To offset the destruction of wilderness that could be caused by the proposed Fuleni coal mine on the border of the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park (HiP), advisers for the mining company have suggested finding ‘new areas of wilderness’. This was suggested in the Draft Environmental Impact Assessment Report (DEIAR) submitted by Ibutho Coal. 

The proposed anthracite ‘Fuleni’ coal mine is targeted for establishment on the south-eastern border of the world-famous Hluhluwe-iMfolozi game reserve.

According to industry players, however, this is not a feasible option. In a letter to the Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, Dr. David Mabunda, CEO of Ezemvelo, said: “This proposed offset is, in our considered assessment, impossible to achieve. The wilderness area of HiP comprises approximately 32 000 hectares. No equivalent wilderness area exists nor can one be created.”

Kirsten Youens, Environmental Law Specialist, agrees: “The ridiculous suggestion that the iMfolozi Wilderness Area can be replaced by 'purchasing a piece of land and converting it into wilderness' is impossible, given that this place, its natural and cultural heritage, are irreplaceable.”

According to Youens, the mining company has further also suggested paying R3m per year to Ezemvelo as compensation for the loss of Wilderness Trails. She called the suggestion of compensation ‘bizarre’ and ‘naïve’. Says Youens: “The DEIAR demonstrates absolute ignorance and lack of understanding of the internationally acclaimed and respected wilderness.”

Youens told Tourism Update that although the final scoping report for the proposed mine was rejected by the government in October last year, an ‘amended’ scoping report was accepted earlier this year. She added the government now needed to accept or reject Ibutho Coal’s DEIAR by October 2.

Youens submitted a 70-page document to the government objecting to the proposed coal mine. In this document, she details the ‘enormous’ impact on wildlife and wilderness the proposed mining activity would have.

Youens explains that elephants are known to avoid areas under mining exploration, increased human presence, and blasting. “There is also the possibility that stress levels in elephants would increase as a result of the mine, making them more aggressive and a possible threat to people.”

Birds will also be affected by the mining operations so close to the park. “The proposed mine and associated noise will have negative impacts on the endangered White-backed vulture, White-headed vulture, and Lappet-faced vultures, by causing them to abandon their nests and thereby compromise their breeding success. The loss of these breeding sites will negatively impact the population size of these three species, bringing them even closer to extinction in KwaZulu Natal,” she said.

Construction of the Fuleni Mine may also result in predator conflict. Youens explains that over the last two decades the wilderness of HiP has been home to four packs of wild dogs, but their presence would be jeopardised by the mining activities. Also the breeding rates of the Black rhino are likely to decrease as a result of mining, according to Youens’ report. “This, together with certain increases in poaching from the increased human activity in the area, will result in a serious decline in the population of this already critically endangered species.”

Both Mabunda and Youens have appealed to the government to reject Ibutho Coal’s DEIAR. “The overwhelming conclusion is not only that the document is fatally flawed and entirely unacceptable, but that the project as a whole should be rejected,” Youens said.