Beneath the Green: A critical look at the cost of industrial cobalt mining in the DRC

A new report reveals that toxic pollution from industrial cobalt mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is having devastating human and environmental impacts. The findings challenge the narrative of ‘clean’ and ‘sustainable cobalt’ frequently promoted by multinational mining companies. The 110-page ground-breaking report, “Beneath the Green: A critical look at the cost of industrial cobalt mining in the DRC,” authored by UK corporate watchdog RAID and DRC-based African Resources Watch (AFREWATCH), is one of the first in-depth studies of the environmental impacts of industrial cobalt mining on the human rights of hundreds of thousands of Congolese people living in and around Kolwezi, the heart of DRC’s cobalt industry. Focused on the impacts of water pollution, it finds that the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is routinely being violated for fenceline communities living in the shadow of the world’s largest cobalt and copper mines.