Indirect mineland reclamation on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria

Indirect mineland reclamation on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria The basis for a viable policy

Kevin D. Phillips-Howard

The experience and policy of mineland reclamation on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria, are reviewed with regard to the possibilities for improved resource use in the region. Consideration of current ‘informal reclamation’ led to suggestions for an indirect policy approach to reclamation, whereby mineland is used by local communities, based on their own priorities, knowledge and experience. Various trials and pilot projects were established to check the potential viability of such an approach. These included ‘search and supply experiments’, minespoil planting trials and village development projects. It was concluded that, with appropriate government support, the local people could be encouraged to reclaim much of the mineland. Kevin D. Phillips-Howard is with the Jos Plateau Environmental Resources Development Programme, Department of Geography, University of Durham, Durham, DHl 3LE, UK. The Jos Plateau Environmental Resources Development Programme is a university linkage between the University of Jos, Nigeria, and Durham University, UK; it is funded by the European Development Fund, Project No 510653.41 .OOl, and the University of Jos. Views expressed in this article are those of the author and not of the Jos Plateau Environmental Resources Development Programme or the universities concerned. ‘K. Schoeneich, ‘Groundwater conditions in the tin-mining region of the Jos Plateau’, continuea on page 3

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This article is concerned with the need for a viable policy on the reclamation of former tin mines on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria (Figure 1). Since the existing policy, based on a pre-Independence Act requiring direct reclamation, has proved inadequate, it is argued here that a new policy is needed if the former mineland is to be effectively reclaimed. The reclamation of abandoned large-scale tin mines has been a major research theme of the Jos Plateau Environmental Resources Development Programme (JPERDP) since 1982. Phase I of the Programme yielded information on, for example, the environmental impacts of tin mining, the problems and prospects of mineland reclamation for agriculture and forestry and the potentialities of the mine-ponds for irrigation.’ On the basis of this research the programme entered a developmentoriented Phase II in September 1988. In Phase II viable solutions to the problems identified in Phase I were sought, including recommendations on how, given present realities, the former minelands may best be reclaimed. Nigeria’s tin-mine reclamation policy and experiences to date are reviewed here. This is followed by suggestions for the formulation of an alternative, indirect policy based on the resource potential of the former mineland and current ‘informal reclamation’ activity in the area.

Reclamation

policy and experience on the Jos Plateau

Commercial tin mining began on the Jos Plateau in 1904 and gradually progressed from the use of ‘pick and shovel’ and ‘panning’ to methods involving bulldozers, draglines and dredges. This progression was associated with increasing impact on landforms, from small-scale local disturbance to the creation of steep-sided conical spoil heaps and large flooded mine paddocks.2 Other results included the creation of mine dams, reservoirs and mine cliffs, valley widening and gullying. Tin mining contributed to land shortages in this already congested

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Figure 1. Location of study sites and main mining areas.

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area, and pressure towards overgrazing, overcultivation and deforestation on the Jos Plateau. It may also have had environmental impacts through devegetation, increased erosion and hydrologic disruption. In all, 316 km2 of land was disturbed and initially considered unsuitable for agriculture. Reclamation began after tin mining peaked in 1943, by which time the damage was already highly visible and widespread. In 1946 the passing of the Minerals Act (Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, Chapter 121, Mining Part IIIB, 1946) empowered government to require ‘reasonable restoration’ of former tin mines. This Act made the mining companies responsible for restoring areas leased after 1946, while government took responsibility for the earlier leases. The relevant clauses are as follows:

continued from page 2 JFERDP Final Report, 1986, pp 123-l 38; M.J. Alexander, ‘A review of the bureaucratic, political and legislative problems encountered in the reclamation of the plateau minefields of Nigeria’, Landscape Urban Planning, No 17, 1989, pp 35-45; G.P. Buckley, ‘Soil factors affecting the yields of Eucalypfus camaldulensis on former tin-mining land on the Jos Plateau’, Fore&y Ecology and Management, No 23, 1988, pp 1-7; G. Patterson, ‘Tin mine ponds of the Jos Plateau: their nature and resource value’, JPERDP interim Report, No 8, 1986. ZM.J. Alexander, ‘Soil characteristics and the factors influencing their development on mine spoils of the Jos Plateau’, JPERDP Interim Repotf, No 11, 1986. 3M.J. Alexander, ‘An historical introduction to the reclamation of mineland on the Jos Plateau’, JPERDP Interim Report, No 4, 1985, p 6.

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(1) The Minister [prior to independence, the Governor General] may grant a mining lease and he may in any case make such a grant subject to such covenants and conditions as he may think fit and in particular may require the reasonable restoration of any area used for mining operations by the replacement of the surface soil, the filling in of worked areas, the removal of any tailings or other dumps or heaps caused by mining operations and such other methods as may reasonably be required (2) The Minister, in his discretion, may by order require the holder or grantee of any mining right or lease given or granted under the provision of any repealed Ordinance, enactment or Proclamation reasonably to restore any area in respect of mining operations being or to be carried out on or after the date on which this Ordinance comes into operation.’

