Report of the Coloured Labour Compound Commission appointed to enquire into the cubic amount of air-space in the compounds of the mines of the Witwatersrand.

Date:
1905
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Report of the Coloured Labour Compound Commission appointed to enquire into the cubic amount of air-space in the compounds of the mines of the Witwatersrand. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service. The original may be consulted at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service.

    78/130 (page 44)
    Appendix A. APPENDIX A. Report of the Committee of the Transvaal Medical Society appointed to consider the Question of the Amount of Air-space per head to be provided in Chinese Compounds. The question upon which the advi’ce of the Society has been invited by the Presi- dent of the Chamber of Mines, in his letter of 31st May, 1904, is, in effect, whether it is necessary to insist on the provision of 300 cubic feet of space per head for each person it is proposed to house in the sleeping-rooms to be provided for the Chinese, in view of the climatic conditions in Johannesburg, and of the fact that these rooms are to be provided with chimney-stoves, inlet-holes, and louvres for ventilation. At an interview with your Committee on th- loth June, the President of the Chamber further stated :— 1. That the mining authorities were prepared to provide 200 cubic feet of air- space for each of the whole number of Chinese employed on each mine. 2. That during five-sevenths of each week not more than 66 per cent, of the full complement would simultaneously occupy any room, and that during the remaining two-sevenths (Saturday and Sunday nights) the proportion accommodated would be about 90 per cent. 3. That the mines would be prepared, if so advised by the Society, to provide means of mechanical ventilation and of warming the incoming air. Reference was also made in the President’s letter to the intended provision of change-houses, wash-houses, dining-rooms, proper clothing, and medical care. These measures are highly necessary and commendable, and, since they are taken for granted, the Committee have not thought it necessary to further consider them in dealing with the special point of ventilation of the proposed sleeping-rooms. On 4th June, several members of your Committee visited the Van Ryn IMine Compound, which is undergoing alterations for the reception of Chinese, and, on 5th June, inspected the Crown Deep Compound. The results of their observations are covered in the concluding recommendations. Conclusions and Recommendations. 1. Cubic air-space allowance is, per se, no sufficient guarantee of adequate ventilation. 2. That the essential requirement is adequate air-change, and that the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) present in the air is the best objective criterion of its sufficiency, the permissible limit of CO2 being, according to de Chaumont, 0'6 parts per 1,000 volumes of air, and, according to Haldane, i‘2 parts per 1,000. 3. That given a sleeping-room of 4,000 cubic feet capacity, allowing 200 cubic feet of air-space with J square foot air-inlet and J square foot air-outlet for each person, the amount of CO2 in the air at the end of 8 hours would be 0'6y parts per 1,000 when 66 per cent, of full complement are simultaneously accommodated, and O'yy per cent, when 90 per cent, are sleeping. 4. That if such rooms are, in addition, provided with a hooded stove with a 6-inch flue, and if around this flue there is a second tube 12 inches in diameter, with a bell- shaped opening 8 feet from the ground, the amount of CO2 in the air at the end of 8 hours, assuming the fire to be burning during that time, will be 0'64 per 1,000 when 66 per cent, of the boys are sleeping, and O’74 per 1,000 when 90 per cent, are present. 5. That under these conditions the respiratory impurity at its worst is only slightly over de Chaumont’s limit (0 ’6 per 1,000) and much under Haldane’s limit (i ’2 per 1,000), which latter is cons'derei good enough for workers in English factories ; moreover, it is four times less than what is possible in common lodging-houses which meet modern bye-law requirements, and five times less than that, unfortunately, per- mitted in many elementary schoolrooms in winter. 6. That theoretically, therefore, the provision of air-change is reasonably sufficient if 200 cubic feet of air-space, together with inlet and outlet area and extraction by heat, be provided as above indicated. 7. That while the exact arrangement of the required inlet and outlet areas must be left to the Chamber’s Engineers, the Committee recommend that, so far as possible, there be a difference in height of 10 feet between them ; that there be two 6-inch by 9-inch air-bricks just above floor-level in both back and front walls of each room ; that there be a louvre above the door and along the whole length of the roof ridge. 8. That there be opening windows of not less than one-tenth of the floor-spac'*, of which at least one-half shall be in the northern wall of the room ; no window to be crossed by a bunk in such a way as to interfere with the access of light and air. 9. That the bunks be movable, and that there be a clear space of at least i foot between the wall and the nearest edge ol any bunk. 10. That the Hoors be imperrdous.