2011
AMBATOVY SUSTAINABILITY REPORT
27
Environmental Performance
Noise Quality
Installation, testing and commissioning of the air and noise
quality monitoring systems were a critical environmental
aspect for the completion of construction in 2011. Noise
impacts are expected to be low or negligible around the
mine and well within World Bank criteria. A noise monitoring
program has been established to ensure compliance. Last
year, we implemented a targeted monitoring program before
and during blasting activities at the mine to ensure noise
levels and disturbances to animals were minimized. This was
carried out in parallel with the lemur monitoring program.
Behaviour such as grooming, resting, eating and movement
were observed for six groups of two species (
Indri indri
and
Propithecus diadema
). The data showed widely variable
patterns of behaviour, without any indication of significant
impact related to mine blasting. At the plant, noise monitoring
equipment was installed this year at 13 points, including
several locations off-site in nearby villages, the town of
Toamasina and around the port.
Air Quality
At the mine, sampling of particulate matter (diameter < 10
μm) was undertaken in the last quarter of 2011. The average
scores were below the WHO criteria (150 μg/m
3
average over
24 hours), with concentrations below 74 μg/m
3
. There were,
however, two instances in October of 2011 where the directive
was exceeded in the village of Ampitambe. At the same time,
the OPP area was on the threshold of the limit. In response, a
road-watering program was put in place.
The port received the first shipments of coal, limestone,
sulphur and ammonia in 2011. Air quality monitoring targets
were set in place and shipments monitored. The shipments
of coal, limestone and sulphur that arrived in April, May and
August respectively, resulted in concentrations below the
target maximum of 600 mg/m
2
per day. The Environment
team used modeling to estimate ammonia dispersal around
the ammonia storage tank and then undertook real time
monitoring of atmospheric concentrations of ammonia in the
storage area during the first transfer operation in November.
This operation was observed by the national environment
regulator and no major incidents were reported.
At the plant site, there is a new continuous air monitoring facility
and weather station. The station continuously measures the
mass concentration of inhalable particles (µg/m
3
) as well as
concentrations of gases such as hydrogen sulphide, sulphur
dioxide, ammonia and nitrous oxide. The analyzers became
operational in 2012.