A distinction was drawn between restoration and reclamation with regard to tin mines on the Jos Plateau. Restoration meant returning mined land to its original form by backfilling pits with overburden and tailings after removal of the cassiterite. This was to be carried out concurrently with mining operations. The amount of restoration required was supposed to vary according to the mining method. Tributing, ‘lotoing’, underground mining, gravel pumping, ground sluicing and land paddocking operations could all require 100% restoration, use of

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draglines and diesel earth-moving equipment and dredging operations 75% restoration, while 70% restoration could be required where a hydraulic elevator was used. Certain conditions or stipulations were also applicable: for example, that the overburden and topsoil be stored separately in heaps no more than 11 ft high, and that no restoration be within 20 ft of a stream bed. Reclamation was conceived as a broader concept which included bringing former tin mines into productive use either for agriculture or for forestry. On the Jos Plateau, the indigens originally wanted the spoil heaps to be flattened and returned to them for crop production. The government strategy for pre-1946 leases involved the establishment, in 1948, of the Mines Land Reclamation Unit (MLRU) to level spoil heaps and fill paddocks and mine-ponds using bulldozers. Originally this was to be followed by the establishment of cover crops to raise the fertility of the restored soils to levels that would permit their return to arable farming. It was hoped that after a few years of fallow the land could be returned to the indigens for crop production. This hope was based on earlier experiments, carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture, which had shown that several cover crops could be grown successfully on flattened spoil with small additions of night-soil compost. Among these, the most successful grasses were found to be elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum), ‘gamba’ (Andropogon gayanus) and ‘yama’ (Hyparrhenia rufa). The legumes Seshania seshan and Tephrosia vogelli also grew well.4 In 1955 and 1956, following two or three years of fallow with these cover crops, cultivation trials were made with the four main staple crops of the area: ‘acca’ or hungry rice (Digitaria exilis), ‘dauro’ or dwarf millet (Pennisetum americanum), ‘tamba’ or finger millet (Eleusine coracana) and sweet potato (Ipomoea hatatas). The trials showed that normal yields of these staple crops could only be achieved with further applications of night-soil compost and chemical fertilizer, which would be uneconomic because the costs involved would exceed the value of the crop yields. Hence, the planting of Eucalyptus trees, which had been found to grow well on unrestored minespoil, subsequently became the favoured post-‘level and fill’ treatment.’ Initially, compost and ammonium sulphate were mixed with the soil from each planting hole before the trees were planted. This produced rapid growth (3-3.7 m) in the first year, but subsequently the practice of adding compost was abandoned because of the excessive transport costs involved. Nevertheless, reasonably good growth rates (1.5-2.4 m in the first year) were achieved provided that planting lines were loosened with a sub-soiler. Creation of a loose texture to adequate depth was seen to be more important than any other factor in successful planting of Eucalyptus.” %.H. Wimbush, ‘Afforestation of restored tin-mining land in Nigeria’, CommonwealN, Fores&y Review, No 42, 1963, pp 255 262.

5/hid. 6lbid. ‘Alexander, op tit, Ref 3. ‘P.D. Dawam, ‘Institutional framework and legislative provisions for the reclamation of derelict mineland on the Jos Plateau’, JPERDP Final Report, 1986, pp 391-396. ‘Alexander, op tit, Ref 3, p 13.

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By 1970, 1237 ha of reclaimed mineland were planted with eucalypts by the MLRU.’ In 1973 the Joint Consultative Committee on Minesland Reclamation (JCC) was established to deal with reclamation on the Jos Plateau and throughout Nigeria. The functions of this federal committee overlapped with those of the now state-administered MLRU, which had been rendered virtually inoperative by this time.x By 1983, 84 ha were reclaimed by JCC, 64 ha of which were planted with eucalypts.” The total mineland area planted by 1983 was approximately 1324 ha. Although this achievement may appear small, compared with the amount reclaimed by the mining companies it is not

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insignificant. The total mineland area officially reclaimed to date, with or without Eucalyptus, is only about 30 km*, or less than 10% of the area damaged by mining since 1904.i0 This unimpressive record may be partly due to the decline in the large-scale tin-mining industry over the last four decades and the consequent lack of available funds for this purpose. However, the reclamation policy guided by the 1946 Minerals Act largely failed” because of: 0 0

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political rivalries both within state legislatures and between state and federal governments; the unwillingness of successive governments to monitor reclamation activity or to impose the (discretionary) restoration clauses of mining leases upon mining companies; the unwillingness of mining companies to surrender leases which should then be subject to restoration; the low world price of tin, as well as other economic problems such as reduced oil revenues and the collapse of the large-scale tinmining industry.

Moreover the small amount of reclamation that was carried out failed to meet the expectations of rapid soil enhancement and the return of land to productive agriculture or forestry; it frequently resulted in soil compaction, waterlogging and reduced soil base status.12 Meanwhile ‘informal’ reclamation took off in the late 1970s and early 1980s mainly through the expansion of dry-season vegetable farming. Traditionally such farming was restricted to the fadarnas, or seasonally flooded natural river terraces. On the Jos Plateau it also began to occur in abandoned mine paddocks and valley floors widened by tin mining. The advent of mechanical pumps enabled dry-season vegetable farming to spread also to non-fadama land, especially to elevated areas, mined and unmined, adjacent to mine-ponds. Less obviously, some wet-season farming began to occur on abandoned mineland, both in paddocks and around spoil heaps. Also, a few mine-ponds near Jos were used by industries, for example Jos International Breweries, or for recreation, as at Rayfield, where a pond is used for swimming and sailing.‘” Some ponds also serve for fish farming. Given that the reclamation policy based on the 1946 Minerals Act proved so inadequate, there are strong grounds for considering alternative policies for mineland reclamation that are less susceptible to political interference and implementation problems.

