Ethiopia - Salt production has resumed on the salt reserve at Lake Afdera, in Afar Regional State, following a volcanic eruption that covered much of the lake and salt mine in volcanic ash. The volcano erupted in the Nabro Area in Eritrea, close to the country's border with Ethiopia, at around midnight on June 12, 2011. The eruption, which was triggered by an earthquake that registered 5.4 on the Richter scale, initially caused panic among salt producers in Afdera as well as residents when ash covered the salt mine. As a result, producers initially stopped production over fears of the salt being contaminated by sulphuric acid.

Afdera's annual production capacity of salt is around 1.2 million tonnes. Large salt producers monthly turn out more than 800tn, medium producers mine between 300tn and 800tn, and the production of small-scale producers is less than 300tn.

There are 750 salt producers in Afdera, although the investors officially registered at the Regional Bureau of Investment number in the thousands, according to research conducted by Dereje Feyissa of the University of Bayreuth in Germany.

"A team of experts from the Ministry of Health (MoH) along with geologists were dispatched to assess the situation in the area," said Shemshedin Bamboro, senior public relations officer at the ministry. "They retrieved samples for laboratory testing."

The results of the tests are expected to be announced as early as Wednesday, June 29, 2011.

Yet, the Afdera Salt Producers Association (ASPA) confirmed that production has resumed.

"Following the ash covering the lake and the mine, we temporarily stopped production," an official from the association told Fortune on condition of anonymity. "Now, work has resumed and will not affect the sector because we have enough stock in warehouses in case a ban on production is put out."

Aside from concerns over the salt, residents of the area were also affected.

Close to 150 people, especially residents of Shidedu Kebele in Bidu Wereda, who were exposed to the ash, were badly affected by it, especially children, residents told Fortune.

"Children exposed to the ash are suffering from respiratory complications as well as irritation in their eyes," a resident of the area told Fortune. "The problem is made worse by the absence of medical centres where those who are affected can seek medical attention. They rely on antibiotics handed out by teams of geologists and medical experts who have been dispatched to the area to assess the damage."

Samson Haileyesus

Addis Fortune/28/06/2011