Mazowe River bridge is reported to be on the verge of collapsing if illegal mining continues along the river. ZBC News reports that illegal miners are diverting the flow of water for their activities since the river is drying up. This is believed to be affecting the bridge.
In addition to the danger the illegal miners are exposing the bridge to, their activities are also said to have adversely affected farmers who have plots downstream. This was revealed by the Minister of State for Mashonaland Central Province, Senator Monica Mavhunga who toured the bridge and the Bindura water treatment plant to assess the damage. The minister said:
What we have seen shows that there is no more water in the river. There are illegal miners who have dug holes, thus diverting the course of the river. The river is now drying up such that wheat farmers can no longer irrigate and their crops are in distress, so as the provincial leadership, we are here to see and put our heads together on what needs to be done to protect our infrastructure. Our committee led by the Provincial Administrator will travel along the river and then we sit down and strategize on the way forward.
The ZBC News further reports that a huge part of Mazowe River is subjected to illegal mining activities. It also reports that some miners are setting up alluvial mining operations near the Bindura water treatment plant.
More: ZBC News Online