Mineral resources and development in Africa

The Economy of African countries in colonial times was tied to those of Western developed countries largely through supply of their resources, as raw material, for industrialisation and markets for manufactured goods. Even today development is seen by many European countries only as an expansion of this role. But Africans themselves are beginning to regard process of industrialisation as the only way to increase their per capita income and reduce the present inequality in the world.The objective of most African countries to reach the level of prosperity of the Western Europe of today by the year 2000 can be achieved if a growth rate of 13% were possible. This rate, high and unattainable as it may look, will at that time produce hardly any appreciable closing of the gap in the per capita income of Western European and African nations. With the present rate of 6% growth for industrialised and developing countries the gap will widen unbridgeably by the year 2000.Africa depends largely on export of mineral resources for capital and will require even more mineral resources if it must industrialise. A survey of mineral resources of Africa shows that it has no mineral resources to give sustained impetus to industrialisation and is particularly lacking in energy. The desired rate of growth and industrialisation is heavily dependent on the political will of the Western developed countries, which to make this possible must allow massive transfer of capital and technology and a fairer world economic order. The alternative open to African countries is to go into economic and social isolation and attempt a revolutionary approach to development.Whichever approach is followed all African countries must develop new mineral policies which will lead to an accelerated and intensive exploration of the continent for greater variety and amount of metals and fuel minerals.

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Zusammenfassung Während der Kolonialzeit war die Wirtschaft Afrikas mit der westlicher entwickelter Länder im wesentlichen durch die Lieferung von Bodenschätzen als Rohstoff für die Industrialisierung und umgekehrt als Markt für Industriegüter verknüpft. Selbst heute noch wird Entwicklung von vielen europäischen Ländern als eine Ausweitung dieser Rolle gesehen. Doch die Afrikaner ihrerseits fangen an, den Prozeß der Industrialisierung als den einzigen Weg zu betrachten, ihr Pro-Kopf-Einkommen zu erhöhen und die gegenwärtige Ungleichheit in der Welt zu verringern.Das Ziel der meisten afrikanischen Länder, das Wohlstandsniveau des heutigen Westeuropas bis zum Jahre 2000 zu erreichen, würde voraussetzen, daß eine Wachstumsrate von 13% möglich wäre. Eine solche Rate, so hoch und unerreichbar sie aussehen mag, würde jedoch nicht die Lücke zwischen dem Pro-Kopf-Einkommen Westeuropas und dem afrikanischer Staaten zufriedenstellend verkleinern. Angesichts der gegenwärtigen Rate von 6% Wachstum für industrialisierte und Entwicklungsländer wird die Lücke sich bis zum Jahr 2000 unüberbrückbar weiter geöffnet haben.Afrika ist weitgehend abhängig vom Export von Bodenschätzen gegen Kapital, und es wird mehr Bodenschätze brauchen für eigene Industrialisierung. Eine Bestandsaufnahme der Bodenschätze Afrikas zeigt, daß keine ausreichenden Bodenschätze für eine andauernde Industrialisierung vorhanden sind, und es fehlt vor allem an Energierohstoffen. Die erstrebte Wachstumsrate und Industrialisierung hängt wesentlich von dem politischen Willen der westlichen entwickelten Länder ab, die, um die zu ermöglichen, für massiven Transfer von Kapital und Technologie und eine gerechtere Weltwirtschaftsordnung sorgen müßten. Die Alternative besteht in wirtschaftlicher und gesellschaftlicher Isolation und in revolutionären Entwicklungsversuchen.Welchen Weg die afrikanischen Länder auch wählen, sie müssen in bezug auf ihre Bodenschätze eine neue Politik entwickeln, die zu einer schnelleren und gründlicheren Erschließung des Kontinentes hinsichtlich einer größeren Menge und Vielfalt an Metallen und Energierohstoffen führt.

