Lake Agro Industries ignores yet another government Stop Order!!
Satellite imagery clearly shows that Lake Agro Industries illegally cleared more than 80 hectares of additional protected
forest within the Kafinda Game Management Area (GMA) last month, despite the Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) under the Ministry of Tourism and Arts ordering them to stop all clearance in July.
For more than two years Kasanka Trust has been working closely with DNPW to try and fight this illegal development that threatens the internationally important biodiversity of Kasanka National Park. Other government ministries, department and regulatory authorities contacted regarding this matter include Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Lands, Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA), Zambia Water Resources Management Authority (WARMA), Central Province Administration, Office of the President, Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU), Office of the Public Protector Zambia, Chitambo Local Council, District Commissioner’s Office Chitambo.
Everything culminated in a petition to the President of Zambia, signed by 5,898 people who want to stop this illegal activity. Yet the Tanzanian firm continues to blatantly ignore all orders and show a total disrespect for Zambia and all she represents – her laws, her natural heritage and her people!
Despite submitting an embarrassingly inadequate Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report earlier this year, no decision has been made and the company holds no land title, no permits and no permissions for their activities whatsoever. Instead, they continue to destroy protected habitat and seriously threaten important ecosystems that are critical to the survival of both wildlife and local communities. To learn more about the issues, read our previous press release here: https://kasanka.com/news/proposed-world-heritage-site-under-threat/
In case there was any doubt, it has become explicitly clear that this company cannot be trusted. If we are going to have any chance to #SaveKasanka, they must be moved out of the GMA immediately!
Timeline of key events
July 2019 | A subsidiary of the Tanzanian Lake Group illegally occupies land in the Kafinda GMA and clears 160 hectares of pristine forest in order to set up two centre pivots cycles for agricultural irrigation. |
August 2019 | Department of Forestry issues the first Stop Order instructing that no further clearance takes place. |
October 2019 | Lake Agro Industries continues clearing, creating a total of seven pivot circles, representing over 560 hectares of illegal deforestation. |
November 2019 | Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism and Arts (PS MOTA) issues a second Stop Order after field verification. |
December 2019 to February 2020 | Once again, the Stop Order is ignored and Lake Agro Industries proceeds to plant soya beans and maize into the cleared ground. |
March 2020 | A third Stop Order is issued by the Director of DNPW. This time, DNPW follows through and closes the farm. Urgent meetings are held between Lake Agro Industries and DNPW, and permission is granted for the farm to re-open in order to harvest crops only – but no further activity is permitted. |
April 2020 to November 2020 | Lake Agro Industries continues to farm the seven established pivot circles. |
December 2020 | PS MOTA, and the French Ambassador to Zambia fly over the farm to confirm the development. PS MOTA demands that Lake Agro Industries submit documentation and follow legal procedures. |
April 2021 | Director DNPW visits the farm and instructs the developer to stop all activity. |
May 2021 | Lake Agro Industries submits an Environmental and Social Impact Statement (ESIS) to Zambian Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA) requesting permission for a commercial agriculture development over a 7,000 hectare footprint (3,000 hectare of arable land plus associated infrastructure). Lake Agro Industries begins clearing a new area of land for cattle farming (apparent from analysis of aerial imagery). |
June 2021 | Kasanka Trust submits a 21 page summary outlining how the (ESIS) fails to meet even the most basic principles of EIA and must be refused permission. The statement is supported by over 40 organisations from Zambia and beyond, representing the tourism industry, community groups, conservation NGOs, filmmakers and researchers. At least 500 separate representations are also made to ZEMA by organisations and members of the public objecting to the scheme. |
July 2021 | Kasanka Trust works with WWF Zambia to deliver a letter to the former president, urging him to Save Kasanka.
DNPW issues a fourth Stop Order, allowing Lake Agro Industries to farm the cleared 560 hectares (but advising that the relevant water abstraction permits can only be granted by WARMA), and prohibiting any further clearance. |
4th August 2021 | DNPW visits the farm and reminds the Lake Agro Industries manager that no further clearance is permitted. |
7th August 2021 | Lake Agro Industries begins clearing a new area of land for arable crops and continues clearing the cattle farming area (apparent from analysis of aerial imagery). |
28th August 2021 | Kasanka Trust prepares a petition for delivery to the new president, having obtained 5,898 signatures from all over the world. |
9th September 2021 | Aerial imagery shows that since May 2021 over 100 hectares of additional land has been cleared for cattle, plus almost 80 hectares to install an eighth pivot circle since August 2021! |
World Land Trust (WLT) is an international conservation charity that protects the world’s most biologically significant and threatened habitats acre by acre.
