Friday, 30 July 2021, 6:43 pm
GENEVA (29 July 2021) – Zambia must immediately provide
medical treatment to thousands of children suffering from
lead poisoning, and must take swift steps to clean up areas
contaminated by residue from what was once the country’s
largest lead mine, UN experts said today.
“More than
25 years after the Kabwe mine and smelter closed, it is
scandalous that some 300,000 people still have to live on
toxic soil,” the experts said. “Schools, playgrounds,
homes and back yards all have high lead levels, so residents
are being poisoned on a huge scale, and children are the
most vulnerable.”
Kabwe, the capital of Zambia s