THE Environmental Management Agency (EMA) has ordered an
Umguza-based Chinese brickmaking company to stop operations pending processing
of its Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) certificate.
Homestead Clay, also known as Zimbabwe and China Biocheng
Brick Company, has been mining clay along the Harare Road in the Umguza
District without an EIA certificate, thereby violating the country’s laws.
EIA is a process of evaluating the likely environmental
impacts of a proposed project or development, taking into account inter-related
socio-economic, cultural and human-health impacts, both beneficial and adverse.
EMA Matabeleland North provincial manager Chipo Mpofu-Zuze
revealed that the company’s EIA certification papers were yet to be approved.
“The correct name which they submitted for an EIA is
Homestead Clay. It could be having another name, but the documents they
submitted to us indicate that they are called Homestead Clay,” Mpofu-Zuze said.
“They did prospectus and were told to do the full EIA. They
did it and submitted it for processing. We are now processing it. Our team went
there today (yesterday) and they have ordered them to stop operations,” she said.
Mpofu-Zuze said EMA was having challenges with companies
that start operations without an EIA certificate.
“The challenge that we have is that people think that if
they do that book (EIA) even before its approved they can start operations.
This is what they (Chinese company) did, but they have been told to stop until
their EIA certificate has been approved, if it’s going to be approved,” she
said.
Southern Eye last week visited the site and was told that
all documents including the EIA certificate were there.
Company official Takavada Mbondiah yesterday insisted that
they had the EIA certificate, dismissing EMA’s claims that it halted the
operations.
“We have all the papers and have never been stopped from
operating. In fact, we are not yet operating, we are building accommodation for
the workers. We are still waiting for machinery to arrive from China, hopefully
by end of this month it would have arrived,” he said.
Mbondiah claimed that they got their EIA certificate two
weeks ago. Newsday
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