Controversial mining plans in Pondoland, Eastern Cape, could be halted if a new government assessment decides there are better ways to use the land. But there is confusion about which department will have the final say.
A strategic environmental assessment (SEA), scheduled to be done early next year, will advise the government on the best uses for land in the ecologically sensitive Pondoland. The area has been the focus of intense concern for more than two years, since it became known that the Australian consortium, Mineral Resource Commodities, planned to mine the coastal dunes at Xolobeni for ilmenite. The equally controversial N2 toll road, which will cut through Pondoland and link Umtata with KwaZulu-Natal’s South Coast, has also been linked to the mining operations.
The SEA, coordinated by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism and the Eastern Cape government, will evaluate whether dune mining is the best option for Pondoland or whether other developments may be more beneficial.
”Instead of being reactive like environmental impact assessments (EIAs), SEAs are pro-active and advocate the best use for a specific area,” Chippie Olver, Director General of the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, told the Mail & Guardian. The assessment is expected to be completed in August next year.
Last month the M&G reported that tensions in the government were sharpening over Pondoland. In June Marthinus van Schalkwyk, Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, told the M&G the final decision on whether mining in Pondoland will go ahead did not lie with Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, but with the Department of Minerals and Energy.
Olver is also adamant that current legislation leaves the Department of Minerals and Energy with the final say. He said it allows mining companies to bypass Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism and deal only with the Department of Minerals and Energy to approve mining EIAs.
But Yvonne Mfolo, director of communications at the Department of Minerals and Energy, said this week Van Schalkwyk will ultimately decide whether mining goes ahead in Pondoland, because he presides over the EIA process. She added that Mineral Resource Commodities has not yet applied for a licence to mine the dunes, and has only been granted a prospecting licence. ”When we receive an application, we will decide whether the mining is a viable option,” she said.
New EIA regulations, currently being promulgated for comment, would put all EIAs, including mining, under the umbrella of Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism.
Olver said the regulations are being changed because ”no developer, including miners, should have special treatment in getting EIAs approved”.
The regulations are scheduled to be implemented next year, but Olver is uncertain whether Pondoland mining will be affected because of a transitional phase to ease developers into the new legislation.