GeoJoumal S u p p l e m e n t a r y Issue 2 (1981) 9 5 - 1 0 3

95

© Akademische Verlagsgesellschaft • Wiesbaden

Mining and Spoiled Land in Zambia: An Example of Conflicting Land Use in the Third World Perera, N. P., Prof. Dr., Land Resources Survey, Dept. of Biology, University of Zambia, PO Box 32379, Lusaka, Zambia

Abstract: Mining of copper and other metals to a lesser extent is the mainstay of the Zambian economy. Copper is mined in the Copperbelt situated in the northern part of the country. It is not only the the most thickly populated part of the country but also the most urbanized. Urban centers developed with the mines as their nuclei and hence pose spatial problems between the needs of a rapidly increasing population on the one hand and the requirements of the mining industry on the other. The provision of raw material for the extractive industries is a geological one. Economic history shows the realization of these potentials and thirdly, lack of planning has permitted exploitation of minerals and dumping of wastes without much regard to reclamation. Spoliation of land by mining activity is mainly caused by the methods of mining as well as by the dumping of the solid and liquid wastes from the ore crushers and concentrators; while air pollution from sulphurdioxide and dust is from the smelters. Legislation has recently being enacted to regulate the dumping of wastes and for the reclamation of waste dumps. However, this has had only a minimal effect on the problem as yet. The soil from a dump which is ready for reclamation is analysed and methods of revegetating such a dump based on ecological principles is attempted. Finally, the conflict for land between the needs of a growing urban population and the requirements of the mining industry is discussed taking Kitwe, the capital of the Copperbelt as an example.

Introduction R e c e n t years have witnessed a growing awareness of the need for increased understanding of the effects of man's activities upon the natural landscape. O n e area of major concern in the last two decades, has been the man induced modifications of the e n v i r o n m e n t caused by extractive industry that makes land derelict. S.H. Beaver (1969) stated that is has been officially defined in Britain as "Land which has been so damaged by extractive or other p r o c e s s e s . . , that in default of special action, it is unlikely to be effectively used again within a reasonable time." O n the other hand, the term 'derelict' implies abandonment, and consequently excludes those sites which are actively in use, which is more true of mining sites in the main mining area of Zambia, known as the Copperbelt. The term spoiled, however, may be applied equally to both active and inactive sites, and in this context both active and disused sites are considered spoiled (Collins 1971). Such a term therefore, fits well into the position in Zambia.

The other c o m m o n process which causes spoilation is agricultural, resulting in accelerated soil erosion, gully formation and salinization. Nevertheless, in Zambia, as in parts of the world where extractive industry is important, dereliction is mainly caused by operations of mining and quarrying. Mining is underground digging to extract ores or coal aided by artificial light; and quarrying including open-pit and opencast mining is essentially a surface operation. In mining, the depth of working varies according to the geology of the mineral being exploited and the stage reached by mining technology. T w o major consequences of mining are as follows: in the first place, it may cause subsidence of the overlying ground, resulting in p e r m a n e n t flooding or formation of marshland. Secondly, as in the case of quarrying too, enormous quantities of the solid waste dug with the mineral, and also the residue after its treatment at the pit head, may be dumped on the surface, in a variety of ways. The surrounding area is thus littered with waste rock dumps, tailings and slimes dams1),

GeoJoumal Supplementary Issue 2 (1981)

96

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and quarries which gives a distinctive feature to such landscapes. Likewise, damage caused to vegetation cover and pollution of water supplies and the atmosphere by ore treatment activities, is also a form of spoilation, as is also the steady deterioration of the physical facilities of whole communities. Such land is incapable of beneficial use, without further treatment thus making it spoiled. The mining industry is the mainstay of Zambia's economy and in 1979, 97 % of exports by value were accounted for by the mining sector (Anon 1, 1980). Hence, such areas of spoilation due to mining, are at least "honourable scars", inflicted in the process of making Zambia, economically a viable state. Nevertheless, spoliation of the land and its concomitant issues of pollution of the air and water supplies, is an important aspect that influences land use in an area. Such spoilation is a growing problem especially in the Copperbelt, and at Kabwe where lead mining is important and so warrant close attention. In this paper the mechanics of the development of spoilation are examined together with some methods of reclamation of such areas based on ecological principles. Further, the impact of spoilation on land use is investigated centered on Kitwe, the second largest city of Zambia and the hub of the Copperbelt.

