Land Disputes, Pollution, and Delayed Justice After Disaster at Chinese Mine in Zambia

By Kennedy Mbewe Jnr. | Makanday Investigates

The full extent of environmental damage caused by the burst leach plant at Sino Metals Leach Zambia Limited and Rongxing Mine—two Chinese-owned operations in Chambishi, Kalulushi District, Copperbelt Province—has now come to light following the February 2025 disaster.

A recent water quality analysis report published by the Embassy of Finland confirms the presence of 24 heavy metals in the Mwambashi Stream and Kafue River, following the pollution incident linked to Sino Metals.

Independent tests conducted at three locations—including one nearly 100 kilometres downstream on the Kafue River near Mpongwe—revealed dangerously high concentrations of toxic substances such as lead, arsenic, cadmium, cobalt, and uranium. Alarmingly, 16 of the detected metals exceeded World Health Organisation (WHO) safety thresholds.

According to the report, communities downstream, including Luela and Kalusale, now face prolonged exposure to these toxic pollutants—raising the risk of cancer, developmental issues, organ damage, and severe threats to agriculture and water security.

The first disaster occurred when a tailings storage dam at Sino Metals burst, releasing an estimated 50 million litres of acidic waste. The toxic discharge scorched crop fields, killed fish, and triggered panic across Kalusale, leaving hundreds of farmers demanding accountability and compensation.

The second incident was reported at Rongxing Mine in March 2025, where acid leakage from a tailings dam contaminated the Luela Stream—a tributary of the Kafue River.

In a statement issued on Friday, July 4, the Zambia Environmental Justice Coalition urged the government to, among other things, reassess and renegotiate all compensation agreements—ensuring the full involvement of affected communities—to promote intergenerational justice and restore livelihoods. The coalition also called for immediate compliance audits and the initiation of both criminal and civil prosecutions where negligence or regulatory failures are found, in accordance with Sections 117–122 of the Environmental Management Act.

The coalition is an alliance of several organisations, including ActionAid, Care for Nature Zambia, Caritas Zambia, Wildlife Crime Prevention, BirdWatch Zambia, and Transparency International Zambia. Others include Conservation Advocates Zambia, Namfumu, Mizu, Publish What You Pay, among others.

Following the environmental damage caused by the failure of tailings dams at the two Chinese-owned mines—the government ordered the companies to restore the polluted river, rehabilitate the surrounding environment, and compensate over 500 affected farmers.

To facilitate compensation, the Kalulushi District Agriculture Office was tasked with evaluating and identifying the affected farmers.

In May, the government announced that the farmers would be compensated by Sino Metals and Rongxing, with over K16 million to be distributed. Copperbelt Minister Elisha Matambo stated Sino Metals would contribute the larger portion. Mines Minister Paul Kabuswe confirmed that disbursement would begin once a ministerial team approved the final report.

Kalusale’s farmers remain in limbo amid unresolved land ownership issues, delayed compensation, and troubling findings from the Engineering Institution of Zambia (EIZ) regarding the recent environmental disaster.

A central concern is the role of the Mine Safety Department—affiliated with EIZ—in the oversight of Sino Metals’ leach processing plant, which released acidic tailings that damaged farmland.

“This is a crisis we cannot leave to the Mine Safety Department alone,” said Engineer Wesley  Kaluba, EIZ President. “We’re investigating the actions of our members. For a plant to be licensed, it must meet specific engineering and safety criteria.”

Kaluba emphasised that regular inspections and proper monitoring by qualified engineers are essential to prevent such failures.

“The Mine Safety Department keeps logbooks of inspections—quarterly, biannual, or annual—used to verify whether structural integrity checks were done,” he said, adding that both Zambia Environmental Management Authority and the Mine Safety Department, which are affiliated with EIZ, have oversight roles.

Preliminary findings from EIZ revealed significant design flaws at the Sino Metals plant, worsened by poor or non-existent maintenance.

“One major issue was that the leaching process involved applying highly concentrated acid—around pH 1.8—before neutralization, which should never happen,” Kaluba disclosed.

Investigations are ongoing, but the findings so far raise serious questions about engineering compliance, regulatory enforcement, and the safety of communities living near mining operations.

Land question

Another key question that remains unanswered is: Who owns the land where the Kalusale farmers grow their crops? Who granted them permission to farm there? And crucially, is this land part of the mining area?

