| Department backs off from winelands mining | |
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Residents and farmers in the Cape Winelands expressed cautious delight on Thursday at the news that the controversial plan to mine in the region may not be approved by the government. The news emerged from Parliament on Wednesday after the director-general of the Department of Mineral Resources, Sandile Nogxina, was quoted as saying that the department would not approve the application by state-owned mining company African Exploration Mining and Finance Corporation to prospect and possibly mine in the Bottelary and Durbanville areas. On Thursday morning, a spokesperson for the department, Jeremy Michaels, confirmed the department's position. "The state-owned mining company applied, from what we understand, for the prospecting licence on the basis of a geological survey, not knowing what the land was being used for. Then... they discovered that these were wine farms. We understand that they will withdraw their application. But whether they proceed or not, their application will not be granted. A responsible government has to balance the needs of the country, and clearly, in this case, we can't be disrupting the wine-making industry." Source: IOL Comments
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And is this company going to pull the same lame excuse for the land in Mpumalanga where they are also looking to prospect - the large majority of it being critical and in some cases protected habitat?
I also read in a Mail & Gaurdian article last night that apparently the African Exploration Mining and Finance Corporation is not intending to withdraw their application... Not sure which article is the most recent and/or up to date.