28 Jul 2014

In a move to deter and detect diamond theft through a more advanced search, Debswana intends to install X-ray machines dubbed Scannex in its four mines.

Senior projects manager at Debswana, Ms Eunice Mpoloka said Scannex would replace physical searches of employees in blue and red areas, which were high risk areas at the mines.

Speaking during a two-day tour of Venetia mines in South Africa, Ms Mpoloka noted that Debswana intended to emulate Venetia Mine that had started using Scannex.

She explained that employees at Venetia Mine were not expected to strip physically like at Debswana mines, but they went through the Scannex machine that produced high clarity digital image.

The total cost of the whole project which includes among other things purchasing of four Scannex machines at Orapa, Letlhakane, Damtshaa and Jwaneng mines was P40 million.

Ms Mpoloka indicated that Scannex would not only deter and detect diamond theft, but would also restore dignity of employees as they would no longer strip physically.

Scannex, she said, was a safe, tried and tested technology which had been used for more than 20 years in South Africa and Namibian mines.

Namdeb used low dosage X-rays for over 40 years with no reported case of adverse health effect, she said.

She explained that Scannex speeds up the search process, reduces irritations associated with queuing delays and protects employees against potential blackmail as well as coercion as it removes the possibility of collusion.

Ms Mpoloka noted that Debswana scored the lowest score of 44 per cent during the independent reviews that were carried out to determine the state of security affairs across all Debswana mines, and significant security weaknesses and vulnerabilities were identified, hence the introduction of Scannex.

She said Botswana had adopted international standards informed by the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

“Dose limits prescribed by the Botswana Radiation Protection Act of 2006, states that radiation workers dose limit stood at 20 mSv per person per year and members of the public is 1msV per person per year.”

Ms Mpoloka stated that employee exposure records shall be kept until an employee was 75 years and not less than 30 years after termination of employment.

Radiation Protection Inspectorate would regulate and ensure compliance to legal limit.

X-ray exposure would be limited to 1 milli Sieverts (mSv) per year in line with the limit for members of the public.

Ms Mpoloka noted that real dummy scans would be used to ensure that one did not go over the limit of 1mSv, and an individual being scanned would not know if it was a real or dummy scan.

A person would go through 200 scans a year and one scan was equivalent to 0.006 mSv.

Pregnant women, she said, would not be scanned, and an alternative job would be offered during pregnancy.

Furthermore, Ms Mpoloka noted that they had received a conditional approval from Radiation Protection Board in June 2012 and that an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report was submitted in August 2013.

The head of security management and systems at De Beers Group, Mr Johan Boylan said Scannex had been designed to depict the characteristic of a diamond and could detect foreign objects on or within the body.

Mr Boylan stated that the personal dignity of the person scanned would not be invaded since identity would not be revealed.

He noted that since the introduction of Scannex they had managed to detect various cases of diamond theft, with some of them hidden on the anus, clothing and buttocks among others.

Mr Boylan said the use of Scannex was regulated, controlled and monitored, adding that a licence was required to use a body scanner.

Employees at Venetia Mine, he said, were restricted from entering the red or blue area carrying anything on the pockets including coins to enable easy detection. ENDS