WE WELCOME ... & Collaborate with:... POTCH UNIVERSITY & BENCH MARKS FOUNDATION ... - Research & Investigative Team ... Looking into the EXTeNSIVE CoAL MINING PLANS OF CoAL OF AFRICA ... : ......... Anti-CpoAL Mining Action group SOLVE (Save Our Limpopo Valley Environment) and AfriForum Louis trichardt, both chaired by Wally Schultz, have been hard at work trying to find new ways to halt Australian Mining company CoAL Of Africa’s extensive coal mining plans north of the Soutpansberg. “We identified the lack of water for mining issue early on, as our primary concern ... and where we will attack them ... and we are doing that! The Limpopo Valley, which includes the entire northern half of the Kruger Park, is an acknowledged water scarce region and we firmly believe that the Minister should declare it a no-go area for any future mining”. says Schultz. “To assist us in the search for other options we invited David Van Wyk from the Benchmarks Foundation (who have an established track record of fighting mines on several fronts - successfully) to spend some time with us in our Beautiful Limpopo Valley this past week, and he has left us determined to return in two weeks with his full research team to onduct field work and research in order to compile a comprehensive report on CoAL Of Africa’s activities in the Valley”, adds Schultz. The government and mining sector wants to roll out coal mines on a massive scale throughout the area in a region that supplies more than 80% of South Africas winter fruit and vegetables, says David van Wyk, lead researcher for the Bench Marks Foundation. The Bench Marks Foundation is investigating the mining activities of Coal of Africa an Australian Mining Company at Vele Mine, some seven Kilometers from the Mapungubwe World heritage Site. Van Wyk and his team also looked at Makhado Mine, Mudimeli village, near the Mudimele Village in Vhembe District of Limpopo. “Coal mining is already rapidly compromising food security through the destruction of top soil and water sources in Mpumalanga, the maize basket of South Africa,” says van Wyk. “The country is experiencing massive increases in prices and it is feared that this development in Limpopo will put fruit and vegetable prices out of reach for most South Africans”. The team did water tests at several boreholes, rivers and streams downstream from the intended Makhado mine and found that the water was of an excellent quality. Should coal mining commence at Makhado Mine the Bench Marks Foundation is afraid that the water quality will significantly deteriorate, based on the Foundation’s experience in other coal mining areas of the country. The Bench Marks Foundation team also conducted preliminary interviews with some community members and farmers and found that there was general unhappiness and apprehension about the prospect of the Makhado Mine. People feel that the mine will jeopardize jobs in the agricultural and tourism sectors and cause net job losses in the area. They also fear that road safety and community health will also be impacted. Although the mine will create a few hundred jobs, it will destroy thousands of jobs in tourism, and agriculture. The Bench Marks Foundation’s research team will return to the area in late January to work with Wally Schultz and his deputy, Johan Fourie to conduct a full-scale detailed investigation. The Team, including Corporate Social Responsibility Centre Personnel, will seek to fully investigate the cost of mining to communities and other industries in the area. It will also establish links with the University of Venda around possible monitoring and issues of common concern. The team will also investigate potential alternatives to mining. Bench Marks Foundation is an independent non-governmental organisation mandated by churches to monitor the practices of multi-national corporations to • ensure they respect human rights; • protect the environment; • ensure that profit-making is not done at the expense of other interest groups; and • ensure that those most negatively impacted upon are heard, protected and accommodated within the business plans of the corporations. The Foundation was launched by the Rt Rev Dr Jo Seoka who chairs the organisation and by member churches of the SACC in 2001. IN PIC Below: Melusi Nkomo (Bench Marks), Johan Fourie (AfriForum and SOLVE,Chris Malebatsi (Bench Marks), David Van Wyk (Lead Researcher Benvh Marks, Suzanne reyneke (NWU), Prof Freek Cronje (NWU), Carina Botha (NWU),Prof Eddie Bain (NWU) and Front: Syd Schultz and Wally Schultz (friForum & SOLVE)
Posted on: Wed, 21 Jan 2015 08:24:54 +0000
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