By Chinoyi Chipulu
Copperbelt permanent secretary Lawrence Mwanza says he was recently in Chingola where mining activities are happening along Kafue River, something he described as unacceptable.
And Water Resources Management Authority (WARMA) has expressed concern with the levels of water pollution and encroachments of water bodies on the Copperbelt Province.
Speaking during a courtesy and stakeholders’ engagement meeting held in Ndola, Mwanza said the country needed laws to address mining activities along the Kafue due to the risks people faced from the heavy metals deposited into the river.
He said water was important to the livelihood of every citizenry.
Mwanza said his office would support the authority and called for laws to regulate activities that perpetuated pollution.
“Recently I went to Chingola where mining activities are happening just along Kafue River which is unacceptable. I think we needed some laws which are going to help us address the issues because there are mining metals and heavy metal for that manner and people are pumping water from Kafue River,” he said.
Mwanza said people in Chingola had earlier complained of being supplied with blue water and wondered where it was coming from.
“That means there was a lot of metals in our water because we are failing to take care of our environment, doing activities that’s not supporting life because water is life,” said Mwanza.
And WARMA acting director general Misozi Lumpa said the authority was worried of the many illegalities towards water bodies which had affected the water.
Lumpa said there was need to put a stop to activities that were taking place near water bodies so as to improve water flow in the province.
“Our objective is to undeserved stakeholder engagement. There is a lot of activities going on here, there is a lot of increase in economic activities. That in itself has led to a lot of challenges related to water pollution, encroachment of water pollution, encroachment of water bodies and various other matters,” Lumpa said.
She said engaging stakeholders would help enhance and raise awareness on the importance of the water bodies.
Lumpa said water bodies were increasingly being encroached upon, with indiscriminate construction contributing to the drying up of vital water sources.
She said the authority would enhance coordination efforts and improve the mapping of protected water resource areas calling for increased stakeholder collaboration and support from relevant authorities.
Lumpa said the authority would also embark on regular engagements to address challenges and implement strategies aimed at restoring critical buffer zones such as Kafubu, Mwambashi and the Kafue River.
“So as an institution responsible for managing our water resources countrywide, we feel the need to rise to the occasion and collaborate more with stakeholders such as local authority and water utilities to ensure that whilst we are improving and developing our economy, we do not use it at the expense of our environment,” said Lumpa.