According to information obtained by MakanDay from the Kalulushi Municipal Council—under whose jurisdiction the mine falls—Kalusale is located in Mwambashi, a rural ward of Kalulushi Constituency in Chambishi.

When MakanDay contacted Kalulushi Town Clerk Betty Liswaniso to inquire about the ownership of the Kalusale land, she responded: “I don’t have any information. Maybe inquire from the Ministry of Lands.”

We also reached out to the Ministry of Lands.

“Preliminary investigations indicate that the matter is in court,” said Principal Public Relations Officer Delphine Shampande.

When asked who had taken whom to court and over what case, she replied: “That’s why I said the lawyers are in Livingstone. I will only have those details next week.”

The same question was put to the Copperbelt Provincial Administration through Permanent Secretary Lawrence Mwanza.

“I’m not too sure—I need to confirm,” Mwanza said. “But what I know is that the farmers saw idle land and began using it for gardening, especially along the river. The land does not belong to them. Any land near water bodies is government land and cannot be allocated to individuals. In fact, three-quarters of the people there are occupying land that is not legally theirs.”

From the Copperbelt Provincial Administration, we reached out to Martin Amukusana, Deputy Chief Executive Officer at Sino Metals. Surprisingly, he also admitted he was unaware of who legally owns the land.

“It is not very clear — maybe we have not taken time to establish whether that land is part of the mine or not. We are yet to determine that. We have no knowledge of how the farmers found themselves on the land, as they’ve been there longer than Sino Metals has existed,” said Mr Amukusana.

Other sources indicated that the land in question is mining land belonging to NFCA Mine in Chambishi.

To verify this, we contacted Owen Nswana from the NFCA legal department, who is currently Acting Manager for Corporate Affairs.

“The area where the crops were damaged by the acid is a long stretch, so I don’t know the exact spot unless we are on the ground to verify. Offhand, I cannot provide any information,” responded Nswana.

The question of who owns the disputed Kalusale land remains unresolved, with conflicting claims from various stakeholders.

Felix Chipoya, the Kitwe District Land Alliance Coordinator, acknowledged that some farmers lack proper documentation.

“Some are in the process of acquiring papers, while others are simply farming within the mining community. Along the riverbanks, which are government land, people farm freely. However, some are farming within the mining premises,” he explained.

When asked who owns the land, Chipoya said: “The land belongs to the mines. It was originally owned by ZCCM and was retained for future expansion when the mines were privatised. Some farmers are on this mining land.”

He added that historically, ZCCM land was surrendered to the government, giving councils the authority to subdivide and allocate it—something private mines are now also doing.

However, ZCCM-IH’s Corporate Affairs Manager, Loisa Mbatha Kakoma, said she was unaware of the land in question and requested further details to consult the legal department.

One of the farmers, Bernard Njobvu, who has cultivated the land for 28 years, said: “We gave ourselves that land under Lima. It’s more like a no man’s land—on one side, there are mine beacons, and on the other, ZAFFICO’s (Zambia Forestry and Forest Industries Corporation). Where we are is neutral.”

He admitted that some farmers have extended into NFCA and ZAFFICO land but justified it by noting that the area was unused and not part of active mining operations.

Compensation for affected farmers

Chief Nkana of the Lamba people insisted that all affected farmers should be compensated.

“Sino Metals must comply with government directives, including compensating the people and properly managing the tailings dam,” said Chief Nkana. His representative added: “Farming is the only source of income for many. The pursuit of copper production must not come at the expense of our people’s livelihoods.”

Can ownership affect compensation?

Legal expert Elijah Chikonde clarified that land ownership is not a barrier to compensation in this case. “This is a human rights issue. The affected farmers can be compensated under the Law of Tort for the harm caused,” he said.

Chipoya from Kitwe Land Alliance agreed: “They’re being compensated for their livelihood, not for land ownership. Most urban farmers across Zambia farm without owning the land.”

Njobvu also defended the compensation: “We’re being compensated under the Environmental Act, which protects land regardless of whether it’s titled or not.”

Kennedy is a talented journalist based in Kitwe at Radio Icengelo. He is currently on a three-month paid internship at MakanDay after he emerged second in the prestigious 2024 MakanDay Media Awards.