BLOG POST: Sand Extraction Wreaking Havoc along the Manyame River

Cities around the world are growing. Consequently there is an ever-growing need for housing construction. Sand is a major construction resource, the source of which is embroiled with conflict, and often left damaged beyond repair. While bringing shelter, dignity and security to people, sand extraction is wreaking havoc.

Manyame catchment is one of Zimbabwe’s key river basins (ZINWA 2020) . With its source in Marondera town, east of the country, Manyame River meanders past Chitungwiza, a dormitory town of Harare, after which it is dammed at Prince Edward Dam and Lake Chivero for the city’s water supply. From here, the river drains into the mighty Zambezi River. Journeying to the Zambezi has, for Manyame River, become increasingly difficult owing to impacts on its quality and quantity. For instance, poorly treated effluent from a growing Chitungwiza population is discharged into the river, finds its way to Lake Chivero, making it difficult for the City of Harare to meet the city’s water demand (Masere et al. 2012) . In 2019, the Herald reported that Chitungwiza was, as a result, only getting about 25 megalitres of water per week compared to a daily demand of 70 megalitres. Water scarcity in the dormitory town has, in turn, provided a business opportunity for unemployed youths drawing water with pushcarts for sale to residents (Chidhakwa 2019).

A lesser-documented challenge for the Manyame River is sand abstraction along its banks. As the river skirts the edges of Chitungwiza, there is a thriving illegal sand mining business in response to increasing housing construction in most parts of Harare. While the surging demand for housing is often understood in the context of growing urban population (Sithole and Goredema 2013; Beiser 2017; Average 2019) , I believe it is also resulting from a growing impetus among urbanites to own rather than rent property. There is housing construction in almost every part of Harare, and residential stands are selling like hotcakes. Aspindale Park is one recent housing development with 1200 privately purchased residential stands of 200m 2 each, sold out within a short space of time. On average, a single story house built on 200m 2 requires about 25 m 3 and 30 m 3 of river and pit sand for concrete respectively. This project alone will consume about 30 000 m 3 and 36 000 m 3 of river and pit sand respectively. There are several developments on larger land and with options for building bigger houses that will require more sand, all of which will be mined from areas like the Manyame riparian zone.

I spent 10 days examining sand abstraction along the Manyame River, and observed that there are currently four active mining areas along its banks. Each site is ‘owned’ by 3 to 4 groups comprising of not less than 3 men per group. Team members are predominantly unemployed youths who have found a business opportunity from the booming housing construction industry. In a single day, each of these syndicates can mine up to 20 m 3 of river sand per day, earning them between US$ 60 and 80 per truckload. Thus, an estimated 320 m 3 of sand is mined in a single day, from all four areas. Their buyers are mainly brick making companies and small-scale entrepreneurs who buy and resale sand to individuals and companies. Sometimes, individual people and companies purchase sand directly from the source.

Sand is mined manually. With picks and shovels, pits can get as deep as 5 meters. When the pits become harder to dig, they are abandoned not only leaving an environmental eyesore, but also a health and safety hazard. The situation has landed to what we see in the attached image because sand mining is, in itself, a lawless activity. In fact, the Environmental Management Agency (EMA), the state authority responsible for law enforcement, is afraid of going to these areas. The sand miners confirmed it: “EMA cannot come here in the absence of armed police officers, because they know we will chase them with picks.” Corruption is also common. Police officers are paid in exchange for freedom or mining without harassment. What further complicates law enforcement is that the area is embroiled in a contentious land dispute. Sand miners explained that the land was once a white commercial farm taken over by war veterans who converted it for residential stands. Part of the farm was bought for a burial site business. Landowners are fighting with sand miners in a bid to stop them from mining. In defence, the miners have turned violent, claiming that their Zanu Pf party chairman allocated the area to them so that they can earn a living. They vow that they will not accept to be stopped by anyone.

The image of Manyame River as the plane takes off from Harare International Airport summarises its plight. It is an image of large open pits that have replaced the riparian ecosystem. From this image, it is evident that the physical and biological environments, and the natural processes of the River as it passes through Chitungwiza have been severely altered to provide jobs and shelter for humans. In a context enmeshed with land contestations, violence and conflict, bringing shelter and dignity to Hararians is wreaking social and environmental havoc.

Average, C. 2019. Low income housing problems and low-income housing solutions: opportunities and challenges in Bulawayo. Journal of Housing and the Built Environment 34 (3):927-938.
Beiser, V. 2017. He who controls the sand: The mining ‘mafia killing each other to build cities. https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2017/feb/28/sand-mafias-killing-each-other-build-cities. Accessed on September 1, 2020.
Chidhakwa, B. 2019. Health disaster looms in Chitungwiza. https://www.herald.co.zw/health-disaster-looms-in-chitungwiza/. Accessed on September 13, 2020.
Masere, T. P., A. Munodawafa and T. Chitata. 2012. Assessment of human impact on water quality along Manyame River. International Journal of development and sustainability 1 (3):754-765.
Sithole, A. and B. Goredema. 2013. Building in wetlands to meet the housing demand and urban growth in Harare. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science 3 (8).
ZINWA ( Zimbabwe National Water Authority). 2020. Manyame catchment. http://www.zinwa.co.zw/catchments/location/. Accessed on September 3, 2020.