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How is Zambia dealing with lead contamination?

For over 30 years, the town of Kabwe has struggled with toxic lead from a former mine, leaving many children in affected areas with dangerously high lead levels.

鈥淚t has made nearly every person, every mother, to have their child contaminated, because the lead levels are so rampant,鈥 says Cornelius Katiti, a father from Kabwe, Zambia, whose three children are affected by lead poisoning.

For decades, the town has struggled with remediating 6.4 million tonnes of toxic lead waste left behind by a former mine. A Human Rights Watch report shows 95% of children in affected areas of Kabwe have dangerously high lead levels. Cornelius, along with many others in the community, is left asking: who is responsible for the clean-up?

In today's episode, Alan Kasujja explores the ongoing environmental and health impacts of mining with Cornelius, an environmental chemist , and an environmental consultant.

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21 minutes

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