Basis for a viable reclamation policy

‘O/bid.

“Alexander, op tit, Fief 1, pp 39-40. “Alexander, op tit, Ref 2; Buckley, op cif, Ref 1. 13G. Patterson, ‘Industrial use of minepond water: a case study of Jos International Breweries’, JPEf?DP interimReport, No 9, 1986.

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As explained earlier, the failure of mineland reclamation to date is essentially due to rivalry, lack of will to see a project through, and among them the decline of the large-scale tineconomic problems, mining industry. What, then, could be the basis of a truly viable reclamation policy? It is suggested that the general approach should conceive reclamation much more broadly, in the context of rural development aimed at boosting the national economy and improving rural livelihoods. Moreover the approach should take account of the changing economic, social, political and environmental conditions of the tin-mining region. With regard to rural development policy, it is useful to consider the

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‘%. Chambers, ‘Sustainable livelihoods, environment and development: putting poor rural people first’, IDS Discussion Paper, No240, IDS Publications, Brighton, UK, 1988, p 9. ‘5World Commission on Environment and Development, Food 2000: Policies for Sustainable Agriculture, Zed Books, London, 1987. 16A.D. Kidd and K.D. Phillips-Howard, ‘Indigenous knowledge systems and viable rural development policy’, JPERDP tnferim Report, No 26, 1992, p 6. 17Alexander, op tit, Ref 1, p 43. ‘*Patterson, op tit, Ref 1; A.D. Kidd and K.D. Phillips-Howard, ‘Elements of risk in dry-season farming on the Jos Plateau’, paper presented at the 6th Annual Conference of the Nigerian Rural Sociological Association, NISER, Ojoo, Ibadan, Nigeria, 2-5 December 1990. “W.T.W. Morgan, Foreword to A.A. Adepetu, ‘Farmers and their farms on four fadamas on Jos Plateau’, JPERDP hterim Report, No 2, 1985, p i.

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concept of ‘sustainable elements:

livelihood

security.“3

This combines

- the maintenance or enhancement of resource productivity on a long-term basis; livelihood - adequate stocks or flows of food and cash to meet basic needs; securiry - secure ownership of, or access to. resources and income-generating activities.” sustuitzability

If rural populations are able to attain ‘sustainable livelihood security’, then the national economy will also benefit through the creation of a stable and reliable base of improved environmental resource development for further economic diversification and development.‘” Hence it is proposed that mineland reclamation policy should be based on recognition of the resource potential of the tin-mining region and on encouragement of its fuller utilization by the local people to improve their livelihoods. Findings from Phase I of the JPERDP showed that so far little consideration has been given to such resource potential in reclamation policy. However, spoil is already being used for road and general fill, forestry and irrigated agriculture, while mine-ponds are a water source for irrigation, industrial and domestic supply, fish farming and recreation.17 These uses represent defacto mineland reclamation, albeit of an ‘informal’ kind, even though the people’s concern is with the productive use of the land rather than with reclamation per se. The local population has, in the process of making the available land more useful and productive, effectively reclaimed disused mine-workings. This is especially evident in the more congested rural areas and the Jos-Bukuru area, where disused mines have also been built upon. However, the characteristics of minespoil vary according to the extent and depth of the tin deposits and the mining techniques used. The different types of spoil include: small-scale working along river valleys; extensively widened valleys bounded by steep cliffs; shallow spoil heaps and steep-sided ridges and conical heaps. Each represents different land use opportunities and different reclamation problems. Accordingly, a variety of techniques and strategies may be required to reclaim all types of minespoil effectively. Among the more significant of the changing realities in the tin-mining region is the rapid expansion of dry-season vegetable farming, especially in abandoned paddocks and mined valleys. During the 1980s farming of this kind spread to most areas of the Jos Plateau where water was available from October to April. The comparatively low mean monthly temperatures (20.5-24.V.Z) make the Plateau suitable for growing temperate vegetables such as tomatoes, onions, cabbages, lettuce and carrots. The expansion of this kind of farming has been made possible by the increased availability of water sources, in the form of mineponds, and suitable land where valleys have been widened by mining It also reflects the growing market for vegetables, the activity.‘* introduction of mechanical pumps and the use of artificial fertilizers.” Dry-season vegetable farming has become increasingly profitable on the Jos Plateau in recent years, and has been taken up by other people besides its Hausa originators; it has also attracted better-educated people, some of them farming on a part-time basis. This type of farming intensive and diverse. Also, with the is becoming more productive,

