South Africa’s chrome riches fuel a deadly underground economy
An illegal chrome-washing plant operates near Nkaneng, an informal settlement outside Rustenburg in South Africa’s North West province [Tsitsi Bhobo/Al Jazeera]But alongside the formal mining sector, illegal extraction has expanded in parts of the country, including North West province, where authorities have raised concerns about unauthorised mining operations, environmental destruction and criminal groups exploiting abandoned and inactive mine sites.
Illegal chrome processors handle ore at a site near Rustenburg in South Africa’s North West province [Tsitsi Bhobo/Al Jazeera]The consequences are increasingly visible in communities surrounding South Africa’s mining zones.
Rustenburg, South Africa – On August 13, a wall of soil collapsed and killed 14 miners, most of whom were believed to be undocumented migrants, at a disused mining site near Nkaneng, an informal settlement outside Rustenburg in South Africa’s mineral-rich North West province.
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