Nieu-Bethesda will be hosting a series of events that will raise awareness about the dangers of fracking this weekend on 27 and 28 July, the latter date being Global Anti-Fracking Day.
Despite ongoing media coverage many South Africans still do not know what Hydraulic Fracturing is and are unaware of the threat that it poses to the environment and the livelihoods of many already under-resourced communities in an exploration area that covers almost one-fifth of South Africa's territorial surface," said Michael Wentworth, organizer of the the anti-fracking events.
"Shell South Africa has applied for exploration rights for 90 000km2 of the ecologically sensitive Karoo - virtually its entirety. The village of Nieu-Bethesda falls within this area and is unique in that it has no petrol station, no tarred roads and no street lights."
According to Wentworth the future of countless little Karoo towns like Nieu-Bethesda will be in danger of extinction as water contamination, environmental degradation and the inevitable loss of livelihoods in a fragile regional economy that is largely sustained by agriculture and tourism.
For more information on the anti-fracking campaign, contact Michael Wentworth at mikeywentworth@hotmail.com.
- George Herald
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