Judith Phiri Zimpapers Business Hub
THE Hwange Local Board (HLB) has established Environmental Sub-Committees (ESCs) at ward level in a bid to strengthen community-based efforts to curb environmental vices within its area of jurisdiction.
HLB Acting Director of Spatial Planning and Land Management, Mr Themba Sibanda, said the move is aimed at promoting environmental stewardship, improving waste management practices and enhancing public participation in keeping residential areas clean and safe.
“These committees will play a pivotal role in identifying and addressing environmental hazards and degradation. In the past, the area grappled with challenges such as clay soil poaching, which left open pits and caused significant environmental damage through uncontrolled brick-moulding activities. Council has also been confronted with persistent problems of illegal dumping at undesignated sites,” he said.
Clay poaching activities have left some areas earmarked for residential stands in the Don Bosco area nearly unsuitable for any infrastructural development in the foreseeable future.
The Environmental Management Agency (EMA) actively promotes and strengthens Environmental Sub-Committees at ward level in Zimbabwe to enable communities to sustainably manage their local natural resources and enforce environmental laws.
A member of the Environmental Sub-Committee, Mrs Namatayi Munjeri, said there was a need for council to make the committees more visible to residents in order to promote active and effective community participation in curbing environmental vices.
Her sentiments were echoed by another member, Ms Sinikiwe Vera, who emphasised the need for both council and the Environmental Management Agency to support the committees, noting that they will be responsible for enforcing the respective by-laws and regulations of the two institutions.
“The primary objective of establishing these grassroots structures is to actively involve local communities in environmental stewardship. There is a need for continuous sensitisation and awareness-raising on environmental issues, particularly in light of the growing number of roadside vendors operating within residential areas, a trend that has contributed to increased littering,” she said.
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