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Sources of Data The problems of definition of spoiled land are intertwined with those of establishing facts about the development of spoilation and classifying its modes of occurrence. It should be noted that the term spoiled or derelict is not legally defined in Zambia, although some forms associated with it, such as mine waste dumps have been mentioned in legislation as the Mining (Dumps) regulation of 1972 under the Mines and Mineral Act of 1969 (Anon 2). Mining in Zambia (till 1981) was mostly controlled by two parastatal companies: Roan Consolidated Mines Ltd (R.C.M.), and Nchanga Consolidated Copper Mines Ltd. (N.C.C.M.), in which the Zambian government has a major holding. These two companies were formed by the amalgamation of the companies which got large concessions to operate mining and prospecting during the colonial period ( 1 8 9 5 - 1 9 6 4 ) . In 1981 R.C.M. and N.C.C.M. were combined to form one company, the Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines Ltd. The principal ores mined other than copper, include lead, zinc, cobalt and gold. Coal is mined at Maamba in the Gwembe valley in the Southern Province. In addition small deposits of emaralds, amethyst and tin are being worked, and possibly uranium in the near future (Fig 1).

GeoJoumal Supplementary issue 2 (1981)

Other extractive industries, are industrial undertakings such as the brick works at Nega Nega, and limestone excavations for cement manufacture at Chilanga, near Lusaka. These areas show little evidence of spoliation. The interest of these industrial enterprises is largely with those aspects of the problem which directly affect production. It should be noted, however, that the problem of spoilation caused by these two industries, is very small and local as compared with the main copper and lead mining areas.

Methods of Data Collection Prior, permission has to be obtained to use the unpublished material from the mining companies as well as to carry out field investigation within the restricted area of the mine. On the other hand, the old tailings and slime deposits known officially as the "closed classified" dumps are outside the restricted area, and could be inspected and studied without permission. Data were also gathered from Topographical Maps scale, 1:50,000, compiled from air photographs dated 1954 and 1957, vertical air photographs scale 1:40,000, taken in 1965 (Surveyor General, Government of Zambia, Lusaka, 1967). Field work was to study the vegetation and soils of the 'closed classified' dumps, some of the slimes dams, and tailings mounds especially in Kitwe and Luanshya. At these places besides recording conditions of vegetation and soil, observations and interviews were also conducted with some of the mining company officials and local residents. Air photographs were examined stereoscopically, and, where possible, sites were allocated symbols appropriate to the spoiled land key. Field work formed an important part in the building up of the airphoto key and visits were made more than once to at least one example of each major form of spoliation. The major features identified on the aerial photographs were: heaps, excavations, installations, refuse, slimes dams, tips, open cast working and ridge tips.

The Mineral Extractive Industry and its Effect on the Environment Ancient workings of copper have been identified at Bwana Mkuba near Ndola, and copper was used as an article of trade about 1,300 years ago (Cooray and Lane 1978). Modem commercial mineral exploitation first began at Kabwe (Broken Hill) in 1906 of lead, and since 1923 of zinc. Copper mining commenced in 1908 at Kansanshi mine, 120 km west of the Copperbelt. Nevertheless, it was almost a quarter century later in 1931, that the large copperbelt mines at Luanshya (Roan Antelope) began production. Today, N.C.C.M. own the mines at Rokana, Chingola, Konkola, Bwana Mkubwa and Kansanshi. R.C.M. own the mines at Chibuluma, Luanshy, Mufulira, Chmbishi and Kalengwa. Maamba Collieries which is under the control of the Zambia Mining and In-

