Zimpapers Logo

LUSAKA. — Zambia-based Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), a unit of London-listed Vedanta Resources, has agreed to settle claims by Zambian villagers suing the mining conglomerate over pollution, the holding company and lawyers said on Tuesday.

The villagers filed a claim in London in 2015 against KCM, one of Africa’s largest copper producers, and Vedanta – alleging that effluent from its Nchanga Copper Mine was responsible for polluting water sources and land.

The claimants, which included 643 children, said the toxic discharge affected the health of people living in nearby villages, as well as farming and fishing activities — their primary source of income. Britain’s Supreme Court in 2019 granted the villagers permission to sue KCM and Vedanta in London after the companies challenged the jurisdiction of English courts to hear their complaint.

In a joint statement, Vedanta and the villagers’ legal representative Leigh Day said the claims had been settled “without admission of liability”. — Africanews.