More than 2,500 Zambian villagers are to receive an undisclosed settlement from UK-based mining giant Vedanta Resources over their pollution claims. The claimants live by the huge Nchanga Copper mine, owned by Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), a Vedanta subsidiary. In 2015, they alleged that toxic discharge from Nchanga had poisoned water sources and destroyed farmland. In a landmark ruling four years later, the UK Supreme Court said the case could be fought in the UK courts. In its judgement, the Supreme Court had said the firm owed villagers a duty of care and there was a risk they would not be able to achieve justice in the Zambian courts. A joint statement from UK-based law firm Leigh Day, which is representing the claimants, and Vedanta said the mining companies did not admit liability but had settled all claims “for the benefit of the local community”. The communities of Hippo Pool, Kakosa, Shimulala and Hellen said that the Mushishima stream and the Kafue had become rivers of acid.
SOURCE: BBC
More Stories
At the Coalface of the Green Revolution, but Earning Crumbs
Harris Stresses that U.S. Interests in African Nations Extends beyond Competing with China
Lesotho’s Lawmakers Debated a Motion to Claim Huge Swathes of Territory from South Africa
New HRW Head Weighs in on the UK’s Plan to Deport Asylum Seekers to Kigali
South Africans Spent at least 9.5 Hours a Day Online in 2022
Togo Could Move the Needle on Tropical Diseases
Making It Easier for Everyday Africans to Take Advantage of Previously Restricted Asset Classes
Pirates Disrupt the Gulf of Guinea’s Usually Peaceful Waters
Chad’s Parliament has Approved a Bill to Nationalise Oil Assets
Unilever Nigeria Announces Exit of Home Care and Skin Cleansing Markets by End of the Year
Joshua Baraka is Ugandan Music’s Next Big Thing
Design for Human Rights