97

dustrial Corporation (MINDECO), mines the coal deposits centrered at Maamba in the Southern Province. The Copperbelt copper ores are mostly sulphides: Chalcocite (Cu2S), Chalcophyrite (CuFeS2) and Covellite (CuS). These are found in the Katanga system which overlie schist and old granites of the Basement Complex. On the other hand, the ore bodies located in the Lower Roan group, are in the Katanga Mines Series. These ore bodies are mainly argillites and micaceous dolomites, only locally mineralized to ore grade (Bowan and Gunatillaka 1977). The world's copper ores contain an average of about 1.5 % of metal, while those of the Copperbelt average about 3.4 % (Radetzi 1975). Mining is either underground or open pit. In the Copperbelt about three quarters of the copper produced comes from underground mining. Underground mining is more complicated and costly than open pit mining, where the over burden is first removed to expose the ore. On the other hand, in underground mining shafts are sunk, and from them tunnels are driven towards the ore body. This means that enormous quantities of mineral and spoil are removed. Whatever the type of mining, waste dumping is unavoidable. The first step in processing the ore is that it is crushed and ground prior to concentration, where the rock fragments are rendered uniform and smaller than egg size, before being milled to a powder. The Roan division of N.C.C.M. at Nkhana, almost at the centre of the Copperbelt, alone crushes more than 17,000 tonnes of copper ore per day. The crushed material is passed through a concentrator where water and chemicals are added, agitated and bubbles produced. The copper is floated and the non-cuprous material which consists of nearly 5 0 - 9 0 % of the bulk separated out. This waste must be dumped somewhere, and hence the creation of slimes or tailings dams, in the vicinity of the mines, creating a zone of residues. Such large piles of waste, consisting largely of crushed rock and sand, are built up on the surface as hills or low ridges with a plateau like upper surface (Fig 2). They are commonly left with the material lying at or close to its natural angle of repose. Thus they often drain rapidly, retaining little water close to the surface. This combination of physical and chemical characteristics renders the tips steep, barren and unproductive - a sterile landscape indeed.

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During the seven month dry season (April - October) these residues crumble to a fine dust from which even a wind of moderate force can produce a miniature sand storm. When

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GeoJoumal Supplementary Issue 2 (1981)

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it rains, the sodden dumps revert to an amorphous slurry which spreads to the nearby cultivated land and water supplies. One practical means of reducing this form of pollution is to form large dammed lakes in which the water improves in time by mere retention and oxidation before discharge into public streams, Fig 3. Thus at Rokana processing plant, nearly all potentially noxious effluents are pumped to a central mixing point where the effluent tend to neutralize each other. The main pollution factor of the air from the copper smelters is sulphurdioxide with some traces of sulphurtrioxide (the result of the oxidation of sulphurdioxide). About 1250 tonnes of sulphurdioxide are discharged into the atmosphere every day from the mines in the Copperbelt. This pollution is extremely harmful to certain types of vegetation and could have an adverse effect on the rapidly developing forest plantations in the adjoining areas if left unchecked. Investigations showed that mango (Mangifera indica) is sensitive to such pollution as most plants in the vicinity have specks in the leaves and are generally malformed. Another is the tomato, while cabbage plants 12 km from the smoke stock itself were effected. Thus such pollution is often far from being a purely local phenomenon (Armstrong - Smith 1972). 3 0 - 4 0 % of the sulphurdioxide generated is used in the manufacture of sulphuric acid and the rest released to the atmosphere. More than 1,000 tonnes of coal are burnt per day at Rokana division alone, adding to a considerable if inevitable, pollution of the air (Griffiths 1968). This consists of fine dust particles which causes the miners' main occupational disease of pneumoconiosis (Balaraman 1971). The production of lead and zinc from the mines at Kabwe, present more distressing environmental hazards than in the Copperbelt, as the toxicity of these minerals is more dangerous than that of copper. At its least, this type of pollution causes ecological damage, reducing the quantity and variety of natural vegetation. At its worst, it makes agricultural land unproductive.

