Carrying her sore-pocked daughter across her dying sugarcane field, Helene Mvubu said she fell victim to toxic waste.
Lubumbashi, the DRC’s mining capital, has become a battleground for global powers racing to extract cobalt for batteries and weapons.
Human rights groups warn that aggressive mining operations are wreaking severe environmental damage across Katanga, the mineral-rich southeastern province.
Mvubu told AFP her land floods with contaminated water from Congo Dongfang International Mining, a Chinese company processing copper and cobalt ore.
“The food we prepare becomes bitter, our water sources are polluted,” she said, pointing to yellowed, diseased crops in her field.
Her plot lies directly beneath CDM’s runoff, enclosed by a guarded concrete wall on a mountain overlooking local neighbourhoods.
When it rains, red water gushes from four drainage points, spilling pollutants into nearby communities, residents told AFP.
Thousands of cubic metres poured in November over two days, even without rainfall, prompting outrage and government action to suspend CDM operations.
Authorities appointed an investigative commission, a rare move in a country where mining firms often operate with impunity and local complicity.
Residents accused CDM of using rain periods to discharge wastewater, while the company claimed an accidental retention-basin rupture caused the November spill.
Market vendor Martiny displayed damaged hands and feet, blaming acidic water exposure, and said the flood ruined her dried fish supply.
To calm residents, CDM distributed masks and bottled water, and repaired a road, but locals called the gestures mere showmanship.
A CDM representative denied prior negligence, insisting materials were processed onsite and no pollution occurred before November’s incident.
Investigators noted the company obtained permits atop a hill naturally draining to neighbourhoods below, creating ongoing environmental risks.
Mining minister Louis Watum Kabamba acknowledged shared responsibility, admitting both the firm and administration failed to uphold safety and environmental standards.