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increased use of mechanical pumps and the widespread availability of mine-pond water, it is spreading beyond the traditionalfudama areas. In some places it is merging with rainy-season farming into a highly profitable round-the-year system.*” The changes described are largely a natural response to the large and increasing demand for temperate vegetables, which grow particularly well under the cool conditions of the tin-mining area. They reflect one way in which disused mineland is informally reclaimed as people take advantage of the opportunity to improve their livelihoods under conditions of economic adversity. Consistent with the concern for ‘sustainable livelihood security’, an alternative, ‘people-oriented’ policy for mineland reclamation could seek to encourage this process indireclfy by assisting the further expansion of agriculture on the disused mineland. Such a policy should promote reclamation by helping the farmers to overcome the problems that they face in attempting to cultivate mineland. However, the types of ‘solutions’ offered should accord with the criteria of social and economic viability identified in successful development programmes elsewhere.*’ Such solutions: are essentially familiar to the people concerned, and are based on locally established technologies rather than alien ones requiring unavailable support, maintenance and skills; offer proven, recognizable and sustainable benefits which match locally articulated priorities and needs; assist and empower people to support themselves and to control and develop their own resources; fit the availability of land, labour and capital, including the material resources of the minelands and the limited availability of funds from government and non-government agencies and mining companies; help to alleviate poverty and increase the livelihood security of the most needy people; are culturally sensitive, with minimal threat to the beliefs or values of the local people; are market led, to help ensure that sustained income is actually generated by the associated productive activities.22 20K.D. Phillips-Howard, A.A. Adepetu and A.D. Kidd, ‘Aspects of change in fadama farming along the Delimi River, Jos Local Government Council (1982-1990)‘, JPERDP lnferim Report, No 18, 1990, p 10. 2’The World Bank, Successful Development in Africa. The World Bank. Washinaton, DC, 1989: “K.D. Phillips-Howard and A.D. Kidd, ‘Mineland reclamation and rehabilitation programme on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria’, in S. Fowler and U. Loening, eds, Human Ecology, Environmental Education and Sustainable Development, Vol 2, Commonwealth Human Ecology Council, Edinburgh, UK (in press). 23K.D. Phillips-Howard and A.D. Kidd, ‘Significance of indigenous knowledge systems to the improvement of dry-season farming on the Jos Plateau’, PERDP Interim Report, No 17, 1990, p 11.

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The identification of specific solutions to indirectly promote informal reclamation by farmers requires an understanding of the farmers’ own problem-solving strategies, priorities, knowledge and experience. For example, in a recent study among dry-season farmers along the Delimi River to the north of Jos, the most frequently cited problems were the lack of available chemical fertilizer, shortage of cash and lack of a pump-engine. Of these, the shortage of cash appeared the most fundamental. Among the farmers, multiple solutions were identified for coping with most of their problems. Decisions on which solutions to apply generally reflected the farmer’s knowledge and particular economic circumstances. Various strategies for the expansion of irrigated areas were identified. These included the construction of extended pipe and earth channel systems, relay pumping, where two pumps are shared, and, for wealthier farmers, the use of several pumps simultaneously.*’ To facilitate informal reclamation, potential ‘solutions’ to expansionrelated problems need to be tested so as to identify effective means of

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implementation. Also, means and techniques are needed to enable people to use productively the steep-sided spoil heaps, which are not suitable for irrigation. To this end, the JPERDP began various pilot projects and trials which were carried out on a small scale in both Jos and Barakin Ladi local government areas.

Pilot projects and trials The pilot projects and trials were conceived with ‘sustainable livelihood security’ and a ‘people-oriented’ policy in mind. In each case, and where appropriate, the criteria of social and economic viability were taken into account. More specifically, the formulation of trials and pilot projects drew heavily on the experience and knowledge of the local people, who were regarded as experts on the environments in which they lived. As is indicated below, the experiments frequently combined technical, community-development and organizational elements. Hence, they broadly involved attempts to build the capacity of the mineland farmers so that they could sustainably develop the resources available to them. ‘Search and supply’ experiments

*%. Chambers, ‘Reversals, institutions and change’, in Ft. Chambers, A. Pacey and L.A. Thrupp, eds, Farmer First: farmer lnnovafion and AgriculturalResearch, Intermediate Technology London, 1989, pp 187-l 88.

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Publications,

These were based on problem/solution studies conducted among the dry-season farmers who were reclaiming mineland for crop production along the Delimi River to the north of Jos. In keeping with the ideas of Robert Chambers, the purpose of the experiments was to discover how, and from what sources, the farmers could gain the assistance they required to develop and expand their farms on former mineland.*” The process of searching for sources of inputs and facilitating their supply was carefully documented, as were the problems encountered and the ways in which they were resolved. The farmers concerned were encouraged first to form themselves into an association. Following registration, the Yelwa Farmers Association, as it was called, began to accumulate funds and to operate as a group. The main requirements of the Association’s 67 members were fertilizer, seeds, pump-engines and the hire of land-levelling equipment. However, the members had little experience of dealing with government bureaucracies and felt unable to secure these inputs and services at the subsidized prices that were supposedly available to farmers. Instead these farmers had been forced to buy inputs at highly inflated prices on the black market and this limited the area that many of them could cultivate. Difficulty in acquiring fertilizer at an affordable price is the greatest problem faced by farmers on the Jos Plateau. Without sufficient fertilizer, yields of most crops are poor and some farmers are forced to reduce their farm sizes. The JPERDP successfully identified subsidized sources of fertilizer, as well as seeds and pump-engines, in accordance with the Association’s priorities. Subsequently, attempts were made, in collaboration with the Association’s executive committee, to secure fertilizer and engines at subsidized prices. Despite a severe shortage of fertilizer at its disposal, the Plateau Agricultural Development Programme (PADP) readily allocated a trailer, or 30 tonnes, of compound fertilizer (NPK 15:15:15) to the Yelwa farmers who, as a genuine farmers’ group which was not buying to resell on the black market, were said to deserve high priority. After many visits to the PADP, and against intense competition, 30 tonnes of fertilizer was finally received.

