EMA ordered the closure of Joyce Mine at the weekend
following the death of 18 cattle from a nearby farm. There were reports that
the beasts had drunk water with cyanide residue.
The mine was also fined $60 000 for discharging hazardous
chemicals into the environment.
EMA Mashonaland East provincial spokesperson Astas Mabwe
confirmed the mine closure, adding that operations would resume after all the
required environmental preservation measures were in place.
“We went to Joyce Mine, in Beatrice, Seke district, on
Saturday, February 6, after we got the news that 18 cattle from a nearby farm
had died of cyanide poisoning. We did an inspection at the mine and realised
that at their bore mill site, effluent was contaminating the environment. We
also found out that their slime dam was also discharging water into the
environment and into the pastures,” he said.
“We issued the mine with a ticket of $60 000 as a fine for
polluting the environment. We wrote an order to cease the operations of the
mine until they come up with a management plan or rehabilitation plan, both for
their slimes dam, and their safety trench from a certified engineer.”
A sodium cyanide solution is commonly used to leach gold
from ore through a process called cyanidation.
Accidental spills of cyanide solutions into rivers and
streams have resulted in massive deaths of fish and other aquatic biota. The
chemicals are also harmful to livestock and humans. Newsday
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