Subsisdence is a feature of most of the underground mining areas, especially by the process of cave-ins which produces marked surface effects. It is partly a product of the techniques of extraction and partly a consequence of geological structure. As a method of extraction, block caving is responsible for superficial subsidence, since it makes no provision for infilling or shearing up any part of the mine which was drawn. Catastropic cave-ins sometime occur, as happened at Mufulira on 25th September 1970, where 89 lives were lost. Other than this, subsidence may cause disruption of surface drainage and the resultant depression may become permanently flooded; or may produce a surface which, even if water does not collect in the hollows, cannot easily be put to economic use. The above mentioned mining and mineral extraction processes, lead to the replacement of the natural physical features, and their modification in some instances, beyond recognition. The common manifestations of such transformation are crag like quarry faces, mountainous spoil heaps and subsidence and valley lakes. Dereliction thus results from the interaction of a complex set of influences such as the geological structure and the physical location of minral outcrops, as well as the techniques of extraction and refining and the method of waste disposal; related both to technical competence and to the economics of alternate modes of operation. Yet another problem arises when a mine is temporarily abandoned, due mainly to the fluctuations in the demand and price of copper and other metals. In consequence, land that has been much subjected to spoliation to a varied degree, may lie idle for lengthy periods of time.

Legal Controls Until the Mining Dumps Regulations No. 99 of 1972 to the Mines and Minerals Act of 1969 were passed, there were practically no legal controls on the method of disposing of waste materials and the control of pollution. Earlier legislation like the Public Health Act did, however, stipulate local authority control over pollution damages to water supplies and health (Anon 3). However, performance standards for such matters as dust control, sediment control or quality of air and water have not been systematically included. The Mining Dumps Regulations spell out rules to control the size and form of the dumps and the measures to be taken for their rehabilitation, so as to prevent pollution and abate any nuisance. Dumps are divided into two main categories. Firstly an "active" dump, where dumping operations are currently proceeding, and secondly a "classified" dump which is one consisting of material accumulated or deposited wholly or mainly in a solid state, or wholly or mainly in solution or suspension and where dumping has ceased. A "classified" dump which has been recorded by the Chief Inspector of Mines is known as a "closed classified" dump.

GeoJoumal Supplementary Issue 2 (1981)

To obtain a permit before dumping commences a detailed plan has to be submitted which must meet a list of engineering design standards. It must also include a plan for reclaiming the dumps which in most cases merely means restoring the vegetation cover. No "active" dump can be a "classified" dump until the expiration of five years after notification, in the case of material accumulated or deposited wholly or mainly in solution or suspension. In the case of material accumulated or deposited in a solid state, the period is ten years. Nevertheless, inspection of most of these "closed classified" dumps showed that drainage problems have arisen with consequent erosion and gully formation and that control over its maintainance appears to be minimal.

99

concomitant effects due to subsidence. The two methods used at present in the case of disused mine shafts are either to overfill it to form a mound above ground level, and then to erect a fence and a warning notice, or simply to fill lightly with small scale gauge material. In the case of the restoration of quarry sites, the problem lies in restoring the drastic reshaping of the surface that has been done. In Zambia, as the quarries are mostly in the areas leased to the mining companies, little attention is paid to this aspect to the problem. Generally, the physical configuration of these surface mineral workings, their relation to sources of filling material, and the apparent absence of planning conditions enforcing restoration, may well be the reasons for its neglect.

Problems in the Reclamation of Spoiled Land Stabilizing Mine Dumps with Vegetation The word spoiled or derelict has not been used in any of the legislation pertaining to the mining industry or land in Zambia. However, it is implicit in the mining dumps regulations quoted above. It is also noted, that there is no legislation requiring the conversion of the "closed classified" dumps to a more permanent form of land use. This again may be due to the notion, that with improved technology of copper extraction, these dumps could be used once more for economically extracting the very small amount (0.2 %) of copper and also cobalt that they are supposed to contain. Most remarkable is the fact that copper can be obtained from what was earlier regarded as a waste product at costs considerably below those incurred in mining new ores (Radetzi 1975). This may be a plausible reason for the absence of legislation to provide a permanent solution to the problem of these man made scars on the landscape. Subsidence due to underground mining is yet another problem. Subsidence progresses in a series of wave like motions slightly raising the ground in advance of the working face, before it finally settles to its new level. Prevention of subsidence is not possible if all the workable ore is extracted. The underground storage of spoil will reduce, but not completely prevent subsidence, as the unfortunate accident that occurred at Mufulira mentioned above demonstrated. At this disaster water, mud and sand from the concentrator waste material which had been used to fill large cavities over mined out areas, burst into the underground workings engulfing a large part of the mine. Mining was resumed only after securing the effected areas with concrete plugs, and dewatering the flooded portion. The cost of this operation has been stated to be about US S 250,000; to which must be added the much greater costs due to the closure of the richest part of the mine for several months (Gochin, Stocks and Down 1976). In this and in many similar instances, prevention is likely to have been economically better than cure; quite apart from the loss of human life. Engineering problems are also manifold, but two important ones are the filling of disused mine shafts, and the prevention of the disruption of underground drainage, with its

