West Coast mining: A new report looks at what these valuable mineral sands are and how surrounding communities still suffer extreme poverty.
Mining has existed on the West Coast for over 100 years. A new report looks at what these valuable mineral sands are and how surrounding communities still suffer extreme poverty, unemployment and food insecurity. At the heart of this narrative are the heavy minerals —- zircon, ilmenite, and rutile — concealed within the grains of sand.
Cloete said there is no medical clinic in Papendorp, with community members having to travel to either Lutzville or Dorongbaai for treatment, yet mining companies were making billions from the minerals extracted from these communities., showing the impact of the historical reaping of minerals from poverty-stricken communities on the West Coast for billions over time.” was authored by Carsten Pedersen from the Transnational Institute.
In the report, Pedersen looked at Tronox Holdings which operates Namakwa Sands in Saldanha and Matzikama, and KwaZulu-Natal Sands in Empangeni. Pedersen noted that these operations were less visible on the radar because they did more “clean business” and good PR work, so you don’t see the same injustice. But when he looked at the scale and size of the company, Pedersen this was the one they needed to pay attention to.
“This is why the minister was putting forward that South Africa had to maintain good trade relations — and this was only titanium, there are many more at play.” “Tronox alone accounted for 60% of that production of which approximately 40% is derived from the West Coast sands and the remainder from KwaZulu-Natal and its Australian mines. Zircon is a strong and heat-resistant mineral that is applicable in a wide range of products.
Pedersen said that sand mining was a billion-dollar industry and only a tiny proportion of the profits stayed in South Africa. He said the resources along the coast should be utilised and developed in a way that benefits the people in the area. “What that means is it creates a separation of communities from the land, from access to resources, the deepening of inequality and poverty in our communities and the reliance on grants because no work is coming to communities, the livelihoods have changed, they’re no longer able to fish or to grow food or rear cattle, etc,” she said.
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