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Résumé Au temps du colonialisme, l'économie africaine était essentiellement liée aux pays développés de l'ouest par la livraison de richesses naturelles en tant que matières premières pour l'industrialisation dans un sens, et en tant que marché pour les marchandises industrielles dans l'autre. Aujourd'hui encore, beaucoup de pays européens voient dans l'aide aux pays en voie développement, un élargissement de ce rôle. Pourtant, les africains de leur côté, commencent à considérer le procès de l'industrialisation comme la seule voie pour élever leur revenu moyen et pour réduire l'inégalité dans le monde à l'époque actuelle.Pour que la plupart des pays africains puissent atteindre le niveau de prospérité de l'actuelle Europe de l'ouest, avant l'an 2000, il faudrait à priori, un taux de croissance de 13%. Cependant, un tel taux, aussi haut et inaccessible qu'il puisse paraître, ne pourrait pas diminuer de façon satisfaisante l'espace entre le revenu moyen en Europe de l'ouest et celui des pays africains. Vu le taux de développement actuel de 6% aussi bien en pays industriels qu'en pays en voie de développement, cet espace ne fera que de s'agrandir jusqu'à l'an 2000 et ceci de façon insurmontable.L'Afrique dépend, en majeur partie, de l'exportation de richesses naturelles contre des capitaux et il lui faudra encore plus de richesses naturelles pour réaliser sa propre industrialisation. Un inventaire de richesses naturelles de l'Afrique montre qu'il n'y a pas de richesses naturelles suffisantes pour une industrialisation de longue durée et qu'il y manque, avant tout, de matières premières énergétiques. Le future taux de développement et d'industrialisation dépend essentiellement du consentement politique des pays de l'ouest, qui dans ce but devraient pourvoir à d'importants transferts de capitaux et de technologie et à un ordre équitable de l'économie mondiale. La seule alternative consiste dans l'isolation économique et sociale et dans des essais de développement révolutionnaires.Quelque soit la voie prise par les pays africains, il leur faudra développer une politique nouvelle en ce qui concerne leurs richesses naturelles. Cette politique les conduira vers une mise en exploitation plus profonde du continent, en vue de produire une plus grande quantité et multiplicité de métaux et de matières premières énergétiques.

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Water resources and the political geography of development in Southern Africa: The case of Swaziland

In Africa, the development of water resources for irrigation is seen as crucial for the recovery from current crises. This paper examines two issues generated by the geography of river systems which pose political as well as technical and economic questions. First is the problem of inter-state cooperation, where river systems cross political boundaries. Second is the domestic debate that arises from the differential access to water supply through the pattern of water rights. These issues are illustrated with material from Swaziland, a small landlocked state in southern Africa. Here, regional political tensions exacerbate the problems of long-term water development.     

Reef-controlled Mineral Deposits in Southern China

Reef-controlled mineral deposits in southern China are divided into three types in this paper based on the relative importance of organic reefs in the ore-forming processes; they are: the direct type, indirect type, and passive type. The case histories of several typical deposits are discussed. In studying reef-controlled deposits, more attention should be paid to the function of synsedimentary faults in reef construction and mineralization and the importance of oil-gas palaeoreservoirs in reef rocks for the formation of sulfide deposits, in addition to analysing the favourable sedimentary facies of mineralization.     

Mineral resources of the ocean

Major data concerning the history of investigation, distribution, mineral and chemical composition, and formation processes of mineral resources of the ocean, namely ferromanganese nodules, ore crusts, phosphorites, and hydrothermal mineral formations, including ore-bearing and metalliferous sediments, massive sulfides, and hydrothermal ferromanganese crusts are reviewed. The problem of the scale of mineral accumulations in the ocean and their quality, along with prospects of their future recovery, is discussed.     

Climate and desertification in Southern Africa

Short-term changes in the general circulation of the atmosphere, which may lead to prolonged periods of drought, are catalysts for producing accelerated desertification. In southern Africa the northeastward thrust of desertification from the western and central arid and semi-arid areas (the Karoo) has long been recognised, but up til 1970 research failed to demonstrate a clear-cut relationship between the process of desertification and long term rainfall data. The application of sophisticated analytical techniques to regional rainfall data showed, however, that spatial and temporal variations in the Southern African rainfall pattern have a striking degree of organization. The summer rainfall region of the northeastern part of the subcontinent experiences 16–20 year fluctuations, in contrast with 10–12 year fluctuations in the all-season rainfall region along the southern Cape coast. Concentrating on regionally averaged data for the summer rainfall region, the author used Fourier analysis to confirm the persistence of the quasi 20-year fluctuations since 1840. The wet spell of the late 1970s is expected to die out by 1982 and may be followed by a dry spell running from 1983 to 1992. Policy and management practices should be geared to prevent further desertification during this period.     

Mineral waters and hydrogeothermal resources in Bulgaria

Thermal mineral waters and extractable geothermal energy are an important and still underestimated natural wealth of Bulgaria. Their diversity is due to the complex geological structure, intense neotectonic activity, and the resulting complex character of meteoric water circulation. Reproductive hydrogeothermal systems with low-mineralized thermal waters of meteoric origin and resrvoir temperatures ranging between 30 and 100 (maximum 120) °C occur in the southern and north-eastern part of the country. Their total reproductive potential is estimated at 14–15 m³s^–1. In the northern part (Moesian platform), regional hydrogeothermal reservoir with connate (marine) and mixed (marine and meteoric) mineral waters and brines are identified, the temperatures varying from 40 to 140 (maximum 150) °C. Huge resources of geothermal energy with commercial importance are accumulated in them. The hydrogeothermal wealth of Bulgaria provides as important basis for the development of balneological and multi-seasonal tourism, bottling industries, geothermal heating of buildings and greenhouses, aquaculture and other related activities.     