The problems of rehabilitation of the slimes dumps and ponds for combatting environmental pollution, of landscaping, and of devising more beneficial forms of use for the land are considerable. An important consideration is that of costs of reclamation. Most of the above mentioned problems could be tackled to an appreciable extent, by a programme of re-vegetation, based on sound ecological principles. Such a method, combined with a plan.for the refilling of gullies and the building up of the outer edges of the silt ponds to prevent water breaking through, together with other essential improvements, would certainly be helpful, in erasing the scars of such an unkept landscape. The establishment of a permanent cover of vegetation involves not merely growing plants. It necessitates bringing into being a plant community that will maintain itself indefinetely, without further attention or artificial aid, such as manuring and irrigation. Such permanance could be achieved most advantageously by selecting species adapted to growth, spread and reproduction, under the severe conditions provided both by the nature of the dump materials and by the exposed situation on the dump surfaces, above the level of the surrounding terrain. The ideal type of plant cover to mitigate conditions found in these areas, would therefore,appear to be a tree or shrub phase, to act as a wind break and an aggressive grass phase, for complete surface protection. Woody plants should also provide the necessary stabilization of organic matter to greater depths in the form of plant roots. The above analysis indicates major deficiencies in nitrogen, potassium and phosphates. The relatively high calcium content and the alkalinity result from the chemicals added in the processing of the copper ore. The 'closed classified' dumps are given a coating of houshold refuse and sewage, to a thickness of up to 0.39 m. This organic matter helps to replenish the acute deficiencies in humus, nitrogen and other mineral nutrients required for plant growth, but not of course to the extent of matching the ordinary garden soil in the vicinity.

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GeoJoumal Supplementary Issue 2 (1981)

Tab 1 Analytical Data of Soil (Surface Material) Collected from a "Closed Classified" Dump, Kitwe

a Soil collected from surface to 10 centimeters at end of wet season. b pH potentiometer with glass electrodes. Determined in a 1:5 soil ~M c a l c i u m chloride suspension.

However, it does supply the soil micro-organisms which are so essential for the development of at least the rudiments of soil. A number of "closed classified" dumps were inspected in the Kitwe area and plants collected. In all these, there were barren areas devoid of any plant cover, which would approximately be equal to about one twentieth of the area of a dump. Nearly all the plants collected were found in the surrounding areas. The most common plants growing in the dumps are as follows: Becium homblei, the Zambia copper flower. This is a cuprophile and one of the relatively rare plants that like copper. It grows almost exclusively where the metal is found in abundance in the soil, even as little as 1 % of easily extractable copper. C. Reilly and J. Stone (1971) found that although this plant normally grows in the areas where there is a strong concentration of copper salts, analysis of the leaves showed that during the wet season, it has little more of the metal than is to be found in the non tolerant plants growing on normal soils, which may even contain only 0.002 % of copper. A t the end of the growing season, the above ground part of Becium homblei withers and drops its leaves, and with them most of the accumulated copper. Another cuprophile present was Triumfetta welwitschii. The commonest and abundant shrub species was guava, Psidium guajava. This was growing with a vigour resembling its growth on an ordinary garden soil, with fruits, and flowers in bloom. The grasses most common and dominant are Cynodon dactylon, Cynodon aethiopicus and also another species of Cynodon. These grasses propagate by stolons. As they are fast growing and trail along the ground, they help in binding the loose sand particles together, and thus prevent wind erosion. They are also strongly drought resistant and can tolerate the high temperatures during the day, similar to those in a desert environment. A number of leguminous plants such as Tephrosia spp, Terarnnus spp together with some belonging to the Compositae were also observed. In the crevices on the sides of the dumps, especially where the stone masonry laid to stabilize the dump banks had been eroded and pockets of soil formed, the fern Adiantum spp was found. The luxuriance of its growth again indicated its capacity to tolerate the toxic nature

