We ignore environmental issues at our own peril

are Chinese we are talking about . . . they can build anything, anywhere on earth . . .,” Mr Kaseke retorted while responding to a question on why the ZTA had granted a licence to a Chinese firm to construct a five-star hotel on wetlands next to the National Sports Stadium in Harare.
The question was, in fact, seeking answers on why the ZTA had allowed infrastructure development in a protected conservation area, which plans had also been condemned by the Environmental Management Agency.
I was concerned with what I heard. Coming from a public leader, I had to be. Those concerned with proper environmental governance will be concerned.
Clearly, such reckless statements exhibit a poor understanding and appreciation of the importance of wetlands to the environment, and human beings.
Now if public leaders fail to understand the importance of the environment, how can they be trusted to lead our children, and the youth in preserving and managing the same?
Wetlands are important in times of drought, providing food production cover, just as well-managed ecosystems are crucial in creating climate change-resilient communities. Environment Minister Francis Nhema has persistently laboured for the protection of wetlands across Zimbabwe, which are now being destroyed by the ZTA, as they are key components for a healthy ecosystem.
The wetlands story is just one example of the utmost lack of respect for the environment in Zimbabwe.
Recently the Harare and Chitungwiza municipalities were fined US$14 000 each for water pollution. Of course, the fines are a pittance compared to the cost of managing environmental degradation, and other downstream effects caused by the discharge of raw sewage and other pollutants into surrounding river systems. We have a situation where Harare and Chitungwiza involuntarily combine forces to discharge sewage into Manyame and Mukuvisi rivers, which both feed into Lake Chivero, Harare’s main water source. People now drink tap water, treated by the two municipalities, at their own risk.
The water is visibly dirty and unsafe. We are not surprised at all that Harare has been plagued by cholera, typhoid, and lately shigala, all deadly water-borne diseases.
Lives have been lost, as a result. Moreover, the cost of treatment and containing the spread of diseases is too high for a struggling city council and its overpaid executives.
It is not just the ordinary human being that has been at the receiving end of polluted waterways. Marine life has suffered too. Dead fish frequently washed up at the shores of Lake Chivero while other fish species are at risk of disappearing.
Is this the future we want as a country, where there is no future at all? Instead of promoting the destruction of ecosystems, the ZTA must encourage green hospitality, a concept encompassing sustainable development in the hospitality and tourism industries.
Such strategies will ensure that development in this sector is carried out in a manner that minimises damage to the environment.
From structural design, say in the instance of a hotel, the entire product must be able satisfy environmental considerations.
The concept of green hospitality would require a thorough discussion of its own another day, but to limit the impact of climate change on the poor and their communities, every economic and political agent must play their role, big or small. It is vitally important that large-scale polluters like the Harare and Chitungwiza city councils are kept in close check, and any action injurious to the environment punished by deterrent fines.
People also need to be encouraged to look after their environment in a responsible manner, knowing that failure to do so will result in nature also failing to look after them.
The widespread effects of climate change such as extreme weather conditions and increased frequency of droughts are sufficient signposts showing that nature is capable of getting angry, very angry with devastating results if treated badly. In these times of difficulty, Zimbabwe requires its public leaders to be highly alert to environmental needs and always to be promoting proper and prudent management of mother earth and its resources to ensure continuation of the human race. After all, developing countries are always first on the receiving end in terms of climate change. It is up to us to limit the damage thereof.
God is faithful.