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It arrived too late for the 1991 rainfed crop, but could be used in the forthcoming dry season. Hence the Association’s members were able to secure this much of the desired input at approximately half the price charged on the black market. Building on this experience and the relationships developed through numerous visits to PADP, the executive committee was later able to acquire more subsidized fertilizer, this time superphosphate, without the assistance of JPEDRP. Clearly, the Association’s ability to deal successfully with suppliers had improved and this could assist the further development of their farms on former mineland. The fertilizer supply system was reorganized for the 1992 season, with the task of distribution to the farmers vested mainly in the local governments through district and ward committees. In May 1992 the Association’s executive, with little assistance from JPERDP other than a letter of support, applied to the Jos North Local Government Council for an allocation of fertilizer. Again, with the development of contacts, they were assured that as a genuine farmers’ group their application would be approved. Pump-engines are of critical importance for bringing more land under irrigation. JPERDP sought affordable sources of these and encouraged the Association’s executive to apply for them. The first application was through a bank loan scheme and the second was for engines supplied at a subsidized price. The Association was too large to qualify under the first scheme but suceeded in gaining approval for 10 engines under the second. Regarding seeds, the farmers’ concern was to acquire what they considered to be ‘better’ kinds and varieties of vegetable seeds. In particular, they wanted to test new types of carrots, cabbages, tomatoes, leeks, beetroots, turnips and onions. JPERDP sourced these in Europe and provided small quantities for the Association to try out. After four months of farmer-managed trials the Association identified types that were better than those already available (notably leek and beetroot). This information was passed on to PADP’s Seeds Officer and to a seeds company so that the preferred types could be supplied in bulk to Jos Plateau dry-season farmers. Six of the farmers wanted a bulldozer to level their land, but as there were so few of them the Association decided that JPERDP assistance would not be needed and left them to arrange the hire of a bulldozer for themselves. These experiments showed that, with some outside assistance and support, organized groups of farmers on the Jos Plateau could attain the knowledge and experience of how to acquire subsidized inputs. This was achieved by delegating the task of pursuing sources of input to accountable and suitably skilled members of the group; learning how to operate within the procedures of the input supply and allied organizations; developing contacts within these institutions; and establishing an acceptable system of distribution once the inputs have been obtained. Minespoil planting triais

The steep-sided spoil heaps were supposed to be levelled under the old reclamation policy. If the necessary finance were made available, it should be used to restructure the landscape so as to facilitate agricultural expansion, taking account of local priorities and requirements whenever possible. This would probably be the most effective way to

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reclaim such land. Given Nigeria’s past reclamation experience and continuing economic problems, however, this prospect seems unrealistic. Hence, for any spoil-heap reclamation in the foreseeable future, an alternative has to be sought. Apart from the possibility of growing Eucalyptus trees on them, these heaps have been generally regarded as unproductive land. Yet there is pressure to use the spoil heaps for food production, and evidence of this is widespread throughout the region, where small shallow heaps as well as mine pits are commonly cultivated in the rainy season. It is understood that many local farmers would prefer to grow edible crops or fruit trees on the steep-sided heaps if this were feasible. Indeed some farmers have already experimented with growing beans, groundnuts, maize and sweet potatoes, either at the bases or on the top of the heaps. In accordance with its people-oriented perspective, JPERDP sought to support this type of initiative through spoil-heap planting trials. These were undertaken at a fish farm near Rayfield, 10 km south of Jos. The purpose of the trials was to determine which of a range of locally available, potentially useful plants could survive on the steepsided spoil heaps. The trials were guided by a principle of ‘minimal’ management, which could easily be replicated by local poor farmers with poor resources. It was reasoned that while E~calyytus had been planted on spoil heaps because it grew well and could provide building poles and firewood, perhaps other plants could also be grown on them to help satisfy a wider range of needs and generate more land use options for the local people. Earlier observations indicated that ‘madaci’ or mahogany (Khuycl senegalensis), ‘mangwaro’ or mango (Man&erg in&u) and ‘jambe’ or cashew (Anucardium occidentale) grew fairly well on unrestored mine dumps,” but no systematic attempt has been made to test a wide range of potentially useful species. Initially the trials were conceived as excluding fertilizer application, irrigation, or any tending or other special treatment. It was thought that those plants that survived these harsh trial conditions would probably grow better under less stringent conditions and therefore represent new technical possibilities for selection by the farmers. The first series of trials included 12 different kinds of non-woody legumes including several varieties of beans (Phaseo~l~s spp and Vigrta spp), groundnuts (Arachis hypogaen), soybeans (Glycine mu.~), pigeon pea (Cajanus cajun) and Seshania, which were planted in strips up the sides of heaps. These represented a wide range of potential uses, from human food and livestock fodder to cooking fuel and soil improvement. Twenty different kinds of locally available trees and shrubs were also planted in rows up the spoil-heap sides. Again these offered a variety of use options and many of them represented multiple uses. The tree and shrub types included Fhidherhiu al&da, Leucaena leucocepheala, orange (Citrus sinensis), mango, tamarind (Tumarindus indica), pine, neem (A zadirachtu indica), Moringa oleifera and guava (Psidium guajava) as well as three species of Eucalyptus. In addition, after consultation with a Fulani herdsman and other experts, stofons of Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon), known in Hausa as ‘kiri kiri’, were also pianted. By the end of the 1990 rainy season most of the non-woody legumes were either dead, yellow and stunted or had browning leaves. The two exceptions were Sesshania pachycarpa, some of which grew to 1 m and seeded, and the sword bean ~Cunav~ti~ae~ts~~orrnis),which also survived well. The former could provide green manure, fodder, a protein

