Kimberley loses its glitter

JOHANNESBURG – For Kimberley, a town that sprang into existence virtually overnight in South Africa’s nineteenth century diamond rush, the decision by gem giant De Beers to close its underground mines there could be devastating.

Built from nothing in a matter of months after the first big diamond find in 1871, Kimberley was once said to have more millionaires per square foot than anywhere else on the planet. On Monday, De Beers said its last underground mines there would be closed by January, with the loss of around 1 000 jobs.”It’s going to have a huge impact on Kimberley,” said Johan du Plessis, managing editor of the Diamond Fields Advertiser, a paper that began with the first prospectors.”Unemployment is going to skyrocket.There’s no agriculture here to speak of, no industry.”Without diamonds, few would ever have moved to the site where a handful of gems were found on a farm owned by Nicolaas de Beer in 1871.But once it started, men such as future empire builder Cecil Rhodes flocked from all over the world.Rival diggers dug deep into a shaft of diamond-bearing volcanic rock – known as kimberlite – creating what became known as the ‘Big Hole’, now a 200 metre deep tourist attraction in the centre of the town.Other mines were dug into kimberlite pipes around the town, with three still in use by De Beers, which is 45 per cent owned by Anglo American.De Beers Managing Director Gary Ralfe on Monday said it was no longer cost-effective to keep them running although the firm – still based in the town – would continue to process spoil heaps to recover diamonds previously overlooked.The Advertiser’s Du Plessis said the job losses would stun the community, despite the company’s statement earlier this year that many of its South African operations were losing money.More than one in four South Africans are out of work.”We did know that they were facing major cutbacks,” he said.”But they’ve always downplayed any suggestion of shutting the mines.”After the government, De Beers is the second largest employer in South Africa’s sparsely populated Northern Cape province.Although the industry is less important than a century ago, the impact of the roughly 1 000 redundancies will be severe, the main mining union said.”This will create a massive crisis for the communities,” National Union of Mineworkers Deputy General Secretary Archie Palane told Reuters.”In areas where there are no alternatives, the impact will be very severe.Many people will just leave.”- Nampa-ReutersOn Monday, De Beers said its last underground mines there would be closed by January, with the loss of around 1 000 jobs.”It’s going to have a huge impact on Kimberley,” said Johan du Plessis, managing editor of the Diamond Fields Advertiser, a paper that began with the first prospectors.”Unemployment is going to skyrocket.There’s no agriculture here to speak of, no industry.”Without diamonds, few would ever have moved to the site where a handful of gems were found on a farm owned by Nicolaas de Beer in 1871.But once it started, men such as future empire builder Cecil Rhodes flocked from all over the world.Rival diggers dug deep into a shaft of diamond-bearing volcanic rock – known as kimberlite – creating what became known as the ‘Big Hole’, now a 200 metre deep tourist attraction in the centre of the town.Other mines were dug into kimberlite pipes around the town, with three still in use by De Beers, which is 45 per cent owned by Anglo American.De Beers Managing Director Gary Ralfe on Monday said it was no longer cost-effective to keep them running although the firm – still based in the town – would continue to process spoil heaps to recover diamonds previously overlooked.The Advertiser’s Du Plessis said the job losses would stun the community, despite the company’s statement earlier this year that many of its South African operations were losing money.More than one in four South Africans are out of work.”We did know that they were facing major cutbacks,” he said.”But they’ve always downplayed any suggestion of shutting the mines.”After the government, De Beers is the second largest employer in South Africa’s sparsely populated Northern Cape province.Although the industry is less important than a century ago, the impact of the roughly 1 000 redundancies will be severe, the main mining union said.”This will create a massive crisis for the communities,” National Union of Mineworkers Deputy General Secretary Archie Palane told Reuters.”In areas where there are no alternatives, the impact will be very severe.Many people will just leave.”- Nampa-Reuters