The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has said that more than 4,000 abandoned mine pits exist across Plateau State.
Alake said the pits, many of which were dug by former mining companies, posed environmental and safety challenges but could be converted into productive ventures through proper rehabilitation.
He stated this in a statement issued on Sunday by his Special Assistant on Media, Lara Owoeye-Wise, following the death of seven people in a collapsed mine pit at Kassa, Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of the state.
The minister described the incident as tragic and avoidable, warning artisanal miners against entering abandoned pits without the required licences and permits.
He urged miners to organise themselves into cooperatives and obtain necessary approvals to operate legally.
Alake said the large number of abandoned pits in Plateau was a legacy of the activities of the former Amalgamated Tin Mines Limited and its successor companies, Consolidated Tin Mines Limited and Nigerian Tin and Allied Products Limited.
He said the Federal Government had rehabilitated 59 abandoned mine pits, while introducing technology-driven measures to identify and assess thousands of others.
According to him, the ministry has entered into a public-private partnership to deploy Geographic Information System satellite mapping and Artificial Intelligence to locate and characterise the abandoned pits.
He said Plateau would be the pilot beneficiary of the initiative, which would also develop plans for the eventual reclamation of the sites.
Alake urged private investors to partner with the government to convert abandoned mine sites into productive ventures, including energy, tourism and fisheries projects.
He described public-private partnership as the “most proactive and fastest approach” to turning the abandoned pits into productive assets.
“The challenge before the state and the Federal Government is how to turn these potential pits of death into centres of joyful prosperity,” he said.
