It is extraordinary and totally unacceptable. A few days ago it seemed as though the apparent plans to prospect for minerals in various parts of the Cape winelands were off. But apparently not. The African Exploration Mining and Finance Company (AEMFC) was reported as announcing that it was withdrawing its application "for strategic business reasons". Now, according to the Winelands Action Group, AEMFC's consultants have said that the state company is still going ahead with the application process. "An untenable situation has developed where either the employees and consultants of AEMFC have deliberately gone against the chairman's public statements, or else there was a deliberate attempt by AEMFC to distract both the media and the public at large by informing them of the application withdrawal, but then still continuing with the process hoping there would be no comments received by the objectors to the plans."

The Winelands Action Group has called on the chairman of AEMFC to withdraw the plans and to clarify the situation. And the Department of Minerals and Energy Director-General Sandile Nobxina is called on to "step in and put an end to this farcical situation".

Local and international opposition to the potential threat of mining in the winelands has led to thousands of opposition registrations being received by the consultants to AEMFC by  9 March 2010. The Winelands Action Group was formed from communities affected by the winelands rights applications. It has aligned itself with the World Wildlife Fund, The Endangered Wildlife Trust, the Verlorenvlei Coalition and the Mapungubwe Action Group amongst many others, "calling on all affected parties country-wide to join forces to oppose the indiscriminate issuing of prospecting and mining licenses in economically, ecologically and environmentally sensitive areas of South Africa."

The Group's Facebook page- Stop Mining Our Winelands - has attracted about 3000 comments so far.