ZMF encourages ASM to prepare EMPs to avoid mine closure
The Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF) has called on Artisanal and Small-scale Miners (ASM) to prepare an Environmental Management Plan (EMP), an ASM-designed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), to avoid arrests during the ongoing operation targeting miners without an EIA.
By Rudairo Mapuranga
ZMF CEO Mr Wellington Takavarasha advised miners to have an EMP because it’s easier and does not require consultants to carry it out.
“There is an operation ongoing to arrest those without EIAs. Please, you are advised to prepare an Environmental Management Plan (EMP) for small-scale mining operations, which you can do yourself without necessarily engaging an EIA registered consultant and be given an EIA certificate,” Takavarasha said.
Currently, the majority of small-scale miners are operating without Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Certificates, which is a violation of the Environmental Management Act Cap 20:27 and its ancillary legislation. One of the reasons cited by small-scale miners for not complying with the legislation is a lack of financial resources to undertake the EIA process. Some miners with EIA certificates are failing to comply with the submitted Environmental Management Plans (EMPs), mainly due to a lack of understanding of the full contents of the so-called “voluminous” EIA documents.
To improve compliance, it is proposed that small-scale miners should be assisted in developing a generic and simplified Environmental Management Plan. The Agency developed operational guidelines for small-scale miners in line with the provisions of the Act. These guidelines have reduced the cost of engaging EIA consultancies for undertaking EIA reports. It is also expected that the guidelines should be simplified to enable easy understanding by small-scale miners.