MARK OLALDE
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South  Africa

A  journey  into  south  Africa's  mines,  the  lives  of  its  miners  and
the  energy-production  industries  fueling  Africa's  rapid  growth

By: Mark Olalde


#16DaysofActivism  and  the  Struggle  for  the  Community  Voice

1/2/2017

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Women protest nuclear and coal power in front of Eskom's Braamfontein offices.
Eita,

In light of the Water Protectors' recent victory over the Dakota Access Pipeline -- at least partially and for the time being -- I'd like to briefly engage with the idea of environmental justice and local activism.

On December 1, more than 100 people, mainly women, protested at the Johannesburg offices of Eskom, South Africa's main power producer. As part of the #16DaysOfActivism campaign -- which had stopping violence against women and children as its theme -- the women spun a narrative of Eskom as a male raping the country's women.

Their first demand was that Eskom stop a controversial move to significantly increase nuclear power in the country. They also protested against coal, in support of renewable energy and against the recently released Integrated Resource Plan (IRP).

The IRP, which lays out the country's electricity plan for the future, had been anxiously awaited by affected parties, and environmentalists and activists were severely disappointed with the result. The report uses outdated information to create, they claim, a narrative that a coal/nuclear mix makes sense for the country moving forward.

One of the main environmental NGOs in South Africa, groundWork submitted its comments on the IRP. Like many other observers, groundWork members were upset by the incorrect data and what it viewed as insufficient public participation. In its comments, the group wrote: "We conclude that this is not a good faith process but one designed to limit rather (sic) facilitate participation. This invites speculation on [the Department of Energy's] motives and, read with the manipulation of data, it points to deceitful defence of the nuclear agenda & of coal."

All the country's nuclear power is currently generated by the Koeberg Nuclear Power Station in the Western Cape. According to data from the Department of Energy and Eskom, the power station has two generators with a total installed capacity of 1,800 megawatts, and it provides about six percent of the country's electricity.

The fear of generating additionaly electricity via "nukes" may be a bit more steeped in Hollywood-esque fear of Three Mile Island, Fukushima and Chernobyl than scientisists might like. However, activists also question the level of technology that South Africa would obtain from abroad, where radioactive waste would be disposed and the price efficiency of choosing to build new generation in any sector other than renewables.

The CEO of Eskom recently stepped down in an attempt to clear his name after the public protector implicated him in the report on state capture. The new acting CEO is thought to be pro-nuclear. In a recent interview, he admitted that renewable is cheaper and that he would consider it for independent power producers (called IPPS). However, he then said there is not enough renewable energy potential in South Africa to meet demand. This is, of course, a claim strongly contested by the pro-RE crowd.

In November, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research released its own lowest cost scenarios for 2040: "Solar PV, wind and natural gas is the cheapest new-build mix for the South African power system."
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A man peers through the windows of the Eskom offices at protesters reflected outside.
While this debate continues, the communities protesting at Eskom's offices are some of those most directly affected by electricity generation. For example, in Mpumalanga poor townships and informal settlements exist adjacent to coal mines and coal-fired power plants.

These mainly black communities are unlikely to have much of a voice in high level electricity generation decision-making. Hence a demonstration like this. Of note, no other journalists were present at the protest.

This entire situation leaves one major question about these highly impacted communities unanswered: Will their voices be heard?
​
Sharp,
​Mark
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Photo  of  the  Week:  Footprint

12/29/2016

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Eita,

This photo was recently published in Oxpeckers (here: http://oxpeckers.org/2016/12/mine-closures-whats-happening-in-your-back-yard/) to help tell the story of the failure to rehabilitate gold mines across Gauteng province. Thanks to a non-profit called the Bateleurs (named for a type of eagle), I was able to fly over the Central Rand to see Central Rand Gold's operations, the West Rand to see Mintails' operations (pictured)  and the Far West Rand to see the abandoned Blyvooruitzicht Gold Mine. In addition to illustrating the true scope of some of these issues, these aerial photos allowed me to effectively see past walls and security guards to determine what activities are really taking place inside the country's mines.

Sharp sharp,
Mark
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Photo  of  the  Week:  Pollution  Control

12/1/2016

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Eita,

Feast your eyes on what is clearly not the best photo ever. But, it's the content that's important.

The brown liquid in the lower left-hand corner is acid mine water. The reeds mark the aboveground portion of the Wonderfonteinspruit, a stream used by communities (not ones where politicians or CEOs live, let's put it that way) for irrigation and many other purposes. This water mixes because a dam controlling polluted runoff from mines has a crack in it.

