#nchangamine

the youngest copperbelt city: chingola was founded in 1943 — later than kitwe, ndola, and mufulira, which were established mining cities by the 1930s. founded specifically to service the nchanga copper mine. declared a municipality in 1957. known as one of the cleanest towns in zambia.

the nchanga mine: the largest copper mine in africa, owned by konkola copper mines (vedanta resources and ZCCM investments holdings). the nchanga open pit workings lie in a crescent-shaped arc 11km long around the west and north of chingola, covering nearly 30km². the deepest part of the pit is 400 metres lower than the surrounding plateau — the second largest open-cast mine in the world. the underground mine accounts for approximately 45% of total copper production. the site has its own smelting plant, refinery, and a 300-foot-high pile of tailings.

the kafue and the vedanta pollution case: in 2006, the kafue river — flowing past chingola approximately 10km to the north — was contaminated by sulphuric acid from the nchanga mine. in 2011, the lusaka high court required approximately £1.3 million in damages. in 2015, communities alleged the mine had again polluted the mushishima stream and kafue river. the UK court case brought by 2,500 zambian villagers against vedanta resources was eventually settled in january 2021 — establishing an important precedent for international corporate liability for environmental harm in the extractive industries.

the DRC border and the cross-border economy: the T3 road runs north from chingola through chililabombwe and konkola to lubumbashi in the DRC's haut-katanga province. the T5 road runs westward through solwezi and mwinilunga to the angola border. these two roads make chingola the most important road junction in zambia's northwestern mining economy.

the lamba people: before the mine and the colonial administration, the lamba people occupied the territory around what is now chingola. the copperbelt's pre-colonial name — ilamba or lambaland — derives from the lamba. their land was taken for mine development, their communities relocated. the nchanga mine's development in 1943 completed the transformation of lambaland from a pastoral lamba territory into an industrial mining zone.

the zambian cities series continues. 🇿🇲🏙