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This guide outlines the criteria and risk assessments for mining activities within high-importance biodiversity priority areas. It establishes a rigorous set of filters and a risk-averse approach to determine if mining is an optimal land use compared to the preservation of critical ecosystems and water resources.

The Matzikama Municipality issued a decision on 24 July 2020 approving the rezoning of a portion of Farm Geelwal Karoo No 262 from Agriculture zone I to Industrial zone III to allow for mining activities and a mineral processing plant.

This document is a communication from the South African Department of Mineral Resources and Energy to the Centre for Environmental Rights regarding a request for access to information under the Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000.

This document is an addendum to an Integrated Environmental Authorisation (IEA) issued by the South African Department of Mineral Resources to Mineral Sands Resources (Pty) Ltd. It implements amendments to the original IEA following an appeal decision by the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment.

This document consists of an expert affidavit and a supporting statement by botanical consultant Nick Helme, provided to the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER). Helme critiques the environmental impact assessments for the expansion of the Tormin Mine, arguing that the failure to conduct site visits during the optimum spring flowering season led to an underestimation of the botanical sensitivity and the presence of Species of Conservation Concern (SCC) in the development footprints.

Expert affidavit by ecological scientist Peter Carrick regarding the proposed expansion of the Tormin Mine on the West Coast of South Africa. Carrick critiques the Terrestrial Ecology Specialist Study (Todd 2018), arguing that the proposed rehabilitation and restoration plans lack specialist knowledge and specific, measurable targets necessary to protect biodiversity and ecological integrity in the Namaqualand Strandveld.

This expert affidavit by Associate Professor Merle Rozanne Sowman supports an application by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) to suspend a decision allowing Mineral Sands Resources (Pty) Ltd (MSR) to expand its Tormin Mine operations on the South African West Coast. Professor Sowman argues that the expansion, which includes ten beaches and inland mining on Farm Geelwal Karoo 262, is causing accelerated cliff erosion and marine sediment pollution, while failing to adequately assess cumulative environmental impacts across MSR's broader regional applications.

Robert dos Santos provided a confirmatory affidavit stating that he captured aerial footage of the Tormin Mine and its extension area on 16 October 2020. These images were used by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) in a legal application to suspend a decision allowing Mineral Sands Resources to expand the mine's operations.

A letter from President Jacob Zuma to the Speaker of the National Assembly dated 16 January 2015, referring the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Amendment Bill back to the National Assembly for reconsideration due to concerns regarding its constitutionality and legal compliance.