamination of local populations, mainly
women and children, from hazardous waste due to lead recovery activities in the
informal sector from used lead acid batteries. The communication to the secretariat
mentioned the death of at least eighteen babies and young children due to lead
poisoning and the likeliness of the contamination from lead of many individuals,
including adults.
Assistance was requested with a view to reviewing the situation at Thiaroye sur Mer
and ascertaining what actions needed to be considered locally and nationally, in the
short-term and the longer term, to prevent further contamination from lead of local
populations and assist in developing a national plan for the environmentally sound
management of used lead acid batteries in the context of the implementation of the
Basel Convention. The mission of an expert from the International Lead Management
Centre took place from 21 to 27 April 2008 in Dakar, Senegal. The mission has lead
to further consultations with the WHO Headquarters in Geneva and the UNEP-OCHA
office in Geneva.
A report of the emergency measures taken by the Government in March 2008 was
transmitted to the secretariat and the expert prior to the mission. After meetings with
the local population to explain the course of action the Government intended to take,
the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources coordinated the removal of
three hundred tons of leaded and battery waste from the site Thiaroye sur Mer
between March 8 th and 13 th . The priority for the removal of the contaminated soil
was from the areas close to the homes of the families engaged in the informal ULAB
recovery operations. All informal ULAB recovery operations at the site were stopped
and nearly 300 tons of the lead contaminated soil from Thiaroye sur Mer taken to the
Pagrik Senegal Company, a recently opened ULAB recycling plant to be stored
under cover in lieu of treatment to render the soil lead free. The lead contaminated
soil removed from Thiaroye sur Mer was replaced with lead free sand to a depth of
approximately 14 cm.
The Environment Ministry moved the contaminated soil to be stored at the Pagrik
Senegal yard because they believe that the company can process and treat the
contaminated soil in an environmentally sound manner to remove enough lead to
render it safe for disposal in a domestic waste dump, or for use as infill material.
Priority at Thiaroye sur Mer was given for the removal of soil in front of the houses of
the families engaged in the informal recycling and the area most used to break open
the batteries. Nevertheless, the Environment and Health Ministries are not certain of
the extent of the lead contamination at Thiaroye sur Mer, but do believe that there is
still a lot of soil in and around the Thiaroye sur Mer site that is contaminated with lead
and battery acid, which will require more remediation work.
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The activities in Senegal of the Blacksmith Institute 1 were taken into consideration as
the organization was in the process of conducting an independent survey of
“informal” ULAB recovery operations in and around the city of Dakar. Corroborating
material from their preliminary surveys was sought and transmitted prior to the
mission to the Secretariat confirming that five “Informal” ULAB recovery sites had
been located by the Blacksmith Institute in the Dakar area. Thiaroye sur Mer was not
the only location for informal ULAB recovery operations. Also, it was made known to
the secretariat that the Blacksmith Institute had decided to follow up to its preliminary
investigation with site visits, including Thiaroye sur Mer, because of its focus on
remediation of toxic sites and community engagement.
In January 2009 the International Lead Zinc Study Group, responding to the call for
assistance to resolve the Lead exposure issues at Thiaroye sur Mer and set up a
formal used lead acid battery collection center in Dakar submitted a Project Proposal
to the UN Common Fund for Commodities (CFC) for a $120,000 award to implement
such a scheme. Approval for funding this Project was awarded in June 2009. The
Implementing agency for the Project is the International Lead Management Center
(ILMC).
The primary objective of this project is to establish a ULAB collection center in Dakar
to source, pack and prepare for the transport of ULAB to a recycling plant that is
environmentally sound and complies with the environmental, safety and health
legislation of Senegal and conforms to the Basel Technical Guidelines for the
Recovery of ULAB. At the time of the mission the ILMC was working in liaison with
the Government of Senegal and Pagrik Senegal to confirm the environmental
credibility of the Pagrik Recycling Plant at Sebikotane, a site approximately 45
kilometers to the East of Dakar.
ULAB are classified as hazardous waste under the Basel Convention and must
treated as such when arrangements are made to transport them to a recycler. The
main risk during transport is associated with the battery electrolyte that may leak from
ULAB in transit.