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supplement to animal feed and fuel, while the sword bean is a hardy cover crop and, after it has been boiled and drained, a source of human food. Among the trees and shrubs that survived well in the first series of trials were Eucalyptus, Faidherbia, Leucaena, Jacaranda, tamarind and ‘kiri kiri’. The response was, however, quite varied within types. In most cases, by the beginning of the 1990 dry season there were some plants that appeared well established, with evidence of new leaves, others with browning leaves and some that were defoliated and appeared to be dead. By the end of that season only the best-established plants still survived. Generally, those placed at the top of the spoil heaps fared worst, perhaps because of greater exposure to wind and drier soil conditions. Some of the individuals planted on ridges lower down the slopes survived but did not grow well. Those that became established inside gullies often fared best, though others there were destroyed by running water. This suggested that water-receiving sites might be most favourable. During the 1991 rainy season more tree seedlings were acquired and tested, including Albezia lebbeck, Gliricidia sepium, Prosopis cineraria and Cassia siamea, as well as more Eucalyptus, Faidherbia albida, mango, guava and neem. In these trials, alternate seedlings in each single-species row were planted within a catchment basin measuring 0.5 m in diameter. Also Eucalyptus, mango, guava, ‘kiri kiri’ and ‘zogali’ or Moringa oleifera seedlings were tried in sheltered, waterreceiving sites at the top of a spoil ridge. In addition, seeds of 13 different fodder species including varieties of Centrosema and Stylosanthes were tested. By the end of the 1991192 dry season the Albezia, Faidherbia, Eucalyptus, Cassia and, to a lesser extent, Gliricidia had survived well in the ‘alternate basin’ trials. The beneficial effect of the basins was obvious in some, but not all, cases. More obvious, however, was the damage that browsing caused to seedlings planted near the base of the heap. The mango and especially the Eucalyptus survived the test in the receiving sites at the top of the spoil heap, but those planted in larger channels died, as did the guava and Moringa. Almost all fodder species, planted as seed, died before the end of the 1991/92 dry season. The only exceptions were a few stunted individuals of Leucaena pallida. These trials suggested that in addition to Eucalyptus, notably E. camaldulensis, other useful trees could also survive the harsh conditions of the spoil heaps with minimal attention. In particular, Faidherbia albida, Albizia lebbeck, Cassia siamea, Leucaena leucocephala and possibly Gliricidia sepium could be grown to provide fodder, fuelwood and improved soil fertility, though further trials are needed to demonstrate their longer-term viability. Also, the establishment of mango and tamarind could provide wood and fruit. The presence of individual mango and guava trees on Jos Plateau spoil heaps already indicates that they can grow viably on such sites. By contrast, without soil tillage or application of any fertilizer, neither direct seeding with fodder crops nor attempts to produce food crops can be recommended on the spoil heaps. However, it is likely that local grasses such as ‘kiri kiri’, ‘gamba’ and ‘yama’ could be encouraged to spread on these sites. The last two grow naturally on some spoil heaps and are useful for both grazing and roof thatch.

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Indirect mineland reclamation in Nigeriu

Village development

‘%RA Workshop Participants (Marit Team), ‘Project identification using rapid rural appraisal, Part II: Marit village report’, JERDP lnferim Report, No 22, 1991; RRA Workshop Participants (Wereng Team), ‘Project identification using rapid rural appraisal, Part III: Wereng village report’, JPERDP Interim Report, No 23, 1991.