of the medium in which it had established itself. The observations confirm the findings of A.D. James (1966) on dumps on the Witwatersrand in South Africa; and by J.R.C. Hill (1977) in Zimbabwe. In some of these closed classified dumps, attempts have been made to contour strip plant with Eucalyptus spp. The idea behind this is, that such a plantation would not only be a useful source of timber, but would also give a pleasing wooded effect. However, this experiment has not been successful as the plants were in poor shape. A possible reason for this may well be that Eucalyptus spp prefers acidic soils, and not the highly alkaline ones found in these dumps. Here again, the work of J,R.C. Hill (1977) in Zimbabwe, had shown that Acacia saligna is the tree species best suited to copper tailings dumps, as this produces the greatest mean biomass per plant. Probably, Zambia too, could pursue planting this variety. Hence, forest plantation is the cheapest, because most closed classified dumps can be used for this purpose so long as a suitable species is chosen. The fact that Psidium guajava (guava) had successfully colonized and was in vigorous growth, is an indication that commercially viable orchards of this fruit could also be established on these dumps. Nature conservation is important and it is reassuring to note that most of the closed classified dumps allow natural revegetation of plants and the colonization by birds, reptiles and small mammals.

Spoiled Land and its Implications for Land Use Planning As discussed earlier, it is obvious that spoilation due to mining activity will be concentrated mainly in the Copperbelt situated in the province of that name. This is the smallest province of Zambia with an area of 30,965 km2. In 1978, it had a population of 1,303,000 mainly living in its eight urban centers, and this accounted for over 60 % of all Zambian urban dwellers. In that year, its population density was 42 persons per km2, in contrast to the population for the whole country which was only 7.2 per km2.

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Supplementary

Issue 2 (1981)

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In the early life of the Copperbelt, the various mining and prospecting companies established camps adjoining the plant area to house workers engaged in mining activity. In the forties when mining was at its boom period, attention was paid to estate development by the mining companies and complementary government and municipal townships were established to accommodate the commercial, financial and administrative services. Later, manufacturing industry other than those based on copper was also gradually established. The original mining grants issued to the companies restricted their activities to mining and housing of their employees only. Therefore the mine and government townships that evolved, were administered separately and enjoyed different names. For example, Nchanga, Nkana, and Roan Antelope were mining towns; while Chingola, Kitwe and Luanshya are their respective municipal townships. Thus this urban region originated as a conglomeration of mines, mine townships, municipal townships, African townships, European residential small holdings, European farms, and squatter settlements, during the British colonial period (Jayaraman 1978). In the Copperbelt province the average annual rate of population growth was 5 . 1 % in 1975, compared with the growth rate for the country as a whole, which was 3 % (Anon 4, 1979). These figures further indicate that this province is not only the most thickly populated in Zambia, but also as a consequence of this, it is the region where allocation of land for various purposes pose different conflicting problems. As such, it is a good example of a region in a developing country, facing similar problems to that in a developed one, due to the concentration and expansion of mining industry (Ross 1967). This situation will be considered taking the example of Kitwe, and examining the challenges it has to face in a bewildering dilemma of the needs of a growing population on the one

hand; and the necessity of the mining companies to retain substantial areas within the city limits under their control for mining, prospecting and dumping of mine wastes.

