SNC1D Science Journal

Coal mining in South Africa, like many other countries around the world that mine coal, has many destructive environmental impacts. Coal mining destroys and pollutes land, habitats, plants, trees, water systems and air. Coal is mined in two ways; strip mining and underground mining and both have negative impacts on the envirmonment and ecosystems. Strip mining clears layers of land to get to the coal and destroys landscapes and animal habitats in the process. Native animals are pushed from their natural habitats and plants and trees are demolished as the land is cleared for strip mining. Underground mining uses blasting to get to the coal and destroys the land left behind.

Coal mining in South Africa also has an impact on the local indigenous people. Most of the mining companies are owned by foreign companies and their main concern is profit. The locals often are working in the mines while their landscapes are destroyed and their water is polluted. Indigenous people in South Africa have lost their farmland due to the strip mining for coal. The land is destroyed and stripped of soil that is needed to plant crops. As well, the water sources for the indigenous have been polluted and their air is full of coal dust which is causing health issues.