Legal Gaps and Contradictions in Environmental Preservation in Small-Scale Sand Mining in Tanzania: Brewing Climate Change?

Sand mining activities are increasing globally, propelled by government and private construction projects. While important for development, if inadequately regulated, sand mining can negatively impact the environment. In Tanzania, sand mining and the environment are regulated both at the national (central government) and local government levels in Tanzania. Through a desk-based analysis of legislation and regulations relevant to sand mining in Tanzania, this paper reveals that Tanzania’s legal regulation of sand mining is not robust enough to guarantee environmental preservation and safeguard against climate change. Weaknesses include legal gaps such as contradictions on aspects such as the distance to keep from ecologically sensitive zones, size of the sand mining sites, and adoption of the precautionary principle in sand mining. The paper recommends that Tanzania may borrow experiences from Kenya and South Africa on how best to regulate sand mining and guarantee its environmental and climate conservation.