projects

Various projects undertaken in two mineland villages, Marit and Wereng, which are both in Barakin Ladi local government area, represented experiments in participatory community development. The decisions on these projects were made by the villagers themselves and the role of JPERDP was largely to facilitate community action. Since these projects involved staff of government institutions, they were also organizational experiments intended to help improve the staff’s capacity to assist mineland communities. The ‘key issues’ in each village were elicited and analysed, using a rapid rural appraisal undertaken by two teams, each of about people, from the University of Jos, Barakin Ladi local government and various state-level and parastatal institutions. Subsequently, 10 or so projects were identified to help resolve these issues.26 Selected projects were implemented in collaboration with the villagers, local and state-level governments. At the request of the villagers, the first projects were concerned with the improvement of drinkingwater facilities; the provision of agricultural information; the supply of early-maturing ‘acca’ and maize varieties; the acquisition of fertilizer and pump-engines; and assistance with beekeeping. Wherever possible the implementation of these projects took account of the use of mineland and thereby indirectly promoted informal mineland reclamation. Much of the project work was undertaken in collaboration with PADP. Some examples are described here. In Marit the villagers wanted to deepen a spring to increase their domestic water supply in the dry season. JPERDP undertook a rapid survey of the site and assessed the nature of the task. As this would require blasting through granite, which was beyond the capacity of the JPERDP approached an organization charged villagers themselves, with providing rural water supply, the engineering section of PADP, to help execute the project. The villagers were required to contribute NlOOO, or about 20%) towards the cost of the job. which they did within one month - a good indication of the high priority that they gave to the project. Unfortunately a number of problems delayed the completion of the job. These included cumbersome bureaucratic procedures, other pressing demands, lack of transport, breakdown of equipment, theft of explosives and, in the rainy season, flooding of the spring. Consequently, despite priority given to it by PADP. after 18 months the task had still not been completed. This suggests that such jobs might be more effectively undertaken by an independent task-oriented unit or by private contractors, though the costs would be higher. PADP was much more effective in providing information and seeds. The maize variety TZE was quickly identified as the most suitable one for the Wereng villagers. An early-maturing variety, it had been developed for production in mid-altitude areas such as the Jos Plateau. Large quantities of TZE were acquired for distribution to farmers, and the Wereng farmers were able to buy it once they knew that it was available. PADP also assisted with trials on ‘acca’, a small-grain cereal that was important locally but about which little was known. In response to the request by Wereng villagers for early-maturing varieties, JPERDP initiated a search for varieties of ‘acca’ on the Jos Plateau and in neighbouring areas where the cereal is grown. Samples of numerous varieties were identified and collected, and indigenous knowledge about them was recorded. Three early-yielding varieties were then supplied to

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Wereng for farmer-managed trials and to enable them to bulk up the seed. At the same time, on-station trials were undertaken at PADP’s Vom Farm to generate information on 14 different varieties of this crop. The results of such trials are intended to inform PADP’s extension service so that it is better equipped to advise farmers about this crop. Another project to do with provision of agricultural information concerned the training of youths from Marit in dry-season farming techniques. Dry-season farming was new to Marit and the villagers wanted to learn more so that they could effectively exploit their irrigable land. JPERDP in association with Newcastle University Nigeria Expedition 1991, whose members briefly stayed in Marit, selected and cosponsored three youths for training by members of the Yelwa Farmers Association during the 1991/92 dry season. The training mainly entailed practical work under the supervision of expert farmers. At the same time the youths were encouraged to record what they learned in notebooks. After four months the youths had completed a draft guidebook on dry-season farming and given a demonstration in Marit. Through the demonstration, and informal classes arranged by the Marit Youth Movement, the trainees have begun to spread information about the cultivation of many crops which have never before been grown in their village. This project on agricultural information was linked to the establishment of a small-scale irrigation project (230 ha) in Marit. The villagers asked JPERDP to help fix an abandoned pipeline that was previously used in tin mining. The pipeline, 1 m in diameter, ran from nearby Gana Daji reservoir, which has a sustainable water yield of more than 2 million m-?. A feasibility study carried out by JPERDP found that the proposed project was socially and technically feasible and could yield an annual income of N1.7 million for the village.*’ That project is scheduled to go ahead in the 1992193 dry season subject to final agreement between the Marit Community Development Association and the mining company that owns the facility, plus support from donor organizations. The village development projects have been enthusiastically accepted, largely because they were based on the villagers’ own concerns. Despite initial doubts about whether some goals could realistically be achieved and occasional disruption through individual self-interest, several projects succeeded and the capacity of the villagers to mobilize themselves towards greater use of their mineland resources was increased.

Conclusion

27K D Phillips-Howard, K. Shoeneich and E.J: Mabur. ‘The potential use of disused mine dams for irrigation: the case of Gana Daii Reservoir. Plateau State’. JPERDP l&rim Report,’ No 28, 1992, p ? 8. “JPEDRP and RRA Workshop Participants, ‘Project identification using rapid rural appraisal, Part I: Selections of communities and collaborative workshop’, JPERDP lnterim Report, No 21, 1991.

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The pilot projects and trials described in this article were executed in localities that may, in some respects, have been atypical of the larger mining region. However, the villages of Marit and Wereng were selected for being broadly representative of less-accessible mineland areas. After a reconnaissance survey throughout the region, these villages were found to fit the selection criteria and to include the full range of required conditions. ” The Delimi study area was chosen because the dry-season farming there had been observed for eight years and the changes in it were also beginning to occur elsewhere. Moreover, it is possible to extrapolate from these local initiatives to the entire area, as many of the problems faced by the mineland farmers

Indirect mineland reclamation in Nigeria

“G Porter, ‘Food for the urban market: production and distribution patterns on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria’, paper presented at the Institute of British Geographers Developing Areas Research Group Conference on Urban Food Marketing and Consumption in the Third World, Glasgow, UK, April 1992. 30/hid.

