Lawyer vows court action
August 18, 2008 Edition 1

ARTHI SANPATH and RIVONIA NAIDU

The Department of Minerals and Energy’s decision to give the green light for mining on the Eastern Cape’s Wild Coast will not go unchallenged.

This is the word from environmental lawyer Prof Jeremy Ridl, who is working with the Sustaining Wild Coast Campaign (SWC) to stop mining on the ecologically sensitive coastline.

“Non-governmental organisations are mobilising, co-ordinated under the SWC’s campaign and technical experts to appeal the decision to mine,” Ridl said. He added this would be a “lengthy and cumbersome” process that could take years.

“If there are attempts to start the mining before the appeals process has ended, then there will be court action,” he said.

The wrangle over the Xolobeni Minerals Sands Project on the Wild Coast has become a controversial battle between the government and environmentalists.

On Friday, department of minerals and energy minister Buyelwa Sonjica told the media that the Australian company, Mineral Resource Commodities, was awarded provisional mining rights.

Some leaders in the impoverished community have welcomed the mining, saying employment will be created.

But Ridl explained that a sustainable long-term plan had still not been brought forward by the government. The lack of this plan, he said, would have a negative effect on the surrounding communities when the mine “closed shop”.

“The lack of the long-term sustainable plan has the ability to destroy the communities,” he said.

Ridl said while employment may be created in the short term, the real profits “will not be seen in the communities”.

“All that will be left behind will be a wasteland and the mine will massively change the coastal dune environment, resulting in the tourism option being ruled out,” he said.

This was a problem experienced worldwide, he said.

Ridl explained that although there had been questions raised over the lack of an environmental management plan, objections seemed to have been “dismissed”.

Opposition political parties said the views and benefits of the people in Xolobeni were most important.

The Democratic Alliance spokesman on environmental affairs, Gareth Morgan, said because the OR Tambo district was one of the three poorest municipalities in the country that fell out of the net of government delivery, many people who are desperate for all types of opportunities could view unsustainable developments like mining as attractive.

“But my view is that eco-tourism in the Wild Coast has a far more competitive advantage than any other of our coastlines. If it remains pristine, jobs can be provided on a sustainable basis.

“Mining in that area could create jobs, but not more than a few 100 jobs, and it would only last about 22 years. Thereafter, the area becomes less attractive and would lose its appeal as a tourist destination,” he said.

He said Sonjica sought to racialise an issue so she could stifle debate on the issues affecting the community.

IFP member of parliament Thulasizwe Buthelezi said the needs of the community on the Wild Coast needed to be balanced against conserving the environment.

Posted on August 20th, 2008
Filed under: Newspaper and Media