Chinese invade Mavuradonha conservancy

A Chinese chrome mining company, San He, has outraged traditional leaders by invading a conservancy in Mavuradonha in Mashonaland Central province, creating huge stretches of gullies.

Prospecting pits dug by the Chinese company in Tingwa Raphia botanical reserve.
Prospecting pits dug by the Chinese company in Tingwa Raphia botanical reserve.

“The company is causing siltation in Dande and Nyabvuti rivers, creating gullies that subsequently dry up our wetlands because of its mining activities,” said Sekuru Shaky Muzhona Chabvuta, adding that the company’s activities were also violating traditional values.

“They are intruding our privacy because they are imposing themselves in this land,” he said.

He described the Chinese companies as modern imperialists who were grabbing resources and subjecting locals to dehumanising labour practices such as low wages and long working hours.

A spokesperson for San He, only identified as Lin, acknowledged that his company was not doing anything towards environmental rehabilitation at their Guruve mining site, claiming the government had stopped them from doing so.

“We are planning to fill in the pits where we dug for chrome before, because we had stopped in 2011 in adherence to a government directive,” he said.

Environment Management Agency Communications Officer, Steady Kangata said he was in the process of verifying whether San He had done an environmental impact assessment as required by the law.

“My understanding is that San He had flouted our regulations and so we stopped their operations,” said Kangata.

Post published in: Environment

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