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Zambia’s government says it may demand more compensation for communities affected by a toxic spill from a Chinese-owned copper mine, depending on the outcome of a full assessment.
The disaster occurred in February when a dam at the Sino-Metals Leach Zambia mine collapsed, releasing highly acidic waste loaded with heavy metals into a river that serves as a vital source of drinking water.
Sino-Metals, a subsidiary of the Chinese state-owned China Nonferrous Metal Mining Group, apologised and pledged compensation. But Vice-President Mutale Nalumango warned that “may not be all,” stressing that the safety of Zambians was “non-negotiable.”
Some embassies have advised their citizens to avoid the affected area due to health risks.
The company initially claimed only 50,000 tonnes of waste had spilled into waterways connected to the Kafue River near Kitwe. However, an investigation by South Africa’s Drizit Environmental put the figure far higher—at 1.5 million tonnes.
Drizit’s two-month study also found around 900,000 cubic metres of toxic tailings still present in the environment. The materials were reported to contain dangerous levels of cyanide, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, copper, and zinc, posing long-term risks such as cancer, organ damage, and birth defects.