Achieving the objective of setting up a collection center in Dakar (TSM is an option):
• Reduce considerably the health risks to the local population caused by Lead
exposure
• Reduce and possibly eliminate the environmentally unsound recovery of ULAB
• Provide a source of revenue from the servicing of Lead Acid Batteries (LAB)
and the collection and sale of ULAB
• Provide employment at the Center and work for the local population as LAB
testers, service technicians and ULAB collectors
• Improve public awareness of the proper handling and disposal of ULAB
• Create a local partnership with the Pagrik Senegal SA Recycling Plant
• Provide a model for other ULAB collection centers in Dakar and Senegal
This project aims to be sustainable, replicable, cost effective and manageable.
1 Blacksmith Institute – Hhttp://www.blacksmithinstitute.org/H - An institute based in the USA that
specializes in providing remediation support especially in the field of lead exposure.
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Close liaison with the Ministry of the Environment and the Basel Convention Regional
Centre (BCRC) for French speaking African countries based in Dakar was paramount
in the preparation for this mission and its successful undertaking. Arrangements made
by the Ministry of the Environment and the BCRC, in conjunction with all the other
relevant ministries and parties involved were essential for this mission to succeed.
Pagrik Senegal SA 2 is a wholly owned subsidiary of Gravita India Ltd 3 ., a global
company specializing in the recycling of Used Lead Acid Batteries (ULAB). Gravita
India is headquartered at Jaipur (State of Rajasthan), India, a distance of 280 km
from New Delhi.
The Pagrik Group has six ULAB recycling plants in Africa, located in Ethiopia,
Ghana, Madagascar, Mozambique, Zambia and now Senegal. There are also
recycling plants in India, Georgia and Sri Lanka, and the company is planning to
extend its operations into Honduras, in Central America.
The new secondary lead smelter in Senegal is located at the township of Sebikotane,
approximately 45 kilometers to the East of the capital Dakar. Sebikotane is situated
in a largely farming community with a population of about 30,000 residents. There
are a few ceramic workshops and a Government Prison, but little industry.
2 Hhttp://www.pagriksenegal.com/H
3 Hhttp://www.gravitaindia.com/H
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2. Meeting at the Ministry of the Environment – March 30, 2010
In attendance:
Mr Ernest DIONE, Deputy Director (Ministry of the Environment and Classified
Establishments)
Mr. G Soulé BA – Adviser in the Ministry of the Environment and Classified
Establishments (DEEC)/Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources
Mr. M Seck – Director of the Basel Convention Regional Center for French Speaking
Africa
Mr. R G Choudhary - Gravita Vice President for Global Operations, including Senegal
Mr. B Singh – General Manager of the Pagrik Senegal SA ULAB Recycling Plant
Mr. B Wilson – Program Manager, ILMC
The previous day the Pagrik Senegal Recycling Plant at Sebikotane had been
inspected and assessed by the ILMC using the Green Lead Assessment Process to
determine the level of conformance to the Basel Technical Guidelines.
The preliminary report of the ILMC stated that while the plant in its current
configuration did not conform to the requirements of the Basel Technical Guidelines
and had not been tested in operation to determine if the emission levels would
comply with the environmental legislation of Senegal, if the management of Pagrik
Senegal complied with all the recommendations of the Assessment Report, there
was every possibility that the Plant would comply with the environmental laws of
Senegal and be in a position to apply for a permit to recycle ULAB.
The ILMC went on to point out that certain items of equipment and plant had to be
installed before the plant could operate. These were; the Effluent Treatment Plant,
the Employees’ Changing Rooms and the ULAB Saw. Legal requirements such as
compliance with the environmental legislation of Senegal could only be determined if
the plant was given permission for a test operation to ensure all the environmental
controls worked correctly. Additional measures to fully comply with the Basel
Technical Guidelines, such as the publication of all company safety rules, induction
training, emergency procedures, environmental, health and safety polices,
sustainability plans and so on, would be required in due course, but could be
prepared and submitted to the Government in accordance with an agreed program
over a period of six to twelve months during operations at the plant. The ILMC
agreed to prepare a full list of requirements.
