{"id":3730,"date":"2025-03-17T08:42:54","date_gmt":"2025-03-17T08:42:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/?p=3730"},"modified":"2026-01-10T19:44:57","modified_gmt":"2026-01-10T19:44:57","slug":"3730-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/3730-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Liability for Environmental Pollution under Zambian Law"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"3730\" class=\"elementor elementor-3730\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6850b0c8 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"6850b0c8\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6176ac36 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"6176ac36\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.23.0 - 15-07-2024 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<!-- wp:image {\"id\":3731,\"sizeSlug\":\"full\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><\/figure>\n<!-- \/wp:image --><!-- wp:paragraph --><!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:separator --><hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/><!-- \/wp:separator --><!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Liability for Environmental Pollution under Zambian Law<\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p><strong>13 March 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Environmental pollution poses a significant threat to public health and natural resources. One of the principles of environmental and natural resources management and development under <strong>Article 255 (b) of the Constitution of Zambia<\/strong> is that the person responsible for polluting or degrading the environment must pay for the damage done.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>In Zambia, the <strong>Environmental Management Act No. 12 of 2011 (EMA)<\/strong> provides a framework for addressing pollution-related liabilities. This article outlines the <strong>obligations of offenders, the rights of affected persons, and the penalties imposed<\/strong> under Zambian law.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:separator --><hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/><!-- \/wp:separator --><!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Obligations of Offenders<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Under <strong>Section 105 of the EMA<\/strong>, the <strong>Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA)<\/strong> inspectors are empowered to issue an <strong>environmental restoration order<\/strong> where a contaminant or pollutant discharge poses a risk to human health, property, or the environment.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The restoration order may require the responsible party to:<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:list -->\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Prevent<\/strong> the continuation or cause of pollution.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Restore<\/strong> land by replacing soil, replanting trees, and preserving geological, archaeological, or historical features.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Cease<\/strong> any activity that contributes to environmental hazards.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Remove<\/strong> any waste or refuse and dispose of it properly.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Restore<\/strong> the environment to its prior state as much as possible.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><\/ul>\n<!-- \/wp:list --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>An environmental restoration order will specify a <strong>compliance timeframe<\/strong>. If no date is provided, compliance must be immediate. Failure to comply is an <strong>offence<\/strong> under <strong>Section 105(4) of the EMA<\/strong> and attracts a <strong>fine or imprisonment<\/strong> of up to <strong>three years<\/strong>. Additionally, continued non-compliance attracts further fines.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>If the offender is a <strong>ZEMA licensee<\/strong> and breaches their license conditions, the <strong>Director General<\/strong> may issue a <strong>compliance order<\/strong> requiring the licensee to take specific measures to prevent or mitigate environmental harm. Failure to adhere to the order may result in <strong>license variation or revocation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Furthermore, <strong>Section 110 of the EMA<\/strong> provides that <strong>any person may sue for damages<\/strong> arising from an act or omission that contravenes the EMA, even if they have not personally suffered harm. <strong>Compensation<\/strong> awarded by a court follows this priority order:<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:list {\"ordered\":true} -->\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Reimbursement<\/strong> of legal costs incurred by the plaintiff.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Compensation<\/strong> for the plaintiff and other affected parties.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Remaining funds<\/strong> divided equally between the <strong>Environmental Protection Fund<\/strong> and the plaintiff.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><\/ol>\n<!-- \/wp:list --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>An action can be commenced by <strong>affected persons<\/strong> or <strong>any person in the public interest<\/strong> for environmental protection and conservation.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:separator --><hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/><!-- \/wp:separator --><!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Penalties under Other Laws<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>ZEMA may also take necessary steps to <strong>remedy the breach<\/strong> and recover costs from the licensee.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:heading {\"level\":4} -->\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Rights of Compensation for Affected Persons<\/strong><\/h4>\n<!