A prospecting application that could result in the area of Cape Agulhas outside of the village of Napier being mined is posing a significant environmental, tourism, and social threat to the area. The Agulhas Wine Triangle (AWT) expresses its concerns.
Mining company Cienth Pty Ltd has recently applied for a prospecting licence from the Department of Minerals and Energy (DMRE). If granted, Cienth Pty Ltd would be permitted to prospect, and later potentially mine, 4 200ha of land.
Jonathan de Thierry, the owner of AWT member winery Skipskop Wines, is a geologist by trade. He comments on the potential of mining in the AWT: "Personally I do not believe any economic gold mineral potential exists on the farms Cienth Pty Ltd have applied for (completely wrong geology and age of rocks).
"Generally, where there is economic gold potential on a property you will see historic workings of gold in quartz veins over time with numerous adits and pits. This is not the case in our area.
"In the 1870s a gold mining company was listed in London based on an adit dug close to Fairfield Farm. This was an early example of a mining scam and when I accessed the adit in the mid 1990s and took samples of the vein they were chasing, the assay results were negative."
According to the AWT, should the application be accepted, grape production and quality will decrease in the region as a result of mining activity.
"The increased traffic will result in air-quality deterioration and produce dust that settles on the leaves of the vines and prohibit photosynthesis," said an AWT spokesperson. "As a result growth of the vines and ripening of grapes will be negatively impacted."
Tourism and agriculture were recently identified by the Western Cape Department of Economic Development and Tourism as the sectors with the greatest potential to accelerate growth and job creation in the area. However, this application puts much of that progress at risk.
The Cape South Coast, specifically the Agulhas Wine Triangle, is becoming increasingly important to wine tourism development in the area. A number of highly acclaimed wine brands that enjoy global recognition are situated in this cool climate area. As such, wine enthusiasts are increasingly flocking to the area to experience these brands and their wines first hand.
There are several tourism facilities within the AWT, such as tasting rooms, accommodation establishments, wedding and function venues, restaurants, farm stalls, and various nature reserves.
Bruce Jack, owner-winemaker of Bruce Jack Wines, said mining in the area would put local wine tourism under threat: "The impact on wine tourism will be severe and immediately felt – no one wants to go wine tasting next to a noisy, loud, dirty opencast mining operation. If mining is approved the destruction of vineyard land and potential vineyard land could be massive..."
Furthermore, farmers will not be compensated sufficiently, and judging from numerous similar mining operations, they won't see remediation or rehabilitation in their lifetimes. Agricultural land values and the value of wine brands and other consumer brands associated with the area will plummet.
Environmentalists are extremely concerned about what mining might mean for the region.
Grant Forbes, conservation manager of the Overberg Renosterveld Conservation Trust, said: "The application area includes renosterveld and Elim Ferricrete fynbos, and both are at risk.
"Western and Eastern Rûens Shale Renosterveld are both listed as Critically Endangered, with only around 5% remaining in the world today. Elim Ferricrete Fynbos is listed as Endangered, also with around 5% remaining. These vegetation types have to be protected. Given that there is so little remaining, these habitats are already under tremendous pressure – and as such, every fragment of remaining natural land matters."
"Even if renosterveld and fynbos aren't directly removed via the mining operations, mining will impact on the health of the entire system – from the land to the freshwater ecosystems," he concluded.
Ross Kettles, manager for the the Nuwejaars River Nature Reserve, added:
"This conservation area of around 47 000ha includes Zoetendalsvlei, one of biggest freshwater lakes connected to the ocean in southern Africa. The Kars River flows into Zoetendalsvlei, which then joins the Heuningnes River, and flows into the De Mond Nature Reserve... The impact of water pollution on these critical freshwater habitats is very concerning."
What’s more, Ross continues, this project poses a real threat to the local agriculture industry: "Agriculture is one of the biggest sectors in the Overberg and Agulhas Plain, also serving as one of the biggest sources of employment. Our farmers depend on these water sources for many of the agricultural activities, in a region known as the breadbasket of the Western Cape for its wheat farming. So aside from the biodiversity value, there are also threats to food security posed by this mining operation."
For further information or to register as an interested and affected party (I&AP), contact McDonald Mdluli, the environmental assessment practitioner (EAP) at the Lwethuma Environmental Consultant agency by sending an email to info@lwethuma.com or a message to 079 242 1312.