Bulldozers clear way for mine through pristine Lower Zambezi National Park

Excavation for a vast open-cast copper mine in the heart of the Lower Zambezi National Park has begun. The bulldozers’ move into Zambia’s pristine wildlife sanctuary and famous tourist attraction follows a decade-long fight by activists trying to stop the mining.

The move follows an about-turn by Zambia’s government environmental agency and by president Hakainde Hichilema, who had been outspoken in opposition to the mine. The green light given to the mining company to start clearing work has raised questions about what political leverage mine owners may have had.

Mwembeshi Resources Limited first applied for mining rights in the park in 2011 and submitted an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The Zambia Environmental Management Agency (Zema) rejected the EIS. The mining company appealed and in 2014 the Zambian government approved the application for the Kangaluwi copper mine in south-eastern Zambia on the national park land.

Lower Zambezi is a vital part of the wider Zambezi basin, a significant shared resource that contributes to the economic, environmental and social development of southern Africa.

In 2014 the Lower Zambezi Tourism Association (LZTA) warned that the proposed mine would cost the Zambian economy billions of dollars a year in foreign investment and livelihoods. The tourism association said it would also destroy an ecosystem that is home to 124 species of animals, 403 species of birds and 54 species of aquatic animals. The association’s models also concluded that the mine was not viable.

“Modelling figures suggest that the project is not economically viable, will result in a net loss of jobs for local communities, and will generate a financial loss over the first seven years of operation of a minimum of $13-million,” the report found.

“Locally, the project would risk a minimum of $5-million of NGO investment in community development programmes that align with protected area management.

“In broader terms, there is great potential for mining inside protected areas to have a negative effect on international aid investment, upon which Zambia is heavily reliant and receives over $1-billion annually.”

The report, coupled with objections and findings by a coalition of activists, helped secure a court injunction in 2014 to stop the mine. However, eight years later, Mwembeshi Resources has successfully secured the right to mine.

The company has dismissed concerns, saying the mine is a mark of progress and job creation of which communities are in favour.

Mwembeshi Resources would not confirm or deny that work on the mine has started.

“Your questions are so specific and you seem not to be interest(ed) in more important things about the mine, like value, jobs, benefits or the big support the mine has from the local community,” said Oliver Shalala, communications and corporate affairs manager. He added that the mine enjoys considerable support among “black Zambians”.

“It is the white lodge owners, known to be involved in illegal mining and poaching in the Lower Zambezi, who are fighting the mine based on untruths, half-truths and indeed wrong assumptions,” he said.

Shalala is adamant that anyone opposed to the project or writing about it is just wasting their time “because Zambia needs development and not politicking”.

Stephen Malenga, the council secretary for the Luangwa district where the mine is located, confirmed that work, including on roads, has started.

“In April, I sent a team responsible for revenue collection (at the council) to Lower Zambezi to establish facts about the mine after hearing reports that it was operational,” said Malenga.

“What they found was that the roads are being worked on and office blocks were being constructed but they were not completed. An airstrip has also been constructed at the mine.”

A decade-long fight turns into a sinkhole

Construction and clearing machinery at work in Lower Zambezi National Park, Zambia. (Photo: Supplied by GroundUp)

Mine ownership

Weak legal framework