Maravi

Harmful disposal of mining waste

Harmful disposal of mining waste
By The Post
Fri 03 Dec. 2010, 04:00 CAT

IF no strong measures are taken to stop mining companies from polluting our rivers and our environment in general, they will continue to do so because it is a profitable undertaking for them.

Avoiding polluting rivers and the general environment costs money. And the mining companies are trying very hard to maximise profits. And this means keeping the costs of doing business, of carrying out their operations as low as possible. It is very cheap to empty all their waste in our rivers. It is expensive for them to find other ways of disposing waste. So if all is left to them, they will simply dump everything in our rivers, maximise their profits and eventually take off.

We are not opposed to the exploitation of our country’s mineral resources. All that we are trying to say is that the exploitation of our country’s mineral resources is also closely related to the duties arising from our relationship with natural environment. The environment, the rivers are God’s gift to everyone, and in our use of it we have a responsibility towards the poor, towards future generations and towards humanity as a whole.

We must therefore exploit our mineral resources responsibly to satisfy our legitimate needs while respecting the intrinsic balance of creation. If this vision is lost, we will end up abusing our environment. We should realise that the natural environment is more than raw material to be manipulated at our pleasure; it is a wondrous work of the Creator which we need to use wisely, and not exploit recklessly. We should mine in a manner that respects human nature itself. We should not ignore coming generations. Our mining activities should be inspired by inter-generational justice. We must recognise our duty to hand over the country to future generations in such a condition that they too can worthily inhabit it and continue to develop it. This means being committed to taking decisions aimed at strengthening that covenant between human beings and the environment. There’s need for the government to take measures that counter harmful ways of disposing mine waste. It is incumbent upon the government and its agencies to make every effort to ensure that the economic and social cost of using up shared environment resources are recognised with transparency and fully borne by those who incur them, not by other peoples or future generations.

One of the greatest challenges facing our economy today is to achieve the most efficient use - not abuse - of natural resources, based on a realisation that the notion of efficiency is not value-free. And the way we treat the environment influences the way we treat ourselves, and vice versa. This invites us to a serious review of the way we carry out our economic activities, our mining operations and their harmful consequences. What is needed is an effective shift in mentality which can lead to the adoption of new ways of mining in which the quest for truth, goodness and communion with others for the sake of common growth are the factors which determine the way we dispose our mining waste. Every reckless or irresponsible disposal of mining waste harms the environment, pollutes our rivers, just as environmental deterioration in turn upsets relations in society. Nature, especially in our time, is so integrated in the dynamics of society that by now it hardly constitutes an independent value.

The government has a serious responsibility for the protection of the environment, of our rivers. In doing so, the government must defend not only water and air as gifts of creation that belong to everyone, it must also above all protect us from self-destruction. Our duties towards the environment are linked to our duties towards the human person, considered in himself and in relation to others. It would be wrong to uphold one set of duties while trampling on the other. Herein lies a grave contradiction in our mentality and practice today: one which demeans the person, disrupts the environment and damages society.

There’s need to stop the mining companies from polluting our rivers. Adequate and effective laws need to be put in place and followed by all mining operations. Proper mining waste disposal needs to be invested in and carried out. We say this because the pollution of our rivers affects more than just the individuals that need to drink the water and every aspect of its negative effects needs to be explored. Polluted water is used to take care of small children and infants. They are going to become ill if they are continually drinking contaminated water. This water is also used to water the crops that are grown by our people. That water is polluting the food that is then being consumed by animals and humans. Finally, cattle and other livestock are also drinking the same water. They are becoming contaminated as well. When they produce milk or they are slaughtered for meat, they are producing contaminated food that other people are consuming. This is one vicious cycle that needs to be controlled. This is what the mining companies' polluting of our rivers is doing to us and to our country.
Clearly, mining is depriving our people of access to clean water and this has implications for their health. We recognise that access to clean water is a human right and the pollution of rivers by mining operations constitutes a violation of the rights of our people to clean water and the environment. We thus call on the government and its agencies to be proactive in preventing pollution of rivers by mining operations and to provide timely information on pollution of water bodies to our people. What is happening is a result of inadequate and ineffective regulation. And this is threatening human and environmental health, drinking and agricultural water supplies for the present and future generations.

We all know that mining is generally very destructive to the environment and calls for strong and effective regulation. We also know that mining uses chemicals to amalgamate the extractions. And these chemicals go through tailings and are often discharged into rivers and streams. This pollution contaminates all living organisms within the body of water and ultimately the people who depend on the fish for their main source of protein and their economic livelihood. The people who are exposed to the toxic waste from the tailings become sick. Many people who cannot afford to go to a doctor, or who live in a village where a doctor is not accessible, are often not treated for their illness. If water is contaminated, the people cannot use it for bathing, cooking or washing the clothes. There’s need to make mining companies more accountable for their actions. They should not be allowed to make super profits at the expense of the lives of our people. A comprehensive approach is required to stop mining companies from polluting our rivers. We need mining that responds to the interests of our people. We need to stop mining companies from doing things that harm our people, things they wouldn’t do in their home countries. We need to adopt measures to control and limit their activities.

Labels: ENVIRONMENT, KCM, POLLUTION

posted by MrK @ 7:22 AM