Design of a dust suppression system us a control method to prevent the risk generated in the workers for the use of explosives in the underground traditional mining.

Resumen

In a small village in the municipality of Santa Rosa del Sur of Bolívar whose population is mainly dedicated to mining, the implementation of a dust suppression system is proposed as a control measure to prevent or mitigate effects on the health and integrity of the workers who work on underground mine fronts, and who are exposed to contaminants that remain suspended in the environment after the detonation of explosives for underground progress, in an activity known in the sector as "burning". Traditionally these contaminants are removed with a ventilation system that requires approximately 3 hours for the air quality to be acceptable in the workplace. With the implementation of the dust suppression system, waiting time was reduced to only 18.33% of the time required with the traditional method. Another important finding is that the presence of contaminants with the potential to cause harm to worker’s health was also reduced compared to the traditional method. The health conditions of the miners improved in the short term. The health symptoms that are mistakenly called by the miners as flu decreased by 40%. This investigative article arose from the interest of two students from the Manuela Beltran University in controlling and mitigating latent health conditions in a mine in the South of Bolivar.