Case Decision - 190786

Final Comment
It must be reiterated that SAHRA cannot comment on sections of the Brandvalley WEF facility located within the Western Cape Province. Comments must be sought from Heritage Western Cape (HWC) for those sections.
The SAHRA Archaeology, Palaeontology and Meteorites (APM) Unit accepts the submitted Heritage Input for the Revised draft EIA, and promotes the respective recommendations included in the report pertaining to the Northern Cape sections of the proposed development. The following additional conditions must be included in the Environmental Management Programme (EMPr):

If the layout of the turbines, roads and other associated infrastructure proposed for the Northern Cape section of the development is altered, a heritage walk-down including a palaeontological walk-down must be conducted prior to construction. A Walk-Down report must be submitted to SAHRA for comment. No construction may commence without comments from SAHRA;
It is noted that Turbine 42 has now been excluded from the proposed revised layout.  Previously issued comments noted an indirect impact on palaeontological resources, as Turbine 42 would have been located approximately 100m from plant stem casts or burrows (Loc 194). As this turbine has been removed, the impact should decrease, however careful monitoring of the area near Loc 194 during the construction of the access roads must be conducted by the ECO for any additional plant stem casts or burrows;
If any evidence of archaeological sites or remains (e.g. remnants of stone-made structures, indigenous ceramics, bones, stone artefacts, ostrich eggshell fragments, charcoal and ash concentrations), fossils or other categories of heritage resources are found during the proposed development, SAHRA APM Unit (Natasha Higgitt/Phillip Hine 021 462 5402) must be alerted. If unmarked human burials are uncovered, the SAHRA Burial Grounds and Graves (BGG) Unit (Itumeleng Masiteng/Mimi Seetelo 012 320 8490), must be alerted immediately. A professional archaeologist or palaeontologist, depending on the nature of the finds, must be contracted as soon as possible to inspect the findings. If the newly discovered heritage resources prove to be of archaeological or palaeontological significance, a Phase 2 rescue operation may be required.
SAHRA must be informed if the Environmental Authorisation for the project is granted and the relevant documents should be uploaded to the case file.