Following the continuous clampdown on illegal mining activities, Enugu State government has reiterated its unwavering commitment towards supporting genuine investment activities through the provision of enablers for ease of doing business, such as adequate security infrastructure, attractive tax  regime and road projects.

Consequently, the government resolved to establish the Environmental Remediation Trust Fund, ERTF, and the State Security Trust Fund, SSTF, where miners legally approved with genuine licenses would contribute an agreed sum of money into the fund for remediation projects.

The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Dr. Kingsley Udeh, who disclosed this after the state executive council meeting weekend, said this will help to safeguard the environment, ensure that health hazards resulting from the mining activities were mitigated and also enable adequate security of lives and property.

The commissioner, who chided illegal miners for destroying the environment and contaminating people’s sources of living, said the state would stop at nothing to ensure all illegal mining sites were shut down and culprits brought to book for their crimes, as their activities contravened the provisions of the state laws.

He further accused them of environmental, economic and security sabotage against the people of the state, adding that those with the desire to invest in mining activities should approach both the federal and the state governments for proper licensing, certification and compliance processes.

“The illegal mining activities are causing huge environmental damage. A lot of our people are exposed to risks associated with water pollution and some of the channels of water now contain carcinogenic elements that are cancerous and exposing our people to ill-health,” he said.

According to him, the state decided to come up with measures, such as the establishment of the ERTF, the SSTF and other collaborative initiatives after receiving the reports of independent assessment on the activities of legal miners, which posed severe threats to the environment and health of the citizens, to cushion the effects of the challenges and to also call the legal or genuine miners to their corporate social responsibilities.