GOLD panners in Chimanimani have descended on Mozambican deposits amid concerns that Zimbabwe's panning activities are causing massive environmental degradation in the neighbouring country, the Zimbabwe Guardian has learnt.

Police sources in Chimanimani told this reporter that they have since intensified border patrols in a bid to check and control the movement of people in this mountainous area.

"There is much concern about the panners' devastating activities on the Zimbabwean side. The illegal operatives are crossing the border in large numbers to extract the precious mineral from the Chimanimani Mountains on the Mozambican side and other areas like Madimba and Dima," said a senior police officer who requested anonymity.

"The situation has prompted us to intensify border patrols, but we still encounter problems in our endeavours to completely curb the practice (gold panning)." he said.

The officer said most of the panners who have descended on Mozambique used to do panning at Tark Forest in Chimanimani, but due to tight security at the site they moved to the neighbouring country where security is not as tight as in Zimbabwe.

According to villagers in Rusitu valley, the panners jump the border into Mozambique at night to dig into the bowels of the earth where the precious mineral is reportedly abundant.

Headman Jacob Derera of Vumba village confirmed the gold rush to the Zimbabwe Guardian.

"A lot of people from far away places are flocking to Mozambique for gold panning in the Chimanimani mountains and other areas. The scenario started just a few months ago when police intensified raids at Tarka Forest."

He added that a lot of traditional leaders in the affected areas have approached him with the view of addressing the massive land degradation which the panners are allegedly causing.

Headman's Derera's area is a stone's throw away from Mozambique.