Villagers lose cattle to UMzingwane dam mining

Kelvin Kutinyo

Umzingwane Dam in Matabeleland South Province has become a hazardous hotspot due to reckless mining activities, which are increasingly causing environmental degradation and leaving trails of open pits.

Community members have alleged that Chinese Lee Gold Mining Private Limited’s operations have resulted to abandoned pits, transforming the area into a death trap which has claimed numerous livestock and puts human lives at risk.

The once scenic dam providing a safe grazing area is now littered with abandoned mining pits which have left the community of Irisvale counting their loss, sounding the alarm and demanding action to prevent further tragedy.

The riverbank of Umzingwane, once a lifeline for villagers, has been transformed into a site of weekly tragedy. As cattle fall prey to abandoned mining pits and treacherous terrain, locals rally to rescue the trapped or retrieve the decomposing carcasses of their prized animals.

Speaking during an interview, Irisvale Umzingwane ward 13’s councillor, Jabulani Makhala, said the river is in a bad state and highlighted the need to unite as a community.

“We need to unite as a community so that we contain this problem, but our challenge is that the river is already in a terrible state. The Chinese mining company left pits that trap our cows until they die,” said the councillor.

The devastating El Niño induced drought has already taken a toll on farmers, with widespread livestock deaths due to hunger and thirst. However, the situation has taken a dire turn as cattle are now falling into abandoned mining pits dug along the river banks. The uncovered pits, a legacy of unregulated mining activities, have become death traps for unsuspecting animals.

The councillor, who has also been facing bribery allegations denied occurrence of such and highlighted that the Chinese company failed to fulfill their promise of drilling boreholes in the community.

“We were only given money for one borehole, I never signed any papers of receiveing any money that most people claim I did . I only have papers for one borehole.”

“At one time we asked them to help the community since they are extracting minerals here. They drilled one borehole and promised to come back, upto now, they keep saying they are coming and at this moment things are not going well for their company.”

“In village 5 and 7 the Chinese company came and did some pegging with their survey team but until now, they have never showed up. This is a big challenge in the community since water is scarce”, said cllr Makhala.

In a heart wrenching incident, a Matobo farmer also lost 50 prized pedigree breeds due to abandoned mining pits. The farmer’s livelihood, carefully built over years, was destroyed in an instant due to the negligence of mining companies.

Human and animal life are the most exposed to mining activities along the supply dams as there are also dangerous toxic materials which include mercury and cyanide. In recent years the Environmental Management Agency has been called to address illegal and irresponsible mining activities as communities feel that they’re not adequately addressing the issue.