I was tipped off by an activist who was tipped off by a whistleblower, so I investigated. I took this photo while standing on the dam wall, and it quickly became clear that the claims were valid. I then called the CEO of the company responsible -- a mine waste remining company called Mintails Mining South Africa (Pty) Ltd -- and without hesitation he admitted to knowing about the problem.

I published this information in Johannesburg's (arguably) flagship daily, and the reaction was....not really anything. So there you have it. Back to work.

Sharp,
Mark
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Update:  Recapping  the  First  Third

11/1/2016

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Sharp sharp,
As we've all been watching my home country tear itself apart, I'm trying to keep busy in my adopted home country. I am likely a third of the way through this latest reporting stint, so it's time to check in on my progress.

This time around, I began expanding my multimedia skill set with some (still a tad rough) podcasts to accompany my work on Oxpeckers. Expect a few more attempts before my time here is done. Also, I am working toward short video pieces for my longer investigations. More to come on that front.

Most significantly, I am finally digging into the documents to which the Department of Mineral Resources granted me access at the end of last year. Check out The Star newspaper (and its website: www.iol.co.za) next week for details from that investigation. Although my analysis of the information is still in its infancy, what will appear in this upcoming story will be the first time this information has seen the light of day on any public platform in South Africa. My major roadblock through this first phase of my work has been the Department's unwillingness to release the rest of the information to which I was legally granted full access. I have been fighting this and will keep fighting until I receive it. My hope is to publish longer features off that information in the next third of my reporting.

The below list includes stories that are either already published or completed and about to be published. Here are some of the questions I have been trying to answer:

Oxpeckers Center for Investigative Environmental Journalism
--How does the potential for seabed strip mining impact a recent shift toward developing  a sustainable marine-based economy? http://oxpeckers.org/2016/11/3345/
--Would the South African government really allow mining in extraordinarily important, water-producing areas during a drought? http://oxpeckers.org/2016/10/3269/
--Why is it so difficult for communities to successfully organize in opposition to mining? http://oxpeckers.org/2016/09/3137/

Inter Press Service
--Who benefits from allowing coal mining underneath protected wetlands? http://www.ipsnews.net/2016/10/amid-south-africas-drought-proposed-mine-raises-fears-of-wetlands-impact/
--(Soon to publish) Is there any country in the world that will allow offshore phosphate mining?

The Star
--(In above photo) How has historic mining facilitated sinkhole formation, and how will impending mine abandonment affect the issue?
--(Soon to publish) Are there specific mining companies flaunting the laws governing mine closure, and is the system broken nationwide?

The Africa Report
--(In above photo) Coming from my past investigation into Malawi's competing interests of hydropower and irrigation, which has the upper hand?
--(Soon to publish) What market forces helped create a zama zama-based industry, and is there any way to regulate this black market force?

Next up on the docket, I plan to focus on several larger threads: rehabilitation funds and closure certificates, corruption in the coal-to-energy complex, and the manner in which Western mining companies obtain mining rights in South Africa. I also have fascinating leads from whistleblowers and activists, and you can bet I will be tracking those down.

Recent developments in South African politics -- namely the finance minister fighting a shadow war with the influential Gupta family and the former public protector taking on state corruption -- have had a beautiful side effect of making new documents public. This, too, will play into the next step of my work.

As always, thanks for reading, keeping watching this space, and let's try to not rip up the Paris Climate Agreement.
Cheers...

​Mark
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Photo  of  the  Week:  Sinkholes

10/12/2016

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One of my (too many) ongoing stories takes on the issue of sinkhole formation, especially around Johannesburg. The two sinkholes pictured here are in the town of Carletonville, about 50 miles west of the city.

According to a 2011 report from the Council for Geoscience, 50 towns around the country -- including parts of Johannesburg and Pretoria -- sit fully or partially on dolomite, a rock that is predisposed to sinkhole formation. The three major methods of sinkhole formation are the lowering of the water table, water leaking from poorly managed infrastructure and surface water drainage.

That first method initially sparked my interest, as mining dewatered the Far West Rand, dropping the area's water level. The sinkholes in the above photo formed a little more than a year ago, likely caused by pipes dripping over a dewatered area.
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    Mark Olalde

    I was a freelance journalist, previously based in South Africa, where I reported on the related industries of mining and energy production.

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