CNMC Luanshya Copper Mines has confirmed that only part of the Roan cricket field may be affected by the extended mining activities which has threatened the existence of the Luanshya sports complex.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Zambian Business Times -ZBT, CNMC Luanshya copper mines Public Relations Manager Sydney Chileya Says the oxide only reaches a small portion of the cricket field.
“The sports complex has got about nine facilities in that area. We got rugby, cricket , squash and so on. Of all those, the copper oxide extends only a small portion into the cricket field. The rest of the facilities are not reached by the copper oxide”, he said.
Chileya also disclosed that there has been some illegal mining on the roan basin by youths and that CNMC was forced to dig a trench when the illegal mining intensified and people started to bring heavy equipment on the site.
There area in question is known as Roan basin which is part of the Muliashi oxide mine area which is bordered with our Luanshya sports complex. There has been some illegal mining activities taking place in that area.
But those activities where initially done by youths with shovels and picks, but then the activities there increased where people started coming with excavators, truck loaders and so on. So we decided to dig a trench just to fence off that area.
Furthermore, Chileya disclosed that CNMC have also engaged the Zambia Environmental Managements Agency – ZEMA to ensure that in the process of developing the area follows pains down procedures and that all illegal mining activities of the copper oxide is stopped.
We have also engaged ZEMA and the mine safety department to ensure that we begin the process of basically developing the area because we know that the illegal mining activities taking place in that area are as a result of the copper resource that is there. So, once we mine that resource the illegal activities will stop.
