Zambia rejects the American health warning after a toxic spill in the Kitwe copper operating area

The Zambian government has rejected the allegations of dangerous pollution in the mining region of the copper belt, following security problems raised by the United States Embassy.

On Wednesday, the United States Embassy published a health alert, ordering the immediate withdrawal of its staff in the city of Kitwe and neighboring areas due to the concerns of “generalized contamination of water and soil” linked to a February spill at the Sino-Metal mine.

The spill occurred when a residue dam, used to store toxic waste and heavy metals, collapsed in the Kafue river, a keywater source, following heavy rain.

The United States Embassy said there were new information that showed “the extent of dangerous and carcinogenic substances”.

He warned that beyond “contaminated water and the soil, contaminants of the residues of overturned mines can also become in suspension in the air, constituting a threat to health in the event of inhalation”.

Zambia government spokesperson Cornelius Mweetwa retaliated, saying that “laboratory results show that pH levels have returned to normal” in the region and that water was sure to drink.

Mweetwa said there were no more serious implications for public health, aquatic security, agriculture or the environment.

“So there is absolutely no need to press the” panic button “today to alarm the nation and the international community.”

The Sino-Metals Leach Zambia is a subsidiary of the non-ferrous Chinese group of metals, which belongs to the Chinese government.

The BBC asked for Sino-Metal comments.

At the time of the spill, the Sino-Metals have committed to compensate for the affected communities and to restore the environment.

The spill affected aquatic life as well as farmers who use water to irrigate their cultures.

The Minister of the Green Economy, Mike Mposha, said that the government has been proactive since February and continued to update the public, while the affected communities have been remunerated.

The Minister of Water Development, Collins Nzovu, said that the government has constantly tested water and that it will meet the standards of the World Health Organization.

The leader of the Green Opposition Party Peter Sinkamba said that the American Embassy’s health alert was part of geopolitics.

He wondered why it had been the embassy since February to issue the alert, while accusing him of being silent on lead poisoning in the center of Zambia which partly traces its roots to the giants of the West farm.

The executive director of the Center for Environment Justice, Maggie Mapalo Mwape, told the BBC that pollution was a national disaster which requires immediate and concrete action to alleviate its effects and prevent future events.

She called for decisive action to combat this environmental crisis and protect the rights and well-being of Zambian citizens.