In a powerful indication of public participation, the recently publicised application by Bongani Minerals to mine tungsten and other minerals near Piketberg on the Cape West Coast has received more than 750 objections from Interested and Affected Parties (I&APs).
Site map of the proposed application.
The application in the Moutonshoek catchment area will likely negatively affect nearby farmlands, livelihoods and the environment – leading to potentially dire consequences downstream at Verlorenvlei at Elands Bay on the coast, for example. The great response underlines that knowledge is power and community is strength.
There are not many methods to fight the onslaught of mining applications on the West Coast, but the Public Participation Process is one of our strongest mechanisms.
To see it utilised to this scale and effect is a significant result. We don’t know if this is a record, but to our knowledge the average number of objections to prospecting and mining applications in the area ranges from a handful to a few dozen registered I&APs. But 750? That is explosive!
These objections are a testament to the hard work by organisations such as Friends of Verlorenvlei, Protect The West Coast, and several other community activists and stakeholders who have been lobbying the community to register their objections.
Even better news is that it is STILL not too late – you can also make your voice heard!
Advocate Martin Coetzee, who is handling the objection process on behalf of the community, is still able to receive objections and wants this number to reach at least 1,000.
So, if you don’t want to see an ugly tungsten mine sullying the West Coast, please add your name to that list by registering as an I&AP.
To register, and for more information, contact Martin Coetzee on marcec@mweb.co.za
To read our post on the full background of this mining application, please click check out the full article here: https://www.protectthewestcoast.org/post/new-tungsten-mining-threat-in-the-pristine-mountains-of-moutonshoek-near-piketberg
The Protect the West Coast (PTWC) stand at the Wavescape Film Night in Kirstenbosch was feverishly busy as members of a sellout audience at the Galileo Outdoor Cinema in Kirstenbosch flocked to view and buy PTWC merch. More than 750 people attended the screening of three films celebrating surf culture and ocean conservation.
Protect the West Coast (PTWC) encourages the public to sign up as an Interested and Affected Party (I&AP) via www.ripl.co.za by March 10 for a new application by Richwill Diamonds to prospect for diamonds on a stretch of coast in the Northern Cape that includes the farm Strandfontein 559, where the company has been charged with trespassing by landowners Braam and Therese Nieuwoudt. PTWC experts have raised concerns about the effect of invasive prospecting on the beaches and terrestrial vegetation, the broad long-term implications on this sensitive biodiversity area, and public beach access should it lead to a mining right.
OF THE CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA, 1996
Everyone has the right to an environment that is not harmful to their health or well-being; and to have the environment protected, for the benefit of present and future generations, through reasonable legislative and other measures that prevent pollution and ecological degradation; promote conservation; and secure ecologically sustainable development and use of natural resources while promoting justifiable economic and social development.
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