Zambia Climate Change Network (ZCCN) Founding Board Chairperson Noah Zimba says Northwestern Province has registered appreciable development in the recent past characterised by an influx of people and increased economic activities overwhelming available infrastructure and resources.
Professor Zimba said this has resulted into human and environmental threats such as manifestation of communicable diseases and pollution of both water and land systems putting the lives of people, rivers and productive soils into a serious health threat.
The media reports that he said this in Solwezi today during a media briefing on ZCCN steering committee’s impressions arising from the interactions and physical observations undertaken in the Province in four districts namely Kasempa, Kalumbila, Mufumbwe and Solwezi.
Prof Zimba said some perennial streams and rivers have registered low levels as well as drying effects, a phenomenon he described that has never happened in the Province before.
He said they observed environmental harm attributed to recent informal small scale and artisanal mining activities in the region.
Prof Zimba said there is need to provide a sector and stakeholder platform where mining companies will share their experience to inspire replication and scale of good practices for the impact.
Speaking at the same media briefing, Co-convener Patrick Kaumba has commended government and other stakeholders that have come on board to train small scale and artisanal mining cooperatives with good mining practices that include environmental protection.
Mr Kaumba has therefore appealed to the government to encourage foreign and local investment partnerships and increase financing mechanisms for small scale and artisanal miners to avoid them selling their mining licenses to foreign investors.
