Many communities in Ebonyi state, south-east Nigeria, are located on rocky plateaus which make them a toast for quarry companies. Sadly, while these companies make a fortune from their commercial activities, some of them care less about the welfare of their host communities. In this report,tells the story of a community where residents have accused a quarry company of destroying their homes and threatening their health with its blasting operation.
Ukwuagba-Ngbo, like other communities in Ebonyi state, is located on rocky plateaus, rich in geologic features and solid minerals, making it a toast for mining companies like Master Rock which has been blasting rocks since 2009 to source granite and chippings for roads and building constructions. Back in 2009, before the company began operation, Elijah Ugadu, an elder in Aguachi, said the company reached an agreement with the Aguachi Development Union Ngbo, part of which was that they would provide money for the repair of structural cracks and construct new buildings for those affected by their activities.According to him, the company also agreed that it would provide water and healthcare for the community.
In 2022, Omi, whose house was destroyed, said she did not receive the payment. The company’s representative said she was absent when the money was shared. Whenever she asked, she was told that the money was gone. A study that investigated how the ecosystem and residents were possibly affected by nearby quarry activity found that the frequency of certain symptoms such as cough, sneezing, asthma, and illnesses increased after quarry activities in the area began.
Sadly, residents said nothing has changed and that Master Rock has continued to operate with disregard for the agreement reached with the host communities and laws that regulate blasting operations. “Nothing has ever come out of it,” he said. “But we cannot leave our land for them. Sometimes, it feels like the ground will sink in because of the vibration.”
But it also depends on the age and type of the structure. In Aguachi and Okpochiri, there are predominantly mud houses, and research has shown that mud walls may crack and deteriorate due to exposure to the sun during hot and dry weather circumstances, improper selection of mud material and faulty foundations.
Part V of the National Environmental Regulations provides that a person shall not locate a quarry or engage in blasting within three kilometres of any existing residential, commercial or industrial area. However, this investigation showed that the company has been blasting rocks less than a kilometre from residential areas.
It is estimated that there are 72 of such abandoned pits in the state, with approximately 200 people said to have been buried alive during the mine blasting operations in the past decade. In Amoffia, another community in Ngbo, there are at least three abandoned pits across different locations. “Sadly, whenever the money comes in, it is shared between the commissioner, community leaders and other big men, while nothing gets to community members who bear the brunt of the mining activities.
He however recommended that efforts must be made to make mining and extraction practices more sustainable and environmentally friendly, adding that technologies and practices such as renewable energy adoption, energy-efficient processes, and reclamation efforts must be implemented to minimize the environmental impact of mining activities.This reporter visited Nwandu at his office in Enugu where he brought out documents showing payments made to different individuals as compensation for damages.
Nwandu confirmed that the company had an agreement to execute some development projects, including those it inherited from the former owners across the three villages. He said that while some have been executed, a lot more remain unexecuted due to a lack of cooperation from the people and financial challenges facing the company.
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