Some Chinese miners have been taken to court over coal mining in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe.
The Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association (ZELA) in its lawsuit, stated that mining within the National Park poses an acute risk of irreversible ecological degradation.
Zimbabwe Zhongxin Mining Group Tongmao Coal Company (Pvt) Ltd was listed as the first respondent, Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation, Minister of Mines and Mining Development, and the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) are listed as second, third, and fourth respondents respectively.
The lawsuit came after the Zimbabwean government granted coal mining concessions to several Chinese companies in the Hwange National Park. The decision to grant coal mining concessions to Chinese companies has been met with criticism and comes at a time when Zimparks reported the unexplained deaths of 22 elephants near Hwange National Park.
Reacting to the criticism that has trailed the mining concessions to Chinese Companies, Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality tweeted;
We take note of the ongoing discussions around the Hwange National Park and we assure the Nation that Government will pronounce itself in the next few days.
