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GRAAFF-REINET NEWS & VIDEOS - Thousands of civil society groups, grassroots movements, religious- and traditional leaders, trade unions, youth and women embarked on nationwide actions in South Africa during the period of 22 to 27 September 2021.

These actions were part of the “Uproot the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE)” climate mobilization campaign under the Climate Justice Coalition (CJC), aimed at putting pressure on government to take the climate crisis seriously and accelerate plans for a just transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy alternatives in South Africa.

On 22 September 2021, civil society organisations Support Centre for Land Change (SCLC) and Extinction Rebellion Nelson Mandela Bay (ERNMB), accompanied by a delegation of religious- and traditional leaders, small-scale farmers and fishers, and informal settlement dwellers from Graaff-Reinet, Willowmore and Gqeberha gathered at the offices of the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy in Gqeberha to protest against the DMRE’s continued support for gas and coal projects in the country.

The activists are of the opinion that the DMRE has little consideration for the just transition to renewable energy despite the fact that the special report on Land and Climate Change, that was released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on the 8 August 2019, already indicated that "the consequences on land and food systems will be dire, and they will hit the most vulnerable the hardest if fossil fuels are not phased out immediately."

The demands of the activists included the removal of Gwede Mantashe as Minister of the DMRE, the rejection of any new oil, gas and coal projects, and a rapid just transition to renewable energy in South Africa.

The SCLC expressed particular concern around the relentless push for gas exploration and extraction in the Karoo Basin.

‘Water intense extractive activities such as hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) can never be justified in a drought-stricken region without adequate water resources to sustain the livelihoods of its communities.

The fact that most communities in the Karoo are already totally reliant on underground water qualifies the risk of fracking fluids leaking into the underground water table as an imminent threat to life in the Karoo.’

Watch a video below:

Activists protesting for a just transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy alternatives outside of the offices of the DMRE in Gqeberha

Unfortunately, the activists were met with hostility and prevented from engaging with the DMRE – they were locked out of the Pier 14 Shopping Centre in North End where the offices of the DMRE are based, and the police were called to remove them irrespective of the fact that they have complied with all the regulations pertaining to public gatherings.

A memorandum was, however, handed over to the DMRE with a request for a meeting with the relevant decision-makers to discuss their climate concerns. This meeting is scheduled to take place before the end of October 2021 and interested community members are invited to participate in this meeting.

On 27 September 2021, the SCLC and the Green Connections approached the Central Karoo District Municipality in Beaufort-West to raise concerns relating to the Karoo Deep Drilling project currently conducted by the Council for Geoscience (CGS).

In September 2019 the CGS embarked on an exploratory expedition in the Beaufort-West area to better understand the impact that any geo-resource exploration activities (gas, minerals, deep ground water, etc.) could have on the Karoo environment.

At the time, the CEO of the Council for Geoscience, Mosa Mabuza, stated that the September research programme was aimed at establishing the presence of brackish water, "which may be utilised in the event the country decides to develop the gas."

According to the CGS, Beaufort-West was selected because it lies within the shale gas ‘sweet spot’ and in May 2021 Gwede Mantashe confirmed that a substantial amount of gas have indeed been intercepted.

Watch 2 videos below:

Daantjie Jaftha, former mayor of the Camdeboo (Graaff-Reinet, Nieu Bethesda and Aberdeen) municipality addressing the crowd outside of the offices of the DMRE in Gqeberha

Johannes van Rooyen, member of the Willowmore recycling group under the umbrella of the Baviaans Land and Agrarian Reform Forum (BLARF) addressing the crowd outside of the offices of the DMRE in Gqeberha

Considering that South Africa cannot make an environmental assessment of the Karoo’s shale gas exploration and extraction by means of hydraulic fracturing with the currently available Legal Framework, the geo-environmental assessment report of the Karoo Deep Drilling project will serve as a baseline study for future shale gas research work and will also be used to inform government’s decisions about possible future shale gas developments.

The report will cover the water profile of the area – shallow water for consumption and brackish water for potential exploration and extraction activities – and modelling of the gas quantity.

During the engagement with the Mayor and Municipal Manager of the Central Karoo District Municipality, the adverse impact that any potential shale gas exploration and extraction will have on vulnerable Karoo communities, who are already confronted by the deadly consequences of a rapidly warming planet daily, were highlighted by the delegation of religious- and traditional leaders, small-scale farmers, informal settlement dwellers, youth and women from Graaff-Reinet, Nieu Bethesda, Willowmore, Beaufort West, Merweville and Leeu Gamka.

The Mayor stated that the Central Karoo District Municipality is not aware of any confirmed plans for fracking in the district. Interestingly, he added that, to date, the Central Karoo District Municipality has not received the report of the public consultation process that was conducted prior to the initiation of the Karoo Deep Drilling project.

This means that the Karoo Deep Drilling project went ahead without any consideration for concerns that may have been raised by communities in this regard.

According to the Mayor, the issue of shale gas exploration and extraction still needs to be discussed at local- and district municipal level and it has been tabled for discussion after 1 November 2021. A commitment was made to ensure proper public participation at municipal level before making any decisions relating to fracking in the district.

The need for strong policy and just action to keep global warming below 1,5 degrees could not be more urgent and therefore Karoo communities are urged to join the movement of climate activists in the resistance against fossil fuel exploration and extraction in the Karoo Basin and beyond.

For more information on upcoming campaign actions and how to get involved, or to indicate interest in participating in the upcoming meeting with the DMRE to raise your climate concerns, please contact Rosa-Linda Kock, Director of the Support Centre for Land Change, at 083 739 1768 or rosa-linda@sclc.co.za.

Concerned Karoo community members gathered at the drilling site on the outskirt Beaufort West before engaging with the Central Karoo DM to express their concerns relating to this particular drilling operation