East Region: When abandoned mining sites wreak havoc on Batouri population.

Excavators at a mining site in Kambele

Batouri, chief town of the Kadey Division, in the East Region of the country, is found about 400km from the nation’s capital city, Yaounde, and one of the closest towns to the neighbouring Central African Republic.   

The geographical location of the town, places it within the Central African Fold Belt, CAFB, rich in minerals, especially gold. 



Known for its rich mineral deposits, Batouri, like other communities in the East Region, has a history of artisanal and small-scale mining activities. 

This has caused an influx of people, from within and without the country, in search of precious minerals. The mining companies, especially those owned by foreign nationals, are actively involved in the exploitation.  

In search of daily bread, many people have resorted to small-scale artisanal mining, which they see as a quick way to acquire money, leaving a few engaged in agriculture, and livestock breeding, amongst others.

Meanwhile, as mining operations unfold, numerous pits are left abandoned without being properly closed or rehabilitated. These pits, some as deep as 100 metres and spanning wide areas, now dot the landscape like open wounds.

Our investigation on the impacts of the abandoned mining pits led this reporter to Kambele, Mboscorro and Bote villages in Batouri. These communities are noticeably grappling with the silent but deadly menace of abandoned mining pits. 

According to residents of Kambele, the uncovered mining pits pose serious threats to their community with a series of tragic incidents recorded. 

“When a person passes where the ground is soft, the ground can slide and cover the person. If the person is not lucky and the pit beside is too deep, the person will be gone forever,” Poupoum Landry, a Kambele inhabitant, said. 

He then went on to explain that during the rainy season, traversing around mining sites poses bigger risk to the population. 

These remnants of past mining activities left neglected and unprotected, have become a significant hazard to the local population, posing risks to both lives and livelihoods.

“Now there are many cases of aggression and theft because the youths have been restricted from doing artisanal mining by the big companies. We can’t get to certain areas except when it’s rainy and the uniformed men on guard are forced off duty. That is even more risky with the ground becoming soft,” the inhabitant explained their ordeals. 

 

A mining site in Batouri partially covered 

 

 

 

Deathtrap

The mining landscape not only poses as an eyesore, it is also a serious death trap to surrounding population.

Inhabitants of Batouri and its environs have reported several cases of tragic incidents including children and livestock loss due to accidental falls into these unprotected excavations. 

Moreover, injuries sustained from such falls often prove fatal, as rescue operations are hindered by the pits’ depth and the rugged nature of the terrain.

“We have seen several cases like this in the past. The last accident here involved a boy of about 18 years who was covered by ground at the beginning of June,” Mpelo Mermoz, an inhabitant of the Mboscorro neighbourhood, told The Guardian Post

The teenager, he said, had gone in search of gold, despite precipitating weather. “As he moved to the place he wanted to dig, the ground above him, which was already soft, fell over him,” the local added.   

Beyond the immediate physical dangers, these pits also pose environmental and health risks to the population. The uncovered pits collect stagnant water, becoming breeding grounds for mosquitoes and potential sources of waterborne diseases. 

The contamination of groundwater due to the leaching of chemicals from abandoned mining sites further exacerbates health concerns among nearby communities.

The high usage of mercury further worsens the environmental impact by polluting the soil and water bodies and the health of miners.

According to a report by World Health Organisation, WHO, exposure to even small amounts of mercury can cause behavioural and neurological disorders. Kidney failure has also been linked to sustained exposure to elevated mercury levels.

Despite the global health body’s appeal for miners to switch to alternative chemicals and processes to amalgamate gold, its use remains widespread across the East Region and beyond.