When Lukman Mubarak left home early in the morning of Sep. 15th, 2022, he had no idea that he would come back home to find his healthy 72-year-old mother lying dead on the ground due to a rock-blasting operation.
His wife told him that his mother, Aishatu Mubarak, went to the veranda of their home to breathe in fresh air when sudden blasts from a nearby quarry operated by the China Kaidi Quarry company shook the entire house and left her in shock. Three minutes later, she collapsed in the same spot.
Such violent shakes and sounds have not been uncommon for the Ifelere community in Kwara state located in northcentral Nigeria, who have been consistently exposed to pollution and physical shaking since China Kaidi Quarry Limited, an exporter of granite, started its operations in the Eyenkorin district of Nigeria.
One of their quarrying sites is separated from the Ifelere community only by a single federal government road, where the middle class has unsuccessfully tried to build homes, only to have their homes shaken and destroyed by the quarrying operations. The government and local nonprofits have been attempting to address the environmental damage and distress caused by these quarrying operations, but progress has been limited.
Most of the time, these rock-blasting operations come with no warning. The violence from the rock blasts has long affected Mubarak’s mother. Whenever the blasts echoed through their home, his mother’s body would shake, while the walls around her would fill up with big and small cracks.
“We are tired of their rock blasting because the sound of the bomb is destroying our houses in this community and affecting our health. Whenever I hear a sudden noise from the blast, the shock won't leave until 40 minutes after I rest and wake up.”
Mubarak had no idea that the mining company would blast rock the day he lost his mother. When the blasts echoed that day, Mubarak’s wife and children fled home for safety without the knowledge that his mother had lost her life. When they came back home, a lot of neighbors had surrounded the house and found her there.
As previously reported by The Xylom, Indigenous communities in Nigeria have long withstood the brunt of these harmful rock-blasting practices by foreign conglomerates that take place close to homes without any consideration for the communities’ livelihoods or health. Humans are highly sensitive to even the low-level vibrations caused by blasting. Dust and fumes released during blasting operations can lead to respiratory problems within communities while prolonged exposure to loud blasts can contribute to hearing loss.
According to a 2008 research study, the noise pollution levels in some parts of the Kwara State metropolis exceeded the World Health Organization's recommended levels for 34 out of the 47 measuring points. The noise levels were highest in industrial areas at 110.2 dB(A). Research shows that even three minutes of exposure to noise at these levels can cause permanent hearing damage. Rock blasting can also disturb the surrounding environment, contaminating soil and nearby water sources as well as any underground aquifers.
Ifelere resident Aishat Sulaiman was napping inside her room on a bright afternoon in August 2022 when China Kaida Quarry blasted some rock nearby. Unexpectedly, she woke up in shock. Her heart was plowing faster in her chest due to the extreme noise, and she saw the walls of her room cracking down.
“The huge noise of the bomb woke me up suddenly. The whole house was shaking, and it was when the children living with me came back from school,” she says. “I held them firmly closer to my chest as we breathed faster while the parts of the walls were cracking down.”
Aishat lost her husband seven years ago, and now lives in a three-bedroom apartment with her children, where she had been living peacefully until China Kaidi Quarry started blasting rock close to her home. Each crack in her home has caused great lament since this is the property she inherited from her husband before he died.
The walls of the home have started to fall due to the incessant blasts and the only solution she and her children have found is to plaster the cracked sides repeatedly.
“We are tired of their rock blasting because the sound of the bomb is destroying our houses in this community and affecting our health,” she says. “Whenever I hear a sudden noise from the blast, the shock won't leave until 40 minutes after I rest and wake up.”
The local nonprofit Growing Climate Restoration Goal Initiative is seeking to address the environmental damage caused by these quarry operations. Executive Director Akinyola Akinyemi says that there are multiple environmental challenges in Kwara State, and quarrying is just one of them.
“Our organization hasn’t yet launched a full project on this, but we are actively gathering data — conducting surveys, visiting affected sites, and understanding the impact before deciding on the next steps,” he says.
According to Akinyemi, the noise pollution from late-night blasts has caused hearing impairments among children and older adults. Dust pollution has also led to increased respiratory problems. “The psychological impact is real,” he says, “as unexpected blasts, sometimes louder than usual, have left people in shock. These frequent disturbances disrupt lives and health in many ways.”
“You might get to an office today to have a dialogue with a certain commissioner and in the next two weeks or less, you get there and have another person entirely in that office.”
It can be hard to address these critical issues without the support of local leaders. “Some local traditional leaders are interested in trading off their lands for the Chinese and all those white guys at the expense of the health and well-being of their people,” he said. “There is a lot of instability in governance especially in a state like Kwara. You might get to an office today to have a dialogue with a certain commissioner and in the next two weeks or less, you get there and have another person entirely in that office. There is no continuity.”
Akinyemi says the biggest difficulty for him is that government officials often view nonprofits as antagonists, making any collaboration difficult. Additionally, he says there is a misconception in the region that nonprofits have abundant resources. “Officials often expect us to bring funding to the table when, in reality, we’re looking to share expertise and collaborate,” he says.
There have been talks of relocation but Akinyemi says that it might be hard for the local community because “people are very much connected to their traditional origin and it might be a challenge having people to leave or relocate.”
After years of lobbying, the China Kaidi Quarry was officially sealed off by the Kwara State Government in May 2023 due to safety and environmental violations. However, residents say that some level of activity has persisted despite these orders.
Akinyemi says the prevalence of illegal miners in Nigeria is a major issue. “The thing that I feel can be done is number one, what some governments have been doing to curb the illegal miners,” he says. “Apart from ensuring that the operators are operating legally, another thing is to ensure that they operate sustainably.”
“To have the company give back to the society where they are carrying out their business operations, there must be a kind of infrastructural development and not the kind of infrastructural development that is only for the interest of the company,” he says.
