Mnangagwa’s push for $12 billion
THE laxity in the enforcement of environmental laws in the extraction industry has left communities living in mineral-rich areas exposed to enormous environmental damage, threatening livelihoods as well as domestic animals, investigations have revealed.
With no financial support from multilateral creditors like the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and the African Development Bank, analysts and conservationists say Zimbabwe, which badly needs investment to stimulate the economy that suffered two years of contraction has been left desperate for fresh capital.
As part of its investment drive, the southern African country has over the past decade been parcelling out chromite claims to indigenes and Chinese investors following the rise in global demand and market for chrome over the years.
Investigations by this publication in collaboration with the Information Development Trust (IDT) revealed non-compliance with the country’s environmental laws by Chinese chrome miner, Afrochine Smelting (Afrochine), which have left the communities in the mid-Great Dyke in Mashonaland West province, vulnerable.
These areas include Ngezi, Darwendale, Maryland and Lembe/ Mapinga.
New information gathered by this publication revealed that government's quest to achieve President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s dream of a US$12 billion mining economy by 2023 has left vulnerable communities at the mercy of giant mining firms that are abrogating the “polluter pays” principle — a commonly accepted practice that those who pollute should bear the costs of managing it to prevent damage to human health or the environment.
Small-scale chrome miners in the area accuse the Chineseowned firm Afrochine of failing to rehabilitate the environment following mining activities, investigations reveal.
A visit to the site revealed that both parties are negating their responsibility of reclaiming the environment with large disused pits, which the villagers say, are posing threats to their lives and livestock.
According to police reports in Darwendale, a minor drowned in one of the disused pits in December 2020 and livestock have been falling into the pits on a weekly basis.
Communities in the area have also expressed concern over the degradation of land by the foreign mining firm.
The environmental neglect
Companies in the extractive industry are guided by the Environmental Management Act (Chapter 20:27), which provides sustainable management of natural resources and protection of the environment, the prevention of pollution and environmental degradation, in mining.
According to the Act, “any person who causes pollution or environmental degradation shall meet the cost of remedying such pollution or environmental degradation and any resultant adverse health effects, as well as the cost of preventing, controlling or minimising further pollution, environmental damage or adverse health effects”.
Scores of small-scale miners operating on Afrochine claims insist that the rehabilitation of the environment after mining activities remains a responsibility of the chrome claim owner — Afrochine.
Despite this, Afrochine places the responsibility on the contractors.
“We are working on the Afrochine claims. We sell all our proceeds to them.
“Afrochine provides our blasting requirements, compressors, and de-watering pumps, if need be,” said Danmore, one of the small-scale chrome miners.
“In the case of any of the equipment developing a fault, or when perimeter fence collapse, who do you think should fix those things, it’s Afrochine.
“They own the claims, let them take care of the environmental degradation.
“After all, they are benefitting the most out of the mining activities done on the claims.”
However, Afrochine safety,