Fria: harmful effects of the alumina plant for the environment and public health!

The subject of environmental pollution remains a difficult equation to resolve for the administrative authorities of Fria- 160 km north of the capital Conakry. Although people talk less about this scourge which destroys the ecosystem and undoubtedly causes public health concerns, the industrial city lives to the rhythm of this pollution with its share of damage threatening populations day by day.

It was already in 1960 that the first alumina factory in Africa called Friguia was established in Fria with great fanfare. From the refinery furnace adjoining the two exhaust towers through which columns of smoke escape, it rotates non-stop.

The Rusal company, one of the largest mining companies in the world, has been revving its engines producing aluminum for several decades in the city. However, air pollution has become a de facto serious problem.

Aluminum residues cause many diseases

Alongside this phenomenon, aluminum residues in the form of dust spill onto the roofs of houses, causing heart and lung diseases, etc. Waterways are also affected by the waste that the factory releases from industrial pipes through which contaminated water flows with sewers to end up in certain neighborhoods.

“LThe soda that flows from the factory into the lake has a very negative impact on human life. The ionization of this soda due to the sun creates tingling sensations on the skin, causes dermatitis and fatigue in the body in humans and animals.”  explains Souleymane Barry, environmentalist.

The impacts of environmental pollution in Fria are very real. The state of the ecosystem is at a stage beyond threats. For this cause which is not the least, Souleymane Barry saw his project of reforestation of bare areas of Rusal fall through..

“Aluminum powder is destroying the spaces, plants and animals around us. The 15 thousand plants that I had put in the nursery were all destroyed because of this aluminum powder every time there is dusting of the city, this powder kills the plants, ultimately the project did not take place”, Souleymane told us, in a sad voice.

Is the factory the main source of pollution?

The town of Fria is not only polluted by this cloud of smoke released by the Rusal industry. Garbage dumps abound all over the city. At the entrance to the city after the gigantic aluminum processing refinery, one is impressed by the smoke from household waste burned along the streets. “the trash that people burn that mixes with dust and smoke from rolling machines becomes clouds of pollution dust. In Fria people breathe very badly,” alerts the environmentalist.

In the aviation district 1 sector 4, a dump is improvised a few meters from the homes. Citizens complain about fumes from incinerated garbage. “We are all sick here, we can’t do anything since we are not moving our house because of this dump,” complains Elhadj Moussa Diallo, born in Fria in 1953.

Local administrative executives are very reluctant about the issue of pollution in Fria, some of them assure that they do not see the impact of pollution in the city. Others say that this pollution problem has already been resolved with the installation of a filter that broke down some time ago at the factory.

Fauna and flora exposed in the same way as humans

Humans are not the only ones affected by air pollution. Plants, animals and buildings can also be impacted by air pollution. The effects of air pollution on the environment can be felt at different scales of human life and its universe.

Ibrahima Sory Bah, back from Fia for AJSG