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are common all over the Jos Plateau. A recent market survey found that fertilizer and transport were the two factors critical to future development of dry-season farming in 23 widely distributed mineland settlements. 29 There is a w’td e s p read tendency to mix different types of fertilizer to compensate for the shortfall of inorganic fertilizer. Farmers near towns have greater access to urban refuse, which they mix, in the form of ash, with inorganic fertilizer, but farmers further away have to rely more on animal manure and compound sweepings. Transport too can be a problem. The network of tarred roads established for tin mining has deteriorated, and though a new network of untarred feeder roads has been built, generally their condition is variable and they are inadequately maintained. Problems of accessibility may inhibit crop marketing in the more remote villages and those with poor roads, particularly in the rainy season. However, this is less of a problem for the transport of dry-season vegetables, which are regularly collected from the more remote villages by pick-up trucks and transported to bulking markets. Where this is not possible, produce is headloaded by women to the nearest tarred road or other accessible place, and completes its journey to a bulking market by taxi or minibus.3” Hence, although the prices attained may be lower in remote areas, dry-season farming is developing there too because of the availability of mineponds and other water sources. On the basis of the kinds of pilot projects and trials outlined here it is possible to make recommendations on how an indirect ‘people-oriented’ policy to mineland reclamation could be put into effect and extended through the tin-mining region. Such a policy is potentially viable, unlike that based on the 1946 Minerals Act, because it is rooted in the livelihood pursuits of the local people and supported by favourable market conditions. Moreover it need not be affected by any unwillingness on the part of mining companies to give up leases, since the right of the local farmers to continue farming on such leases is in no way jeopardized by their existence. Neither could the unwillingness of past governments to impose restoration clauses affect such a policy. It is recognized that current national economic. agricultural and forestry policies already affect informal reclamation. For example, improved terms of trade for the agricultural sector under Nigeria’s Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) have encouraged agricultural expansion. Also, the establishment of the State Afforestation Programme has enabled mineland farmers to plant Euc’ulyptus on suitable minespoil sites, away from the compounds and crops. A supportive policy environment can further indirectly encourage informal reclamation. Through its support of the ongoing informal reclamation, an indirect policy would certainly succeed to some extent. Moreover, by comparison with direct reclamation undertaken by contractors, which can cost N250 000/ha (according to one recent tender submitted to the Federal Ministry of Mines, Power and Steel [Mines Division]), the support of informal reclamation should be highly cost-effective once the modalities have been worked out. Such a policy would be well suited to the conditions of continuing economic austerity. In fact, since informal reclamation, as observed on the Jos Plateau, is a means of converting wasteland into productive farmland - a valuable economic asset support for it would be a positive contribution to rural development in the mining region.

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Indirect mineland reclamation in Nigeria

3’R.W. Suggestions for a Dutton, Development-oriented Phase 2 and 3: Report on a Short Visit, JPERDP, 1985; J.O. Olaniyan, ‘Brief history of tin-mining on the Jos Plateau’, JPERDP Final Repoti, 1986, pp 304-310.

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However, to match this potential viability, such a policy would need to be able to provide the assistance required by the mineland farmers. This means assured access to loans, pump-engines, fertilizers, seeds, etc, as and when they are needed. The institutions that are responsible for providing inputs and for agricultural development (such as PADP) could become indirect channels for government financial support to mineland reclamation. They may need to be reoriented to respond on a location-specific basis, possibly with the establishment of task units, if they are to become truly effective. Such reorientation could include the development of a more responsive extension service. This is currently being attempted, with a view to building up the capacity of PADP’s agroforestry programme. In particular, the rapid rural appraisal technique is being incorporated, within the context of unified extension, simultaneously to help broaden the land use options of the mineland farmers. Also, workable solutions to the sensitive problems of land tenure that exist in the mining region among leaseholders, indigens, strangers and pastoralists should be sought.“’ Without security of tenure as in, for example, agreed land purchase or mutually accepted terms of hire, farmers may be reluctant to invest labour and capital in the preparation and cultivation of mineland that could, at any time, be confiscated. Assistance requirements could vary over the region, depending on factors such as distance from the markets, type of mineland, water availability, population density and cultural practices. Requirements among particular groups could also differ according to individual circumstances and means. Hence a range of assistance options and choices may need to be identified, for which a flexible, responsive service system would be required to implement them effectively. A successful policy of support for informal reclamation would also require cooperation between the three tiers of government to implement it. Otherwise the policy could fail through political rivalries or lack of commitment. This is essentially a problem that can only be addressed by government itself. In conclusion, it seems certain that so long as the market for temperate vegetables and the demand for food both continue to grow, the Jos Plateau farmers will go on reclaiming mineland without substantial support. However, if they are given support, the process could be greatly accelerated and much more wasteland could be brought into production.

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