The Vice President of Gravita and the Production Manager of the Pagrik Senegal
Plant undertook to comply with the recommendations of the Assessment Report and
asked the ILMC to prepare and submit the report as soon as possible. ILMC agreed.
In conjunction with the Government of Senegal and the BCRC, the ILMC wanted to
invest Funds awarded by the CFC in a ULAB Collection Center located in or close to
TSM.
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The ILMC envisaged that the Collection Center would not only collect ULAB, but
would also provide a free testing service to anyone who wanted to find out if their
Lead Acid battery was at the end of its useful life or just needed re-charging. While
the testing service would be free, any re-charging would be a paid service earning
additional income for the center.
There was however, a great deal of suspicion about the management of such a
center by the inhabitants of TSM. There was a feeling that a fair price would not be
paid for the ULAB and that any profits in ULAB recovery would go to the Traders or
the Recycling Plant. This feeling of uncertainty was exacerbated by the fact that
prices for ULAB went up and down according to commodity prices.
Gravita and Pagrik stated that the management wanted to develop and maintain
good relations with suppliers of ULAB to ensure that plant was operating to capacity.
They suggested that in order to eliminate any doubts about ULAB pricing that a fixed
percentage of the LME Lead Price is paid and that the percentage could be agreed
with the Government and published on their web site for all the people in TSM to see,
particularly for the populations of TSM. This payment suggestion was well received
by the Government, the BCRC and the ILMC. It only remained for Pagrik Senegal
and the Government to decide which LME quotation they would use, that is, spot or
three months and to agree the percentage of the lead price.
The ILMC stated that the residents also wanted to be paid immediately for any ULAB
delivered to the Collection Center and therefore it was paramount that Pagrik
Senegal were involved at an early stage in setting up the management of the Center
to provide “seed funds” to pay for ULAB entering storage.
As there were other “Scrap” traders in the TSM area, it was important that the
collection center was more than just a “junk yard” in order to attract custom from the
local community. Hence the need to offer testing and charging options. These
options would not only attract custom from car owners, but also from the many
homes that did not have connections to the power grid and used Lead Acid batteries
to power radios and televisions. These batteries require frequent re-charging.
The ILMC stated that the funds from the CFC would be sufficient to permit the
purchase of Battery Testing and re-charging equipment, but there was concern about
the security of such equipment. The DEEC stated that the Government had already
considered the security issues and were proposing to use a lockable used container
box for the Collection Center so that it could be secured overnight. The Container
could also be located on one of the Government owned properties in the TSM area, ,
possibly at the bus station adding further security to the Center and the ULAB store.
Pagrik also stated that the company could collect the ULAB as frequently as required
to keep stocks of ULAB to a minimum. Pagrik also agreed to train the local staff of
the ULAB collection center in the correct procedures to test a Lead Acid battery for
State of Charge and how to re-charge the batteries. The area of Colobane in Dakar
could be a good site to choose because of the informal market that is always there.
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The ILMC suggested that it would be appropriate for the BCRC to train the staff in the
correct packaging and storage procedures outlined in the Basel Technical
Guidelines. ILMC agreed to send the BCRC a Training presentation.
Pagrik Senegal agreed to liaise with the DEEC to select the most appropriate site for
the ULAB Collection Center and ILMC stated that they would return to Senegal
towards the end of June to check purchase requirements and agreed funding needs.
The BCRC for French speaking Africa welcomed the outline agreement to set up the
collection center and added that one of the secondary objectives for the Basel
Secretariat and the Regional Center was to have a model ULAB collection
mechanism that could be replicated in other countries in West Africa.
There were brief discussions with representatives from the Environmental Impact
Assessment Study Group and they were particularly interested to assimilate some
aspects of the ESM Assessment into the Environmental Impact Assessment. In
response to a request from the DEEC the ILMC agreed to hold a training workshop
for the Inspection Team to explain the key areas to inspect in a Lead Smelter during
the next visit scheduled for June/July 2010.
Further discussions with Transport Ministry Officials also highlighted the fact that a
vehicle collecting ULAB for Pagrik might need to be registered with the Transport
Agency because of the carriage of a “hazardous waste”. It was agreed that this issue
would be reviewed again during the next visit of the ILMC.
BW/ILMC/June 30 2010
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