Harare — A perennial cloud of dust hovers over Kugarika Kushinga houses, about 300 metres from Lafarge cement factory in Mabvuku.

Furniture and walls alike are covered with a thick film of dust from the factory, leaving everything ghostly grey.

To avoid dust entering their houses, residents rarely open windows.

"It is difficult to open your eyes in the morning as the cement dust gets into your eyes. This dust has made our life complicated," complained a resident Mr Naison Mugwagwa.

For Lafarge, building the houses near the factory presented new challenges for the company as residents have persistently complained about the negative effects of its operations on their lives.

The paradox of this case is, despite the existence of the company dating back from around 1956, local authorities approved the building of houses near the plant.

"Dust from this plant has given us sleepless nights. We cannot breathe properly and it smells just like raw sewerage," complained Mrs Elizabeth Matambanadzo.

She adds: "If one wakes up in the morning cement dust is everywhere. You find it on the slabs, roof tops, trees and in our homes."

According to some residents, Lafarge promised to give them milk to "dilute" the dust, but that has not happened.

"I have not received any milk from the company since I started living here 10 years ago.

"The company gives its employees a packet of milk, but do not give us anything yet we live 300 metres from them.

"What do they think is protecting us from the dust? Should we not be entitled to the same protection as their workers?" queried Munyaradzi Mbewe of New Mabvuku.

Residents said they had a meeting with officials from the company in 1997 and were represented by the then local legislator Pamela Tungamirai.

Back then, the residents were told that their houses were not supposed to be built there hence the company said it was not to blame for their problems.

"There was no official communication between residents and the cement company since then. We were left with no one to turn to in that respect," said another resident Mr Alhi Diamond.

Although residents are exposed to this health hazard, they say they do not have anywhere to go.

"I am grateful that at least I have a house after years of being a lodger. There seems to be nothing we can do about our situation . . . our options are limited," said Naison Mugwagwa.

However, officials from Lafarge gave a different perspective on the conflict.

Business risk and compliance manager, Mr Andrew Gona said: "Corporate and social responsibility initiatives are fundamental core values that guide our work and the relationship between the organisation and its publics especially the residents of Mabvuku and Tafara."

"We have seen the community encroaching on us, but we are doing everything possible to accommodate them.

"Our company has made every effort possible to reduce the effects of dust emissions from the plant to the community."

He said they have reduced dust emission from the plant by 80 percent since the beginning of the year.

"We accept that we still have a lot to do in as far as reducing the dust emissions is concerned and we are working on it," said Mr Gona.

He reiterated that sometimes the dust emissions are beyond their control since it is at its worst when there is electricity load shedding.

He said the process they use to trap dust from the factory requires water and electricity.

"If there is no water to cool down the dust from the furnaces, dust escapes from the plant in huge quantities.

"Lafarge appreciates the work Zesa has done during the year as this has assisted us to reduce dust emission from our plant," said Mr Gona.

He said the relationship between the company and residents is healthy.

"We assist the community by supplying water, a service the local authority has been failing to provide.

"Lafarge has a bursary scheme targeting orphaned and vulnerable children in the community," said Mr Gona.

He said his organisation carries out educational programmes that raise awareness on the effects of the dust on people's health.

"Our major raw material is limestone and we have discovered that it is not harmful to people's health," he said.

The company, he said, has an open-door policy and is willing to be engaged in discussions with the residents.

"We engage in discussions with Mabvuku and Tafara Residents and Ratepayers Association on issues that concern the community hence people should co-ordinate themselves around the association," said Mr Gona.

But Mr Tapiwa Chapo, an environmental activist raised concern over the way the company deals with residents.

"The issue of Lafarge cement has been a concern for quite a long time now.

"Politicians, one-after-the-other, have used our situation as a political tool in canvassing for support," he said.

He said in this day and age, issues to do with the environment should be taken very seriously, as they have devastating effects on the environment.

Mr Chapo added that policymakers should impose stringent laws on pollution.

"What we need in this country are stringent environmental laws that protect ordinary people from this corporate environmental malpractice," said Mr Chapo

Lafarge is not the only company on the wrong side of the law as senior managers at the Midlands-based cement manufacturing company, Sino Zimbabwe, were recently summoned to a hearing by the Environmental Management Agency after failing to address concerns over pollution.

The Chinese-owned cement giant was shut down by EMA in August following complaints by the community of serious pollution of water sources and plants through the discharge of cement dust, raw sewage and used oil in rivers.

The company -- with an output of 700 tonnes of cement per day -- was only reopened after management undertook to follow EMA's recommendations.

In a November EMA report on the cement company, the environmental agency noted that Sino-Zimbabwe "complied 75 percent" with its recommendations, but that performance if ranked in relation to risk reduction, nothing has been done since high risk aspect of dust emission received very little and/or no attention as of August 2009.

The Environmental Council of Zambia in March said the country's major cement-making company, Lafarge Cement (formerly Chilanga cement) contravened the Environmental Protection and Pollution Control Act (EPPCA) of 1990.

According to lusakatimes.com ECZ Acting Senior Communications Officer Chama Nyendwa said in a statement that Lafarge Cement had been found guilty of operating the factory contrary to the Act.

Ms Nyendwa said for this reason the ECZ slapped a 14 days ultimatum to address the normalise operations in accordance with the Act.

This means Lafarge Zambia had 21 days to stop cement particles or dust from being strewn or being emitted in the perimeters of the factory after which further action shall be taken.

ECZ further gave Lafarge-Chilanga's air emission license validity period from one year to six months for non-compliance as provided by the law. Ms Nyendwa requested that Lafarge submit stack air emission reports every two weeks for the next six months.

This would allow ECZ to increase the frequency of monitoring the facility.

She said findings by ECZ team of inspectors dispatched to Lafarge Cement in Chilanga on March 8 this year followed complaints from the public.

It was established that the company had increased an abnormal amount of pollution into the open environment of 1.6-km radius.

The team said Lafarge did not put in place adequate remedial measures to mitigate against the impact of the pollution on human health and the environment.

Ms Nyendwa said the cement firm failed to report the pollution in question immediately to regulatory authorities as evidenced on surrounding buildings, motor vehicles and plants.

She stressed that ECZ provided environmental educational sensitisation public awareness by way of public meetings.