- Northern Malawi hosts the country’s largest coalfields, providing energy to various industries, but some of the mines here have been associated with labor violations and environmental damage.
- In the latest case, a community in one of the key coal mining districts has demanded the closure of a mine for polluting two rivers from which locals draw water for domestic and agricultural use.
- Preliminary investigations by government agencies found evidence of contamination from the mine operated by Coal & Minerals Group Limited, but the company has denied deliberately discharging the waste into the rivers.
- Based on regulators’ findings, the company’s mining licensed has been suspended on the grounds that its operations “seriously threaten” the safety and health of the people and environment.
The Malawi government has suspended the mining license of a coal company for dumping mining waste into two rivers that communities rely on for water.
The suspension follows an uproar by one of the communities in Malawi’s coal mining heartland in the north of the country. Community members demanded the closure of the mine for contaminating the rivers that supply water for their domestic and agricultural needs. Preliminary investigations by government agencies responsible for water and the environment confirmed the pollution.
The northern region, particularly the two districts of Karonga and Rumphi, has Malawi’s largest coal mines. The country depends on coal as a fuel for everything from tobacco curing to cement production. However, mines in the region have a track record of environmental destruction and labor violations, issues that both local rights bodies and global watchdog Human Rights Watch have exposed.
In a letter dated April 8, 2026, Malawi’s Mining and Minerals Regulatory Authority (MMRA) announced the immediate suspension of the mining license for Coal & Minerals Group Limited, the company operating the polluting mine. It cited the water contamination as “seriously threatening” the health and safety of the public and the environment.
According to the MMRA, investigations by government regulatory agencies found evidence of coal-associated waste discharge into the two rivers, uncontrolled runoff from the mining pits and stockpiles, and poorly designed storage facilities to hold the mining waste, or tailings. The authority also noted that the company did not have critical plans such as a mining operations plan, a mine waste management plan, and a mine closure and rehabilitation plan as required by law.
In the latest case, a video taken by a community member in Karonga went viral on social media in Malawi in early April, showing river water that had turned black in an area where the company operates. After the video surfaced, a district council team conducted an inspection on April 2 and found the mine to be the source of contamination in two rivers.
The rivers supply water for washing, bathing and household use, and for livelihood activities like livestock rearing and farming.
In a report dated April 3, the council said solid and liquid coal waste from the mining operations had been drained into the rivers by rainstorm and through deliberate discharge by the company. The Malawi Environmental Protection Authority (MEPA) and National Water Resources Authority (NRWA) confirmed this finding in a joint investigation on April 5.
Reacting to the incident, a traditional leader of the area, Paramount Chief Kyungu, condemned the contamination, asking the government to close the mine if it was found to have violated laws.
“The government should intervene and contain the situation to [prevent] my people and the environment [from] suffering while investors benefit,” Kyungu said in a statement, calling on people to audit all mining companies in the region for compliance with regulations.
The company, headquartered in the region’s main city of Mzuzu, has been operating the mine for five years. According to Kingdom Malanga, chair of the area development committee, which represents local communities, coal dust from the mine contaminated vegetation and farmland early in its operations.
“But the situation has been worsening recently, and on March 24, 2026, we had a meeting with the mine operators,” Malanga told Mongabay. “Among other things, we told them to construct a dike to prevent coal waste from washing down into the rivers. They did nothing.
“Now we want the government to shut down this mine because it is clearly not following regulations, destroying rivers that are our lifeline and putting our health in danger,” he said.
In December 2025, Malanga led a team of chiefs and people from the area on an inspection of the mine, where they expressed concerns over the environmental impacts from the operations. They said the company was not meeting its promises to build classroom blocks at two schools and support farmers impacted by the mining activity.
In a written response to Mongabay before the suspension of the license became public, the mining company’s managing director, Manowa Mkandawire, said the company was aware of the community concerns about the mining operations, but denied it had deliberately discharged coal waste into the river.
“Our operations are conducted under strict environmental regulations, and we are subject to regular inspections by relevant authorities,” Mkandawire said. “In fact, a routine inspection was conducted approximately two weeks prior to the emergence of these reports, and no such issues were identified.”
He also confirmed the community had asked the company to build a dike to prevent runoff of coal waste into the rivers, and that such measures formed part of the company’s environmental management plans.
“At present, we are working closely with authorities and technical experts to fully assess the situation and ensure that any necessary corrective actions are taken,” Mkandawire said.
In response to the incident, he added, the company has developed an “environmental compliance and river protection program” aimed at eliminating the coal waste pollution and protecting surrounding communities. It will conduct a cleanup within 60 days.
Kossam Munthali leads a human rights NGO, Foundation for Community Support Services, based in Karonga district, where the latest case has emerged. He told Mongabay by phone that the persistence of cases of environmental damage and human rights abuses in the region’s coal mines indicates the inefficiency of Malawi’s regulatory system.
“On the back of all the credible investigations into these malpractices, we would not have been talking about the same violations today if the authorities acted decisively on earlier findings,” Munthali said.
He said Malawi’s laws are clear on actions the government is supposed to take against mining activities that violate the laws, including requiring violators to compensate affected communities and even to face closure.
“We have had these cases for decades, many of them known to the government, but it has not been acting on them,” Munthali said. “It gives us the impression that environmental impact assessment plans are just formalities for firms to get a license. It looks like there are some vested interests in these projects and public interest is not a priority.”
Obrien Chirwa, environment information and education manager at MEPA, the environmental regulator, which was established in 2019, said his office had not received any complaints about the mine. He also said MEPA and other government departments conduct regular inspections of mining sites to check on compliance.
“But we cannot be everywhere; so, we also count on the public taking interest in mining activities in their communities and raising alarm about what’s happening,” Chirwa told Mongabay by phone. “We act immediately, like we have done now.”
The incident is the latest controversy surrounding mining in the region. In 2023, the Malawi Human Rights Commission, a statutory body, investigated two coal mines in Karonga district and found workers were being paid wages below the government-stipulated minimum wage, and working without contracts or protective gear. The investigation also determined that the mines were destroying farmland in the surrounding villages through coal dust and unregulated disposal of mining debris.
In 2016, Human Rights Watch documented environmental and human rights violations at coal mines in Rumphi and Karonga districts, and blamed many of the abuses on the government’s failure to monitor operations.
According to Munthali, Malawi has good laws in place to govern mining. “Our challenge is enforcement. That’s why these mines do nothing to protect people and the environment,” he said.
The MMRA suspension will remain in force until the company meets several conditions, including immediate cessation of untreated mine water discharge into the rivers; construction of properly engineered and approved tailing dams; and submission and implementation of a cleanup plan for the contaminated rivers.
The agency also fined the Coal & Minerals Group Limited $8, 500 and directed the company to cease any mining activity.
Failure to comply with the suspension is an offense, and mine personnel found responsible can be fined up to $17,000 or jailed for 10 years and the license of the mine cancelled.
Banner Image: Excavations at the mine, which has been found to be the source of the pollution in two rivers in Karonga district. Image by Jordan Simeon Phiri for Mongabay.
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