AI summary
Illegal gold mining in Johannesburg causes severe environmental damage and human injury, yet ineffective police action allows the dangerous practice to persist.
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Sinkholes, scarred land and scapegoats: the scourge of illegal gold mining in Johannesburg
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There is no end in sight for the drivers of illegal mining, while police action appears ineffectiveCora Bailey has been encountering illegal miners ever since she first started treating injured animals in the townships around Roodepoort, west of Johannesburg, in 1991. But as the price of gold has soared, so too has activity in the abandoned mine shafts that mark the area.In late September, dozens of zama zamas – the name given to illegal miners in South Africa, meaning roughly “to take a chance” in Zulu – arrived to dig for gold across the dirt road from her charity, Claw (Community Led Animal Welfare). Continue reading...
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