-- \/wp:heading --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The <strong>EMA grants affected individuals the right to seek legal redress<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:list {\"ordered\":true} -->\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Section 109(1) of the EMA<\/strong>: Any person may submit a <strong>written request<\/strong> to the <strong>Director General of ZEMA<\/strong> to investigate an alleged contravention of the EMA.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Section 36(1) of the Mines and Minerals Development Act No. 11 of 2015<\/strong>: The <strong>Director of Mines Safety<\/strong> or <strong>Director of Mines<\/strong> may <strong>suspend, curtail production, or close a mine<\/strong> where there is <strong>uncontrollable pollution<\/strong> from mining operations.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><\/ol>\n<!-- \/wp:list --><!-- wp:heading {\"level\":4} -->\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Water Resources Act<\/strong><\/h4>\n<!-- \/wp:heading --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Under <strong>Section 48(1) of the Water Resources Management Act<\/strong>, any person who <strong>discharges or disposes of organic or inorganic matter, effluent, or wastewater<\/strong> into a water resource, causing pollution, commits an <strong>offence<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p><strong>Punishment:<\/strong><\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:list -->\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li>Fine or <strong>imprisonment for up to one year<\/strong>, or both.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li>A convicted offender may also be <strong>ordered by the court<\/strong> to:<!-- wp:list -->\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li>Take <strong>remedial action<\/strong> as advised by the <strong>Water Resources Management Authority (WARMA)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Reimburse WARMA<\/strong> for remedial measures taken.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Pay compensation<\/strong> for any environmental damage caused.<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><\/ul>\n<!-- \/wp:list --><\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><\/ul>\n<!-- \/wp:list --><!-- wp:separator --><hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/><!-- \/wp:separator --><!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/h3>\n<!-- \/wp:heading --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Environmental protection is <strong>fundamental<\/strong> to <strong>sustainable development<\/strong>. Zambian law <strong>imposes strict obligations<\/strong> on individuals and entities to <strong>prevent and mitigate pollution<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Companies engaged in <strong>environmentally impactful<\/strong> activities must <strong>comply<\/strong> with <strong>licensing conditions<\/strong> \u548c <strong>legal requirements<\/strong>. <strong>Failure to comply<\/strong> can result in:<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:list -->\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Significant penalties<\/strong><\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Civil liability<\/strong><\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><!-- wp:list-item -->\n<li><strong>Closure of operations<\/strong>, depending on the severity of the violation<\/li>\n<!-- \/wp:list-item --><\/ul>\n<!-- \/wp:list --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Moreover, as <strong>Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) considerations<\/strong> become more central, companies <strong>risk losing their &#8220;social license&#8221; to operate<\/strong> if they fail to uphold responsible environmental practices.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:separator --><hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/><!-- \/wp:separator --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p><strong>MAY\u548c\u516c\u53f8<\/strong><br \/>MAY Building, Gallery Office Park, Stand Number 4015A, Lagos Road, Rhodespark, Lusaka, Zambia.<\/p>\n<p>\ud83d\udcde Tel: +260211250580<br \/>\ud83d\udce7 <a href=\"mailto:info@mayandco.co.zm\">info@mayandco.co.zm<\/a> | \ud83c\udf0d <a href=\"http:\/\/www.mayandco.law\/\">www.mayandco.law<\/a><\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- wp:separator --><hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/><!-- \/wp:separator --><!-- wp:file {\"id\":3732,\"href\":\"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/1741880539691.pdf\",\"displayPreview\":true} -->\n<div class=\"wp-block-file\"><a class=\"wp-block-file__button wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/1741880539691.pdf\" download=\"\" aria-describedby=\"wp-block-file--media-5a9c84d7-b33c-4aab-bcd0-12234fe88365\">Download<\/a><\/div>\n<!-- \/wp:file --><!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Liability for Environmental Pollution under Zambian Law 13 March 2025 Environmental pollution poses a significant threat to public health and natural resources. One of the principles of environmental and natural resources management and development under Article 255 (b) of the Constitution of Zambia is that the person responsible for polluting or degrading the environment must [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":56,"featured_media":4412,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"disabled","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3730","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3730","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/56"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3730"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3730\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4413,"href":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3730\/revisions\/4413"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4412"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3730"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3730"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mayandco.law\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3730"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}