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The National Heritage Resource Act (1999): Can legislation protect South Africa's rare geoheritage resources?

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  • Cairncross, Bruce

Abstract

In South Africa, rare geological specimens are protected by the National Heritage Resource Act (1999). These portable geoheritage objects are neither defined nor described in this Act making their geoheritage status questionable. Thirteen categories and criteria for establishing a geological specimen's rarity status are discussed and include (1) rarity as defined by abundance per se; (2) rarity of a particular habit (external shape or form) of a mineral; (3) rare pseudomorphs; (4) rarity of a particular variety of a mineral; (5) rarity of a particular colour of a common mineral; (6) rarity defined by size; (7) rarity defined by quality; (8) a common species, but rare for a particular locality; (9) rarity of associations of minerals; (10) rarity determined by source being depleted, exhausted or mined out; (11) rare inclusions in minerals; (12) previously rare, now common specimens and (13) miscellaneous criteria that produce rare specimens. Geological specimens (resources) are complex objects when defining their rarity status and multiple rarity factors can apply to single specimens. A lack of clear criteria for defining rare geological specimens appears to place the National Heritage Resource Act (1999) in direct conflict with the more recent Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (2002) which legitimizes the legal exploitation of any mineral resource.

Suggested Citation

  • Cairncross, Bruce, 2011. "The National Heritage Resource Act (1999): Can legislation protect South Africa's rare geoheritage resources?," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(3), pages 204-213, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:jrpoli:v:36:y:2011:i:3:p:204-213
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Ruban, Dmitry A., 2017. "Geodiversity as a precious national resource: A note on the role of geoparks," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 103-108.
    2. Zorlu, Kuttusi & Polat, Selahattin & Yılmaz, Ali & Dede, Volkan, 2024. "An integrated fuzzy-rough multi-criteria group decision-making model for quantitative assessment of geoheritage resources," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    3. Mousa, Fatma A. & Ruban, Dmitry A. & Abu El-Hassan, Mohamed M. & Sallam, Emad S., 2024. "Late Mesozoic–Cenozoic geoheritage resources of the Kharga Oasis (Egypt): Novel assessment, exploitation perspectives, and policy implications," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    4. Ruban, Dmitry A., 2012. "Geoconservation versus legislation and resources policy: New achievements, new questions—Comment on Cairncross (Resources Policy, 2011) The National Heritage Resource Act (1999): Can legislation prote," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 126-129.
    5. Sallam, Emad S. & Ruban, Dmitry A. & Ermolaev, Vladimir A., 2022. "Geoheritage resources and new direction of infrastructural growth in Egypt: From geosite assessment to policy development," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    6. Abd El-Aal, Ahmed & Abdullah, Gamil M.S. & Al- Metwaly, Wael M. & AbdelMaksoud, Kholoud M., 2023. "Geological and archeological heritage resources assessment of the Najran Province; towards the 2030 vision of Saudi Arabia," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(PB).
    7. Ruban, Dmitry A. & Mikhailenko, Anna V. & Yashalova, Natalia N., 2022. "Valuable geoheritage resources: Potential versus exploitation," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).

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