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Land degradation

THE extraction of sand and clay is one of the major drivers of land degradation in Zimbabwe’s urban, semi urban, rural service centres centre as well as growth points. According to assessments carried out by the Environmental Management Agency in the past decade, sand and clay extraction is  done mainly for construction. Development Goal number 15 aims at combating desertification as well as halting and reversing land degradation.

Most of the miners of sand and clay do so from undesignated points and do not rehabilitate the land afterwards. The abandoned sites are characterised by huge open pits which are a death trap to human beings and animals. Limited livelihood options to the urban dwellers have worsened the country’s disposition to illegal sand mining.

Impacts of sand mining

Sand mining results in the following adverse effects:
-It is a direct cause of soil erosion as soil particles are loosened during extraction
-Causes turbidity in water which disrupts photosynthesis on aquatic plants and blocks fish gills.
-Massive deforestation especially where brick moulding is practised.
-Abandoned pits are life threatening to humans and animals, both wild and domestic.
-Sand abstraction also threatens infrastructure such as roads.
-Destruction of agricultural land thereby threatening to livelihoods and food security.
-Causes air pollution as dust particles are released into the atmosphere.

Legislation

According to Statutory Instrument 7 of 2007 for EIA and Ecosystem Protection;

“No person shall excavate, remove, possess or license the removal of clay or sand deposit for commercial purposes without a licence by the Environmental Management Agency (EMA).”

The extraction of sand should be carefully monitored in order to prevent land degradation that may ravage the aesthetic value of the environment. Anyone who wishes to excavate sand or clay should apply for a licence from EMA, which could either be sand extraction licence or sand transportation licence. The applicant must first consult their local authority for a designated piece of land from where the extraction can be done. Local inspectors together with the applicant then come up with a detailed excavation and Environmental Rehabilitation/Management Plan for the site for consideration by the Agency before extraction.

Requirements for the Sand Extraction Licence

The applicant completes an application form available on the EMA website. The form should be endorsed by the local authority, lesee or land owner. A standard extraction point should measure 20X20 metres for sand extraction and an Environmental Management Plan should be produced and submitted to any EMA office together with the completed application form. A nominal quarterly fee is paid by the applicant per extraction point for licence renewal.

For those who wish to engage in brick moulding, the process of applying for a licence is similar to the one above.

Requirements for the Sand Transporters Licence

The sand transporter completes an application form available on the Agency’s website and submits it together with copies of:
-Certificate of fitness of the vehicle.
-Photographs of the front and rear of the vehicle.
-Vehicle registration book.
-National identity card of the vehicle owner.
-Certificate of incorporation for companies.
-The sand transportation licence is renewed quarterly for a nominal fee per truck.

Review Process

After the submission for the application, the Director-General may consider the application within a period of thirty working days, or may require further information desirable for sustainable utilisation of the resources before a licence can be issued or rejected.

However, if the applicant has been granted the certificate and fails to comply with the stipulated requirements of the environmental rehabilitation plan, the Agency may cancel the certificate.

The routine inspections to check on compliance to the rehabilitation plan are conducted on a monthly basis.

In addition; anyone who contravenes the law shall be liable to a fine that not exceeding level fourteen or imprisonment for a period not exceeding five years or both.

For more information contact EMA on: tel; 04 305550/305309/305407, toll free; 08080028, WhatsApp; 0779565707, email; [email protected], or visit the nearest EMA office.