Sudan’s Minerals Minister admits to Lake Nasser pollution

The Minister of Minerals for Sudan, Ahmed El Sadeg El Karori, has acknowledged that Lake Nasser is heavily polluted.

On Monday, he told Parliament that laboratory results proved that the lake, locally known as the Nubia Lake, is polluted with mercury, lead, and arsenic.

El Karori pointed to the use of arsenic by fishermen to catch fish and that of mercury by traditional gold miners in the Northern State.

Nubian fishermen have denied the use of arsenic, however, and attributed the mercury, lead and arsenic pollution to “companies brought in by the government” that make use of these toxic substances for the extraction of gold.

People in northern Sudan have staged protests more than once over the past few years against the use of mercury and cyanide by gold mining companies. They also complain about an unusually high rate of cancer cases, which they attribute to cyanide that spreads via the air.

Drinking water sources

The Minister also told the MPs that his Ministry has received reports about polluted drinking water sources in various parts of the country, owing to the use of mercury in traditional mining.

Last week, the effects of different forms of mining on the health of people living in mining areas were discussed in the federal parliament.

 MP Khalid Ali Fagiri attributed the decline in birth rates in West Kordofan to radiation spreading from the oil fields in the vicinity. MP Abdallah Deif reported the death of livestock in Abu Jubaiha in South Kordofan, where mercury is used in the gold mines.