The Example of Kitwe A land use planning approach to spoiled land brings into focus important questions with much broader geographical dimensions. First, how much land can be allocated for mining regardless of whether it can be reclaimed or not? Secondly, where is such land located? These two aspects will be discussed, as regard the area of the Kitwe city council, as mining was and is the raison d'etre of Kitwe. The total area of Kitwe city council is 197,781 ha and within this area, is the main settlement of Kitwe proper, and its satellites of Kalulushi, Chibuluma, Chambeshi and Garneton2). Of these settlements, Kitwe has become the major industrial centre of the Copperbelt for a number of reasons. The most important being its central location, and as a consequence being the capital of the Copperbelt province. It is also the headquarters of the mining companies. The distribution of the broad categories of land tenure within the city are shown in Fig 4. Of the mine land, the major tenants are N.C.C.M. with rights for prospecting, exploration and mining. Hence, of the total land of Kitwe city council, the mining companies own nearly 20 %, State land includes forest reserves, and protected forest areas totalling nearly 69,902 ha together with Reserves and Trust Land3). Some of the state land is sold as freehold (99 year lease). Since the nationalization of the mining company shares in 1970, land owned but not required by the companies is handed over to the state for public use. This includes areas required for such public facilities as government departments, and local authority needs. However, the

102

GeoJoumal Supplementary Issue 2 (1981)

MAP OF KITWE 1 0 I,,,I

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Fig 5

area thus actually released is small as it may be required for mining activity in the future. The city council owns land within the local residential areas as well as the land within the industrial (non mining) parts of the city. This duality of ownership of land in Kitwe has posed problems by the exclusion of large amounts of land and property from the control of the city council to meet the needs of a growing population. The population of Kitwe has grown from 145,000 in 1963 to 232,000 in 1969 and 290,000 in 1972 - a hundred percent increase during the ten year period. If this trend were to continue, the population of the city would pass the million mark by the year 2,000. As Fig 5 indicates, the limits of Kitwe (as different from the boundary of the Kitwe City Council) are a winding railway line on its western side and the Kafue river to the east, The expansion of Kitwe therefore cannot take place in the most obvious direction that is to the west, as this land belongs to the mining companies. Some of the tailings dams and dumps border the central business district and

the high density residential areas where most of the mine workers are accommodated near their place of work. A major issue that arises from the surface rights given to the mining companies is that these areas generally coinside with the better soils that can be used for permanent farming and housing. As a result, much of the land in the hands of the mining companies cannot be used for housing. Nevertheless, the mining companies themselves, have in recent years established farms, poultries and ranches in the areas of their special rights. Hence at least, potential mining land is being utilized today, yet on a minor scale, to produce food in direct response to the government's call for an involvement by the mining companies in making Zambia self sufficient in food. However, land use in the area where the mining companies hold surface rights and where possible mineralization occur, does reflect the priorities that have to be followed. Today, mining has been extended by the opening of the South Ore Body, 3 km E of Nkana, thus making land use impossible in that direction. On the other hand, although Kitwe began as a mining town, this reliance on the mining industry has changed over the years, and especially after independence. For Example in 1972, nearly 30 % of her working population was employed in other industries and this amount is growing (Anon 5). In such a situation, with the limizs of expansion becoming an acute problem; at least some of the "closed classified" dumps will have to be utilized for housing and commercial development. This is a pressing need, especially because of the exponential growth of the urban population, as mentioned earlier. At the same time, reclaiming some of the "closed classified" dumps or getting a portion of the land leased to the mining companies for urban development, has created a dilemma due to the potential source of copper from the dumps and possible areas of subsidence and dereliction. The encroachment of the mine on Kitwe or vice versa, represents a basic conflict in land use; one in which mining has proved dominant over urban needs in the competition for space. The situation may be explained by the incomplete knowledge of the extent of the ore body in the formative years of its growth; and by the absence of a strong municipal planning authority capable of making long term plans based on the trends and future requirements of the mining industry.

Acknowledgements Field research was supported by the United States Aid Project in Eastern and Southern Africa, International Development and Social Change, directed by Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts. I am most grateful to Emeritus Professor S.H. Beaver of Keele University, UK and Professor Earl P. Scott, Department of Geography, University of Minnesota, Visiting Fulbright-Hayes Professor in the University of Zambia, for their helpful comments and suggestions. Thanks are also due to Mr. John Charman, Industrial Pollution Advisor, Nchanga Consolidated Copper Mines Ltd, Zambia; and to Mr. P.K. Banda and Ms. R. Musabula.

GeoJoumal Supplementary Issue 2 (1981)

Footnotes l) Slimes (in mining): Finely crushed or powdered metallic ore in the form of mud. Tailings: The residuum after most of the valuable ore has been extracted.

