OVERVIEW OF THE IMPACT OF MINING ON THE ... - IIED pubs

Zambia. Clearly, some water quality information must be available for the other basin states and concerted
attempts should be made to secure this information and synthesize it to provide a better overview of the
Zambezi basin.
The SADC Protocol on Shared Watercourse Systems is an important legislative instrument that promotes
regional co-operation and collaboration amongst all SADC states. However, inadequate and unequal
institutional and professional capacity within the member states hampers full expression of this protocol.
Zambia and Zimbabwe have jointly passed the Zambezi River Authority legislation in 1987 to form the Zambezi
River Authority (Pallett, 1997; Chenje, 2000). Whilst this move will certainly help to improve collaborative
management of the Zambezi basin, the fact that the other six basin states (Angola, Botswana, Malawi,
Mozambique, Namibia and Tanzania) are not included is seen as an impediment to the optimal functioning of
this authority. To date, the Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) has focused its activities on the section of the
Zambezi River shared by Zambia and Zimbabwe, with particular attention being paid to setting up an efficient
monitoring system and database (Chenje, 2000). Under the auspices of the ZRA, Zambia and Zimbabwe have
agreed to collaborate closely on the utilization, operation and maintenance of all existing infrastructure and
installations (e.g. dams, reservoirs, telemetry stations), as well as any future installations that may be
constructed in their spheres of influence.
Each basin state maintains its own system of meteorological and hydrological data collection, primarily for use
at the national level. Whilst these systems are at very different levels of coverage in the different states, all data
is fed into regional data systems such as the Drought Monitoring Centre in Harare, Zimbabwe, where the data
provides important information for national and regional agricultural planning systems. Recent improvements
include weather radar systems and satellite monitoring systems that are intended to expand the regional
coverage.
3.1.6 Mining and mineral processing operations in the Zambezi basin
There are a large number and wide variety of mining and minerals processing operations in the Zambezi
catchment; the locations of these are shown in Figures 3.4 and 3.7 to 3.14, whilst details of land use and
geology in Zimbabwe are given in Figures 3.5 and 3.6.
Data on the type of mine, size, operational status and location of mining operations in the Zambezi basin are
presented, along with inferences on their potential impacts. The inference for potential impact was arrived at
using the criteria in Table 1.3 and is summarized for each sub-catchment in the following sections. A
summarizing overview of the potential impacts on water resources and water quality in each sub-catchment of
the Zambezi basin is given in Section 3.40.
In the following portions of this section of the report that contain descriptions of the mining and mineral
processing activities in each sub-catchment, it is important to refer to Figure 3.2 and Figure 3.4 for the
positions of the different sub-catchments within the Zambezi basin.
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