• Agency considered a total of 805 projects under Environmental Impact Assessment component for 2022
• Out of 805 projects considered in the period under review, 431, with a total investment value of over Ninety-Six Billion were reviewed.
• This was compared to the year 2021 which had 605 EIA projects considered.
Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA) has revealed that the Agency considered a total of 805 projects under Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) component for 2022 with the total investment value of over Ninety-Seven Billion Kwacha.
ZEMA Board Chairperson Professor Lovejoy Mulambo explained that of the total 805 projects considered in the period under review, 431, with a total investment value of over Ninety-Six Billion were reviewed by the new ZEMA Board.
Professor Mulambo said this was compared to the year 2021 which had 605 EIA projects considered further stating that which represented an increment of a 33-percentage of EIA projects in 2022.
He stated that in view of Government’s intention to increase copper production to three million metric tons by 2030, the Agency expected a corresponding increase in the number of projects to be considered in coming years.
“In terms of environmental licensing, the Agency issued a total of 1,132 licenses to 993 facilities for the year 2022. There has also been a steady increase in the number of licences issued by the Agency in the period 2016 to 2022,” he said.
“Other notable strides in 2022 included a successful review of the EMA and the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations, Statutory Instrument Number 28 of 1997; development of the Strategic Plan for 2022-2026; integration of ZEMA services with the Government Service Bus (GSB); and enhanced compliance monitoring and enforcement of the EMA buoyed by Government and stakeholder support for environmental sustainability, “he added.
Professor Mulambo emphasized that all projects are approved with Conditions, which the agency strictly enforces.
“As we continue with enhanced compliance monitoring, we wish to emphasize that all projects are approved with Conditions, which we strictly enforce. It is for this reason that we continue to appeal to the public to be vigilant and take interest in the conditions given to developers and report to the Agency any deviations they may observe,” he said.
