The ManicaPost
Lovemore Kadzura Rusape Correspondent
MAKONI Rural District Council has upped the tempo in the fight against environmental degradation, destruction and damage by descending hard on all environmental offenders, especially wood poachers and veld fire starters.
The district, which is one the top producer of tobacco in the country, has for the past decade experiencing a massive deforestation of indigenous trees by tobacco farmers.
Big tobacco contracting companies have also been accused of being complicit in deforestation of indigenous forests as they do not supply farmers with alternate source of energy such as coal and exotic trees.
Makoni RDC has resolved to meet all tobacco contracting companies in the district with a view lay the rules for them and impose a ban on the use of indigenous tree to cure tobacco.
The council recently engaged the services of environmental monitors in its all 39 wards to curb rampant environmental damage.
Besides deforestation, the district is also saddled with other environmental issues such as the illegal extraction of natural resources such as sand, quarry and brick molding.
In an interview on the sidelines of a training workshop for the 39 environmental monitors Makoni RDC chief executive officer Mr Edward Pise said they can no longer fold their hands while the environment was being violated.
He said they were going to be very strict and vigorous in the implementation of the law.
“The issue of environmental degradation has surely gone out of hand and as the responsible authority we cannot just watch as if things are normal. The rate at which the indigenous trees are being cut down for commercial purposes is not pleasing at all and it is mainly caused by tobacco farmers.
“Farmers are brazenly cutting down indigenous trees to cure tobacco. If this is not curbed soon in not so distance future we may not have indigenous trees to talk about. Very few farmers are using coal and exotic trees to cure their crop as the majority resort to indigenous trees.
“Some big tobacco contracting companies are also to blame because they make every input available to their farmers except environmental friendly energy to cure the crop. We are engaging all the tobacco contractors in the district so that they help us curb the destruction of trees. We are not going to be tolerant or lenient on them.
“We will be working with other organs such as the Forestry Commission, Environmental Management Agency, ZRP, Agritex and Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board in addressing these environmental challenges.
“The environmental monitors we have trained will be council’s watchdogs at ward level recording and apprehending those found flouting the laws. We have numerous cases of illegal commercial sand and quarry extraction and brick molding around business centers and township, and they are all going to be stopped immediately.
“The monitors are also going to apprehend those found starting veld fires, farmers with undestroyed tobacco and cotton stalks.
“They will also monitor and report of any illegal mining activities in their respective wards,” said Mr Pise.
