News in brief:
– Unregulated sand mining in Kano erodes farmlands, threatens food security, and disrupts communities.
– Local authorities are drafting regulations to address environmental and social impacts and restore degraded land.
Sand mining continues to be a critical issue in Kano State, Nigeria, as its booming construction industry clashes with the survival of rural communities. Towns like Madobi, Kura, and Dawakin Kudu bear the brunt of these activities, with farmland erosion, environmental degradation, and disrupted livelihoods becoming the norm. Over half of Kano’s 96 licensed sand mining sites are concentrated in these areas, leaving vast pits and severely damaging arable lands.
Kano, once renowned for its agricultural productivity, is losing fertile farmland at an alarming rate. Farmers, like Sani Idris Dankunkuru, report challenges accessing fields due to erosion caused by mining. This threatens food security and plunges many communities into poverty. Abdullahi Ali Mai Biredi of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria laments that mining has devastated farmlands in all 44 Local Government Areas.
Environmental and social costs of sand mining
Unregulated sand mining has left villages with dangerous pits, collapsing roads, and even desecrated cemeteries. The environmental destruction has fostered crime, with mining sites becoming hideouts for thieves and thugs. Residents like Mukhtar, a vendor, worry about accidents and pollution caused by abandoned pits.
While mining operators argue that they adhere to regulations, local authorities, including NESREA and the Kano State Watersheds Erosion and Climate Change Management Agency (KN-WECCMA), are working to tighten controls. Muhammad Khalil of KN-WECCMA is drafting a bill to penalise unregulated mining and mandate land restoration, aiming to mitigate long-term impacts like food scarcity and inflation.
Residents like Hajiya Mama Zahrau hope new regulations will restore peace and productivity to Kano’s rural areas. However, for many, the scars of sand mining remain a haunting reminder of what has been lost.
