THE Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) has confirmed that a small number of its staffers have been sent home on sick leave as a result of suspected mercury poisoning.

GGMC’s Commissioner Newell Dennison told the Guyana Chronicle Thursday that “less than 10 persons” have so far been asked to stay at home based on doctor’s recommendation.
The natural resources agency has been conducting testing of its staffers for unusual levels of mercury poisoning and found that a relatively large number of persons, many not directly in contact with the substance, have been affected.

Dennison said, “There are indeed persons who have been evaluated and the need was felt for them to go on leave. We are following through on that,” he told the newspaper. The GGMC head said that where any staff is required to go on leave for any health reason, the Commission will be in full support.

Dennison noted that currently, testing of the GGMC staffers does not only speak to mercury poisoning, but other possible on-the-job environmental hazards that might have an effect on them. In that regard, Dennison noted that while persons have been sent on sick leave, he could not say precisely whether all were directly related to mercury poisoning.

GGMC sources have noted, however, that many of those sent home had extremely high levels of mercury within their systems. While a normal whole blood mercury level is reported ideally at 10 ng/mL and 15ng/mL for professionals who work with small amounts of the chemical, some GGMC staffers were said to have as much as 20 and 21 ng/mL in their blood streams.

The Guyana Chronicle was told that some staffers were reportedly given 10 to 30 days off along with treatment. The GGMC is expected to soon have a shipment of medication which was ordered a few weeks early. Dennison said he had not yet received information on the arrival of the drugs, but expected that it would be available “any day now”.
The Guyana Gold Board (GGB) has a facility in the GGMC compound where burning of gold is done to get rid of the mercury used to remove the impurities in the mineral. This lab, officials said, is responsible for the emissions that have affected staffers.

It was noted that while the GGMC conducts regular testing for various matters at the agency, the unusually high levels of mercury poisoning is a first. Dennison told the newspaper that GGMC has had a testing routine that allowed for regular testing of random staffers and various parts or areas of the compound to get an idea of the mercury emissions within the space.
Given the current situation, the Commissioner said a broader testing scheme will have to b

e embraced. This, he said, will have to entail a general health and wellness arrangement.
Dennison noted that so far, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Ministry of Social Protection have been paying attention to the situation and are working with the Commission to address the matter. Dennison reiterated full support for the GGMC staffers who have been affected and reminded that the Commission has taken up its responsibility in addressing the health needs of those workers.