Authorities in Manica, in central Mozambique, have acknowledged their inability to halt river pollution caused by artisanal and industrial mining, noting that the situation requires careful management and special attention from the government.
“There are aspects beyond our level, which go beyond the province and district. The solution to pollution requires careful measures and structural interventions,” explained Lourenço Lindonde, State Secretary in Manica province, in a statement reported by Lusa.
Recently, the National Mining Inspectorate announced that 11 companies had been penalized for environmental crimes in Manica. “Last week, while conducting the national meeting to improve the strategy for mitigating environmental problems, we took the opportunity to carry out field visits, where we found that some companies are still violating the law,” stated Grácio Cune, National Mining Inspector.
According to him, each mining company was penalized according to the type of violation committed, and mining activities along the Révuè river basin were suspended. “Some of these companies had already been warned to comply with all environmental regulations during mining operations.”
“During the visits, we also observed that mining activity continues to heavily impact the waters of the Chicamba reservoir, which remain turbid and almost muddy as they reach the dam,” he added.
Last year, the president of the Manica Business Council, Alcides Cintura, challenged academic institutions to develop solutions to help mitigate environmental problems caused by mining.
“The mining problem is structural and does not concern only the government and the private sector, but also academia. They can develop solutions to present to the government. If we leave our province with this problem caused by poorly conducted artisanal mining, environmental disasters will worsen,” warned Alcides Cintura.
Source: Diário Económico
