New bulk diamond prospecting application in heavily mined West Coast zone
A company, Fish By The Sea, has applied to bulk-prospect for diamonds on a pristine and fragile stretch of the West Coast already heavily burdened by a deluge of prospecting applications and existing mining operations.
Red lines denote the proposed prospecting area. Low and high water marks are in yellow, and the bulk sampling zones are in purple. This burdened stretch of coast is the focus of many similar mining attempts and current mines, including the vast Tronox Namakwa Sands operation seen in this image, which environmental reports fail to mention.
The proposed site is located about 55km northwest of Koekenaap and about 50 kilometres (km) southwest of Nuwerus on Portion 4 of the Farm Rietfontein Extension No. 151 and Portion 4 of the Farm Graauw Duinen No. 152, Vanrhynsdorp.
The window for comments and objections is open until July 22. Protect the West Coast (PTWC) urges you to register as an Interested and Affected Party (I&AP) to make your opposition loud and clear. Full details below.
The prospecting activity will take place across 18 hectares (ha) of the approximately 121 ha of the affected area (see above image).
Bulk sampling, as it implies, involves gouging out the earth to determine the potential to mine in full. According to the Environmental Impact Report (IER) and Environmental Management Programme (EMPr), 20 shallow pits will be dug … at first.
If it is determined there is sufficient cause to continue (1,000 carats of diamonds overall), a series of trenches 10 to 15 metres (m) deep, 300m long by 150m wide (45,000m² or 4.5 ha) will be dug on the beaches between the low and high tide marks. A berm of 5 to 10 m will be built around each trench to keep seawater out of them.
This will all take place in the centre of an ecologically sensitive area popular for surfing, recreational campers, hikers, fishermen, and local communities, who rely on their catches for sustenance and income. (The area was recently the focus of a major feature on American surfing website Surfline).
The proposed prospecting zone is popular with recreational users, and local communities who rely on fishing for sustenance and income. Image: Jacque Smit.
The public will probably be prohibited from accessing some or all of these areas while the prospecting activity is taking place (and definitely if any actual mining occurs at a later stage).
“This area is the subject of similar prospecting applications for diamonds and heavy minerals, some overlapping,” says PTWC CEO Mike Schlebach. “As you can see in the accompanying image, there are also several operational mines adjacent to this area including the vast Namakwa Sands heavy sand mineral mine run by Tronox, as well as several in the nearby vicinity. We urge you to object to avoid yet another part of this coast being ripped to pieces.”
While the Fish by the Sea application claims the effect of this prospecting on fauna and flora at the location will be zero – and the EMPr stipulates several measures aimed at preventing any damage during the prospecting process – the documentation also concedes that the proposed site overlaps a marine Critical Biodiversity Area.
As in all cases of prospecting for minerals, this is a key factor, because while somewhat disruptive to the environment during prospecting, the damage is comparatively negligible and requires little or no rehabilitation. But full-scale mining that always follows is a different matter.
The affected area is also home to pristine areas used for recreation, including several great surf breaks that will be off-limits if diamonds are mined on these beaches. Image: Ant Fox.
If feasible to mine for alluvial diamonds, the miners will apply for a mining right. If granted, this means it is highly likely they will start digging up more beaches.
They may claim that they will eventually rehabilitate, but experience shows that this beautiful, untouched stretch of coast will not be fully restored to its original state. Throw in a few cofferdams and cliff collapses, and by then the damage will have been done.
“There is no long-term vision for this region,” says Schlebach. “Any environmental and social concerns are pushed aside by potential profits by the mining companies and revenue for the government. This is why PTWC has been calling on the authorities for a moratorium on all mining applications, and a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) for the entire region.”
Until that materialises, please voice your objection or concerns about this application.
HOW TO OBJECT
To register as an I&AP – you can submit your concerns at the same time – please email maboee@enviroafrica.co.za before 22 July 2024. The Public Participation process is being managed by EnviroAfrica CC. See below.
What your email needs to contain
Your name, and contact details, including preferred method of notification;
Project name information (below) and DMRE reference number (below);
Indicate any business, financial, personal, or other interest in the application;
Your comments about the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and Environmental Management Programme Report (EMPR) (at links below).
Project Name
Proposed prospecting for diamonds with bulk sampling on approximately 121 ha between low-water and high-water mark on Portion 4 of farm Rietfontein Extension No. 151 and Portion 4 of farm Graauw Duinen No. 152, Vanrhynsdorp
A team from Protect the West Coast (PTWC), including activists, filmmakers, legal experts, and !Ama leaders recently travelled to the Richtersveld to document the catastrophic damage from mining, while engaging with the community about solutions to their plight. The devastation they saw prompted an urgent letter from PTWC to the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), Dion George, to raise the alarm.
Fish by the Sea has again applied to prospect on the beach for diamonds near Brand-se-baai, adjacent to an area designated as critically biodiverse. This application adds more potential for beach mining on the West Coast, which is already under severe pressure. The new application is a revised submission of the same area, replacing what was publicised by Protect the West Coast (PTWC) in July. Thanks to public input, the first application was deemed inadequate. The revised version is now open for public comment.