2) City of Kitwe is described in Statutory Instrument No. 150 of 1971 of Laws of Zambia as consisting of Kitwe district and Kalulushi district. It does not include the Nkana Mine Township of 7,136 ha. Nkana is a separate town but comes under the jurisdiction of Kitwe.

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3) Trust land created in the 1940's by the British colonial government could be leased to individual Africans and even to non Africans if the transaction can be shown to be for the benefit of the Africans. Reserves come under the customary law whereby the land is under tribal occupation by people without any statutory tenure. People who have been on the land for a period of 14 years and over, can claim the right of occupancy of such land without being evicted. The Land Acquisition Act, No. 2 of 1970, does not apply to land held under customary tenure. Most of the state land within Kitwe city Council area is gazetted as forest reserves or protected forest reserves.

References Anon, 1: Zambia's Mining Yearbook. Copper Industry Service Bureau, Kitwe, 1980. Anon, 2: Mining Dumps Regulations. In: Supplement to the Republic of Zambia, Government Gazette dated the 28th April, 1972, Statutory Instrument No. 99 of 1972. Government Printer, Lusaka, 1972, Anon, 3: Public Health Act. Laws of Zambia. Part XI, Section 28, Chapter 536_ Government Printer, Lusaka, 1964. Anon, 4: Third National Development Plan (1979-83). Office of the President, National Commission for Development Planning, kusaka, 1979. Anon, 5: City of Kitwe, Development Plan. Ministry of Local Government and Housing, Government Printer, Lusaka, 1973. Armstrong-Smith, G.: Copper Mining and Pollution. Black Lechwe, 2nd Quarter, 1 8 - 1 9 (1972) Balarman, T,S.: Incidence of Air Pollution in Zambia. In: Pollution and Environment in Zambia. Seminar Report. Lusaka, 4 4 - 4 9 , 1971. Beaver, S.H.: An Appraisal of the Problem. In: Proceedings, Derelict Land Symposium. University of Leeds, 3 - 9 , 1969. Bowan, R., Gunatillaka, A.: Copper, its Geology and Economics, Applied Science Publishers Ltd. London, 1977. Charman, J.A.: Aspects of Pollution in the Mining Industry. In: Pollution and Environment in Zambia. Seminar Report, Lusaka, 5 6 - 5 9 , 1971.

Collins, W.G., Bush, P.W.: Aerial Photography and Spoiled Lands in Yorkshire. Jour. of the Royal Town Planning Institute, 57, 1 0 3 - 1 1 0 (1971) Cooray, P.G., Lane, A.: A Guide to the Minerals of Zambia, N.C.C.M. and R.C.M. Lusaka, 1978. Griffiths, Ifuan. I.: Zambian Coal: An Example of Strategic Resource Development. Geog. Rev., LVIII, 536-551 (1968) Gochin, R.J., Stocks, J., Down, C.G.: The Control of Longterm Environmental Problems for Mineral Production in Developing Countries. In: Proceedings of Conference on Utilization of Mineral Resources in Developing Countries, Lusaka, 1976. Mimeo paper. Hill, J.R.C.: Establishment of vegetation on copper, gold and nickel mining wastes in Rhodesia. In: Institute of Mining and Metallurgy Transactions, Section A, 86, 135-145 (1977) James, A.D.: Stabilizing Mine Dumps with Vegetation. Endeavour, 25, 1 5 4 - 1 5 7 (1966) Jayaraman, C.K.: Spatial Patterns of Urbanization and Urban Development in African Countries, A Case Study of Zambia. Ph. D. dissertation, Department of Geography, University of Warsaw 1978. Radetzi, Marian: Metal Mineral Resource Exhaustion and the Threat to Material Progress. The Case of Copper. World Development, 3, 1 2 3 - 1 3 6 (1975) ReiIly, C., Stone, J.: Copper tolerance in Becium homblei. Nature, 230, 403 (1971) Ross, W. Gilles: Encroachment of the Jeffrey Mine on the Town of Asbestos, Quebec. Geog. Rev. 37, 5 2 3 - 5 3 7 (1967)