Sinkholes, scarred land and scapegoats: the scourge of illegal gold mining in Johannesburg

There is no end in sight for the drivers of illegal mining, while police action appears ineffective Cora 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...

南非金价飙升带动非法采矿规模扩大，但专家指出天坑主因是正规工业采矿抽排地下水，非法矿工常被当作替罪羊。文章通过多方引述呈现贫困、腐败与矿企未封堵矿井等深层成因。