Environmental Management Agency {EMA} has urged the Chitungwiza Town Council to urgently relocate and demolish all houses built on wetlands insisting that there should not be construction or building of houses in any wetlands.
EMA in conjunction with the Zimbabwe Union Of Journalist {ZUJ} toured the Chitungwiza suburb today with a mandate meant to ensure that the town council is providing efficient service delivery to the residents.
The tour was mainly focused on houses built on wetlands in Zengeza 4 {Pagomba}, monitoring discharge of sewer into the environment and illegal extraction of sites.
Speaking on the tour, EMA Harare Provincial Environment Manager Mr Robson Mavhondo said wetlands are supposed to be protected at any cost hence structures are not supposed to be constructed in those areas.
“In terms of the EMA act, wetlands are ecological sensitive areas and as such there should be no construction or building of houses in any wetland as you can see there is a small stream here cutting across the houses and interms of the law there should be no activity 30metres from the stream.
“All these people are supposed to be relocated of which if you look at the investment it means they have provided a lot of money some are finished others are to be finished so it was wetland invasion they invaded with utilization from EMA, in other ways they are illegal settlers,” he said.
Efforts to hear from the council side on these wetlands were fruitless as the councilor was in a meeting.
Meanwhile EMA Senior Environment, Education and Publicity Officer Mrs Batsirai Sibanda added that they have put in place a map which they will use in able to access areas who have wetlands.
“As EMA there is now a National Wetlands map, it’s yet to be gazetted but now it’s in place you can access through our website and also we have the wetland policy that is still waiting to be gazetted but its now in place. Those are are two things we did not have previously so now that we have the wetlands map, local authorities are now able to plan using National Wetlands map and policy.”
Nevertheless EMA also gave a stern warning on individuals who are doing illegal sand poaching in Chitungwiza insisting that it is causing land degradation which they say is an “extensive” damage to the environment.
