PIET MARAIS
The Bathurst community is preparing to face the latest threat of a sand and stone mining to the historic 3 000-hectare commonage. This follows an application for a 4ha quarry operation. A public participation meeting is scheduled for Tuesday May 20 at 10am, at the Nolukhanyo COmmunity Hall (Solomon Mahlangu Hall).
A notice was posted last week on a gate of South Africa’s largest municipal commonage, advising passers by of an application to mine stone aggregate and sand across an area the size of 10 football fields. An official notice was subsequently published in Talk of the Town (May 8, 2025).
It emerged that the Bathurst Commonage Management Committee (BCMC) had not been directly consulted or informed about the application. Talk of the Town understands that the committee is convening an urgent meeting to discuss the application.
Acting chairperson Monty Roodt has emphasised that the BCMC supports development initiatives.
“We as a committee are in favour of utilising the Bathurst Commonage as an economic resource to provide income for unemployed residents. However, any development must preserve and promote the environmental integrity of the Albany thicket and the existing grazing. Our lead projects, namely livestock farming and eco-tourism, demand this,” Roodt said.
The committee would meet to decide on the way forward and to come up with a position before the public meeting on May 20. Issues of concern included:
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Failure to adequately notify and consult affected persons and organisations;
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The environmental impact on grazing land, traditional healers, eco-tourism, and the Lushington River;
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The identity of the applicants and their legal status;
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The failure of Ndlambe Municipality, who are party to the establishment of the BCMC and have representation on the committee, to inform it of this application;
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How this application fits into the present land use zoning of the commonage as per the spatial development plan and the integrated development plan (IDP).
This is not the first time there have been attempts to start quarries in the commonage. There are several overgrown former quarries, covering almost 2 hectares. TOTT previously reported on a 2019 bid to start a sand mine and revive and existing stone quarry on the commonage.
The current mining application for stone aggregate and sand is lodged with the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy on behalf of Bathurst Quarry (Pty) Ltd. In order to have their comments taken into account, members of the public must register as interested and affected parties (IAPs), who should then receive the Background Information Document (BID) and draft Basic Assessment Report (BAR). To do so, you should contact the Environmental Assessment Practitioner (EAP) at Lwethuma Environmental Consultants, McDonald Mdluli, on 079 242 1312 and info@lwethuma.com.
According to the notice published on May 8, a public meeting will be held at 10am on May 20, 2025, at the Nolukhanyo Community Hall (Solomon Mahlangu Hall).
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This article was first published in Talk of the Town, May 15, 2025. The newspaper serving the communities of Ndlambe and the Sunshine Coast, with a weekly wrap of Makhanda news, is available at stores from early on Thursdays.