As hard working citizens we tend not to have time to spend hours on the internet (although some of us do spend half of our lunch break checking Facebook), thus we rely on our local news sources, i.e. television news, newspapers, etc. to supply us with the necessary and up-to-date information. It does come as a surprise that one of the biggest catastrophes to hit this planet has been kept mostly under the radar.


The tsunami of 2011 left the whole world shaken up by its destructive power, yet the true impact would only come to light almost 2 years later. Taking 5 minutes to google “Fukushima” offers up 45 900 000 results and the true horror unfolds before your eyes.

For those unaware of the situation, the ripples of the 2011 tsunami shook the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Plant and resulted in a massive release of radiation into the atmosphere. This has since resulted in countless lives lost and countless more having to leave their homes, their farms, their jobs to try and escape the effects of the radiation.


Spread of Radiation through the Pacific Ocean

The latest news on the disaster is that the event has been raised to a Level 3 Rating on the International Scale of serious nuclear incidents. It has also been discovered that since the event, approximately 300 tons of highly radioactive water has been leaking into the Pacific Ocean DAILY! Already, reports are surfacing of contaminated fish species and children born with severe thyroid defects.

BREAKING NEWS

The national electricity supplier Eskom aided by the South African government has earmarked Bantamsklip in the Overberg as one of the preferred sited for a nuclear power station.


Bantamsklip is located on the south western coast of the Overberg and is situated on the Groot Hagelkraal farm which is registered as a Private Nature Reserve and a South African Nature Foundation National Heritage Site. Bantamsklip holds 22 Red Data list species of which 6 are entirely restricted to the farm. Moreover, the Bantamsklip coastline is considered to hold the highest level of Marine endemism found in Southern Africa. The location is also adjacent to the Dyer Island Nature Reserve and Dyer Island Marine Sanctuary.

When the plans of Eskom and the government came to light, a handful of individuals decided to jump in and see how they could put a stop to this abomination by forming the Save Bantamsklip Project. Powering the project with their own time and money for the past 5 years, these individuals have unfortunately run out of resources.


It is now up to us to help make a difference! This is no longer happening in a land far across the ocean, but right next door to us! The effects of having a nuclear power plant in this beautiful area so rich in biodiversity would be a crime – against nature, against us and against our future!

Visit the Save Bantamsklip website (www.savebantamsklip.org) to cast your vote and get involved to stop this ludicrous plan from going forward!