Uwekezaji wa Barrick waleta manufaa makubwa kwa taifa – Serikali

Mwandishi Wetu, Tarime

SERIKALI imeipongeza kampuni ya African Barrick Gold (ABG) kwa kuleta
manufaa makubwa kwa taifa kutokana na uwekezaji unaoendelea kufanywa na migodi yake nchini katika nyanja mbalimbali ikiwemo uchumi wa nchi na maendeleo ya jamii.

Kampuni ya ABG inamiliki migodi minne ya dhahabu nchini Bulyanhulu, North Mara, Buzwagi na Tulawaka na ndiyo kampuni kubwa kuliko zote kwenye sekta ya madini.

“Nimejifunza mambo mengi sana baada ya kutembelea mgodi wa North Mara,” alisema Naibu Waziri wa Nishati na Madini, Stephen Masele, siku ya Ijumaa baada ya kufanya ziara ya mgodi huo wa ABG ulioko wilaya ya Tarime, mkoa wa Mara.

Katika ziara hiyo, Masele pamoja na Naibu Waziri wa Nchi kwenye Ofisi ya Makamu wa Rais (Mazingira), Charles Kitwanga, walitembelea miradi mikubwa ya jamii ambayo inatekelezwa na mgodi huo kwenye sekta mbalimbali ikiwemo elimu, maji na afya.

Masele alisema kuwa mgodi wa North Mara kihistoria umekuwa na matatizo ya mahusiano na jamii inayoizunguka, lakini hatua kubwa zimepigwa sasa kuboresha mahusiano na vijiji vinavyozunguka mgodi huo.

“Mimi binafsi Bungeni nimeskia pale wabunge wa huku wakilalamika kwamba kuna shule za msingi ziko jirani sana na mgodi. Kazi za mgodi zinapoendelea, ile milipuko inakuwa ikiwaathiri wanafunzi,” alisema.

“Lakini leo nimetembelea shule ambayo inatakiwa kujengwa ili kuhamisha ile ambayo inaathiriwa na shughuli za mgodi. Nimejionea kazi ambayo inaendelea pale. Wakandarasi wako saiti wanajenga hizo shule.”

Masele alisema kuwa kipindi cha nyuma kulikuwa na tatizo la wanafunzi kukaa chini katika shule zilizopo katika maeneo hayo ya mgodi, lakini mgodi wa North Mara sasa unatekeleza mradi kabambe wa kuzipatia shule hizo madawati.

“Nimejionea kwamba mgodi umeweza kutekeleza ahadi ya kuweka madawati katika shule zote ambazo zinazunguka mgodi na wanafunzi wamekaa kwenye madawati,” alisema.

Hivi karibuni, mgodi wa North Mara ulitoa msaada wa zaidi ya madawati 1,000 kwa shule za msingi za Wilaya ya Tarime ambazo zinazunguka mgodi huo.

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Govt applauds North Mara mine for sustainable mining

Tarime

THE government has praised the North Mara gold mine in Tarime district, Mara region, for its efforts in conserving the environment and ensuring it complies to sustainable mining practices. The Deputy Minister of State in the Vice-President’s Office (Environment), Charles Kitwanga, said North Mara mine, which is owned by African Barrick Gold (ABG), was doing a commendable job to ensure its mining operations do not harm the environment.

The minister said the government would continue to work with all mines in the country to reduce their environmental footprint.

“The state of environmental conservation at North Mara mine is good. They are making a lot of effort to conserve the environment,” Kitwanga told journalists after a tour of the mine recently.

“But we still need to work with some mines to ensure they comply to internationally-accepted standards, particularly the ISO 14001 standard.”

The visit to North Mara mine also involved the Deputy Minister for Energy and Minerals, Stephen Masele. The two ministers inaugurated water and health projects and visited the sites of new schools being built by the mine.

Kitwanga announced in the previous parliament session that he would visit large-scale mines to inspect their compliance to sustainable mining practices following complaints from some members of parliament. He said the mine was taking relevant measures to control the spread of
dust and reduce the level of noise from its mining operations.

The minister said he was particularly impressed by the North Mara mine’s community investments, which include a donation of more than 1,000 school desks, construction of new schools, rehabilitation of the Sungu Sungu hospital for more than 500 million shillings and the
drilling of water wells.

Scientific tests around North Mara mine have established that the mine was not responsible for any pollution to surrounding water bodies. North Mara mine’s gold extraction process uses cyanide, but no traces of the chemical were found in the environment.

However, researchers found some traces of mercury, which is used by artisanal and small-scale miners for gold processing.

“It is true that small-scale miners are partly to blame for environmental pollution. We need to help these small miners build capacity so that the mercury they use does not pollute rivers and
other water bodies in the environment.”

Kitwanga said his ministry would work closely with the Ministry of Energy and Minerals to address the problem of pollution caused by artisanal miners. The minister said he had personally witnessed some small-scale miners who had suffered from mercury pollution.

“I don’t think the goal of small-scale miners is to get money at any cost, even to their own lives,” he said.