Petition to block R30bn KZN iron ore mine gains momentum
An online petition hopes to stop Jindal Africa’s Melmoth iron ore project at Entembeni in KwaZulu-Natal
31 July 2023 - 15:25
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Residents in Melmoth in northern KwaZulu-Natal don’t want to leave their homes to make way for an iron ore mine. Picture: SANDILE NDLOVU
An online petition to stop a proposed open cast iron ore mine at Entembeni, near Melmoth in KwaZulu-Natal, is gaining momentum, with more than 5,000 signatures since it was started on Thursday.
The petition, which was instituted by the Entembeni Crisis Forum, is run on Change.org.
The forum was formed by the community which is opposing Jindal Africa’s Melmoth iron ore project. The 21,000-ha project will uproot more than 300 families, exhume ancestral graves and endanger millions of rand worth of fruit farms in northern KZN.
The Indian industrial powerhouse first set its sights on the hills of Entembeni, between Melmoth and Eshowe, in 2011 for a R30bn magnetite iron ore mine.
Though some support the mine, residents and the farming community say the mine will deplete their source of water from the Goedertrouw Dam and leave dust on their crops.
The forum said Makhasaneni, in Melmoth, is a key producer of bananas, avocados, citrus fruit and macadamia nuts.
The forum opposes the mine because the environmental harm to the landscape, water, and air is immeasurable. It said it witnessed the impact in 2017 when the mine’s prospecting in the community resulted in the death of livestock and community farming crops and contaminated water.
It said the mine claims it will only move 350 households, but looking at the mining map, it appears it will move about 3,000.
Last week residents blocked the R66 road which connects rural towns such as Pongola, Vryheid, Eshowe, Nongoma and Ulundi, as they demanded the company leave the area and stop their intention to mine.
According to Jindal, a consensual study was done in 2011 and a scoping study in 2012, while a pre-feasibility study was also conducted.
It has completed a bankable feasibility study and the final report is being prepared.
It said the report will go to the board of Jindal and it will then deliberate on whether it is ready to make a final investment decision.
Jindal said the reports will then go to the international organisation.
The social and environmental impact assessments are almost complete and will be submitted by the end of September, Jindal said.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Petition to block R30bn KZN iron ore mine gains momentum
An online petition hopes to stop Jindal Africa’s Melmoth iron ore project at Entembeni in KwaZulu-Natal
An online petition to stop a proposed open cast iron ore mine at Entembeni, near Melmoth in KwaZulu-Natal, is gaining momentum, with more than 5,000 signatures since it was started on Thursday.
The petition, which was instituted by the Entembeni Crisis Forum, is run on Change.org.
The forum was formed by the community which is opposing Jindal Africa’s Melmoth iron ore project. The 21,000-ha project will uproot more than 300 families, exhume ancestral graves and endanger millions of rand worth of fruit farms in northern KZN.
The Indian industrial powerhouse first set its sights on the hills of Entembeni, between Melmoth and Eshowe, in 2011 for a R30bn magnetite iron ore mine.
Though some support the mine, residents and the farming community say the mine will deplete their source of water from the Goedertrouw Dam and leave dust on their crops.
The forum said Makhasaneni, in Melmoth, is a key producer of bananas, avocados, citrus fruit and macadamia nuts.
The forum opposes the mine because the environmental harm to the landscape, water, and air is immeasurable. It said it witnessed the impact in 2017 when the mine’s prospecting in the community resulted in the death of livestock and community farming crops and contaminated water.
It said the mine claims it will only move 350 households, but looking at the mining map, it appears it will move about 3,000.
Last week residents blocked the R66 road which connects rural towns such as Pongola, Vryheid, Eshowe, Nongoma and Ulundi, as they demanded the company leave the area and stop their intention to mine.
According to Jindal, a consensual study was done in 2011 and a scoping study in 2012, while a pre-feasibility study was also conducted.
It has completed a bankable feasibility study and the final report is being prepared.
It said the report will go to the board of Jindal and it will then deliberate on whether it is ready to make a final investment decision.
Jindal said the reports will then go to the international organisation.
The social and environmental impact assessments are almost complete and will be submitted by the end of September, Jindal said.
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