Acid spill from Chinese-owned copper mine contaminates vital waterway in Zambia

A catastrophic waste spill from a Chinese-owned copper mine in Zambia has left local authorities and environmentalists fearing the worst for its long-term impact on the Kafue River, the African nation’s most important waterway.

The Associated Press reported that some 50 million litres of waste containing concentrated acid, dissolved solids and heavy metals made their way from the Chambishi copper mine into streams connecting to the Kafue, citing an investigation by the Engineering Institution of Zambia.

The incident began on Feb. 18, when the tailings dam collapsed at the mine run by Sino-Metals Leach Zambia, which is majority owned by the China state-owned China Nonferrous Metals Industry Group.

The spill raises alarm amongst Zambian authorities including President Hakainde Hichilema, who called for help from experts and said the leak “is a crisis that threatens people and wildlife along the Kafue.”

The Ministry of Water Development and Sanitation also feared its “devastating consequences”, including the contamination of ground water leading to destruction of crops along the river’s banks.

AP reporters who visited parts of the river confirmed that dead fish could be seen washing up on the banks about 100 km downstream from the mine run.

It is estimated about 60% of Zambia’s population reside in the Kafue River basin and rely on its water. The river alone supplies drinking water to about five million people, including those in the capital city Lusaka. The acid spill has already shut down the water supply to the nearby city of Kitwe, home to about 700,000 people.

The chairman of Sino-Metals Leach Zambia, the mine owner, recently met with Zambian government officials and apologized for the acid spill, according to a transcript released by his company, in which he said it “will go all out to restore the affected environment as quickly as possible.”