The watchdog role the DMRE is mandated to provide is sorely lacking. The oversight of mining operations and proper compliance with the conditions of authorisations granted is largely absent. The DMRE has myriad legal obligations to the citizens of South Africa and, more particularly, to the local communities who live and work on the West Coast, and whose existence relies on the very resources that are imperilled by mining. The mandate, however, does not exist in a vacuum. The irony is not lost on PTWC that the DMRE’s mandate is to promote mining and that in granting applications the DMRE fulfils its mandate. On the current trajectory, the West Coast will follow the same path unless something is urgently done to arrest this wholesale handover of our invaluable heritage to mining interests. The historical legacy of mining in South Africa leaves catastrophic damage to the land, and to the wellbeing, heritage and livelihoods of communities affected by it. It is anathema to other established or potential land, coastal and marine uses. In contrast to the above, mining, by its nature, is a single-use activity that is finite and destructive. This makes it well-positioned for nature-based tourism, with direct beneficial impact on communities, who also rely on land-based uses such as agriculture, a key employer. This critically important biodiverse region - in terms of terrestrial and marine fauna and flora - supports and sustains key fisheries resources. This part of our country is home to one of the oldest indigenous cultures on Earth, who must survive in a region that is incredibly water-scarce. Then there is the social impact - the lack of meaningful and lasting job creation, the persistent failure to realise social investment in communities, the failure to prioritise the employment of local people, and the failure to transfer skills into communities adjacent to the mines. Among these are mines closing without due closure process, the lack of proper rehabilitation, the ongoing extraction of South Africa’s mineral wealth and the movement of that wealth offshore, the lack of due and proper oversight, and the concomitant and severe environmental degradation that follows. You will know the common mining-related impacts. You have personally inspected mines here and know the unique challenges in this area. The inevitable outcome is that the entire coastline will be prospected or mined. Instead, each application is considered ad hoc and granted in all instances that PTWC is aware of. The cumulative impact of this activity has not been considered, studied or reported on. The mining activities include, as you know, oil and gas interests, diamonds and heavy mineral sands. This includes significant areas inland and offshore. We also note the constant flux this situation finds itself in as more applications are made and approved.Īs you can see, almost the entire coastline from Elands Bay to Alexander Bay, approximately 500km, is under application for prospecting or mining. Try to find a large rockface to ease prospecting.This information had to be obtained and collated by PTWC and its membership because this information is not, as it should be, readily available on the DMRE’s website. Sometimes grass, dirt or other tile types hinder the prospecting. You will have to start tunneling in the tile next to vein. If you try to mine the vein tile from the surface, you will get the message You fail to produce anything, the rock is stone hard, or You cannot keep mining here, the rock is unusually hard (only when you were supposed to get a stone shard, otherwise you'll get You chip away at the rock as usual). You cannot mine the vein tile directly from the surface. Then count 3 tiles from both those edges and the tile you end up with is the ore vein. You need to find one North or South edge, and one East or West edge. You then try to find the tiles where you can no longer prospect the ore. iron ore on the surface, that means that somewhere within a range of 3 tiles around you (including the tiles behind you) an iron vein is located. Prospecting inside a cave is not done to find ores, but to tell specific details about the tile you are prospecting. That's 3 tiles in all directions from the tile you are prospecting. When you prospect on the surface, you can detect ore in an area of 7x7 area around you. You can ignore the height of mountains when prospecting. ![]() ![]() ![]() All the rock and ore tiles are pillars, they are not cubes. Realize that the world is two-dimensional. For updated game mechanics information, check the main namespace articles. It is subject to player opinions, and information may not be factually accurate or up-to-date. Information in player-made guides are not maintained by the Wurmpedia staff. Note: This article is the opinion or suggestion of one or more players.
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