Extracts and Comments | Discussions
Swaziland Greenstone Quarry EIA
I have read summaries and sections of the latest EIA on the proposed Greenstone Quarry within Malolotja Nature Reserve, and would like to register my deep concern about the development.
I have looked at the several concerns voiced by a number of people on the SNTC’s website, and agree with most of what has been said there. Primarily:
* The EIA is, in my opinion, unprofessional insofar as it makes fairly obvious attempts to discredit the conservation activities of the SNTC, making oblique and unwarranted reference to wildfires, domestic animals and gully erosion within the proposed concession. The tone of the document is such that doubt is thrown on the validity of much of the rest of it.
* The EIA is unbalanced, over-focuses on trivia, and does not address the considerable overall negative impacts of the proposed development within this near-pristine part of Malolotja Nature Reserve, insofar as the overall integrity of all aspects of Malolotja NR is concerned.
Rather than dwell at length on disturbance to individual species (endangered or otherwise), noise levels and the myriad of other effects of the mine/quarry elucidated in the EIA, I strongly believe that the SEAs attention should be focused on the overall image of Swaziland within the very strong and progressive regional conservation arena. Should this development be given the green light, it will, in my opinion, send very negative messages to the regional and international conservation community, and very particularly to bodies involved or to be involved in the various initiatives in the country, such as the Lubombo SDI and proposed Biodiversity Corridor project. It would be ironic if, after having come this far, Swaziland fails to keep its house in order for the sake of a few medium-term jobs and some foreign currency earnings, in a project promulgated by a private entrepreneur with no objective apart from financial gain.
James Culverwell