莫桑比克矿产资源特征及投资环境

莫桑比克位于非洲东南部,是加强“一带一路”矿业产能合作的重要国家。在研究莫桑比克矿产资源分布特征、重要矿山开发现状的基础上,从政局稳定性、营商环境等方面对中资企业赴莫开展矿业投资的前景进行了分析。结合优势矿种分布、重要矿山开发现状、投资环境等因素,莫桑比克的优势资源油气主要分布于森托奥-鲁伍玛-赞比西-马普托成矿带的鲁伍玛盆地和莫桑比克盆地,煤主要位于森托奥-赞比西成矿带,钛、锆集中于森托奥-鲁伍玛-赞比西-马普托成矿带滨海地区,金主要分布于尼亚萨-安格尼亚-津巴布韦成矿带及津巴布韦-森托奥-巴鲁埃成矿带,石墨主要分布于莫桑比克成矿带安夸贝等地区,钽、铌主要分布于莫桑比克成矿带南部上利戈尼亚地区。研究表明,莫桑比克矿产资源十分丰富,尤其是石油、天然气、煤、钽铌矿、重砂矿(钛、锆)等资源在全球占有重要地位且产地相对集中。虽然存在基础设施落后、基础地质资料缺乏、司法程序冗长等不利因素,但投资者可先从资源丰富、开发基础较好的重砂矿(钛、锆)和金矿入手,瞄准机会投资开发潜力较大的石油、石墨、铌钽等矿种。同时,加强与莫桑比克本土矿业企业开展国际产能合作,带动当地社会经济发展,共同打造绿色低碳发展模式。     

Mineral resources for a new town

Of all the materials required for construction of a new town, the only one that must be obtained locally is aggregate for concrete. Very large tonnages of sand and gravel, or crushed stone, will be needed. Their production must be planned for from the beginning, to avoid the conflicts in land use that have long plagued older communities that undergo expansion. Production of sand, gravel, and stone is now disallowed by zoning in most major urban corridors in the U.S.A., making it necessary to bring these materials from a distance, at higher costs than formerly. Yet some success has been achieved in fitting the aggregates industry into the urban picture. Two examples are cited, involving production of stone in New Jersey and gravel in southern California. Where planning is done from the start, areas of occurrence of sand, gravel, or good-quality stone must be set aside for extractive industry. It is the geologiest's responsibility to provide information on locality of occurrence, tonnage present, thickness of overburden, best way to exploit the deposit with minimum environmental effect, and feasible use of the area after it has been worked out. The possibility of obtaining stone from below ground should also be evaluated. Only by such advance planning, with geological input, can conflicts in land use and excessive cost of construction aggregate be avoided.     

Energy resources and utilization in South Africa

South Africa presents the development planner with a challenging problem of energy planning, because the country's large indigenous deposits of fuels (coal, uranium) combined with a demand for imported energy (petroleum products). Coal is South Africa's basic primary energy source and is transformed into a variety of locally used secondary forms, among which thermal electricity and liquid fuels are vitally important. Prospecting for hydrocarbons on the Agulhas Bank off the southern Cape coast has, on the other hand, not been succesful. Both coal and uranium promise to become important export commodities, while the percentage share of imported petroleum products is expected to decrease towards 2000. There is nevertheless an urgent need for an energy policy which will optimise utilization.     

Mineral resources and development in the Russian Arctic

The paper concerns issues of geology and metallogeny of the Russian Arctic, namely, (i) limits of the Russian oceanic Arctic in the context of the continental origin of territories under jurisdictional dispute; (ii) geology and tectonic history of the region; (iii) distribution of mineral deposits; (iv) outlook for diamond, PGE, Ni, rare metals, gold, and bauxite resources development.Advanced diamond exploration and development can be expected proceeding from geology of new potentially diamondiferous areas, the Phanerozoic history and composition of lithospheric mantle beneath the Siberian craton which were controlled by the Siberian superplume at the Permian–Triassic boundary, and from new exploration approaches adapted to the prospecting conditions of Arctic Siberia.According to the available knowledge of Ni and PGE mineralization in the Noril’sk region, it is reasonable to develop depleted ores and tailings (mining dumps at the Noril’sk and Talnakh deposits). However, the key solution consists in new large discoveries within the Dzheltula and Kharaelakh volcanic and plutonic complexes.Gold production enhancement may be associated with black shale-hosted Au-As mineralization in the northeastern Russian Arctic, but the problem is in the lack of efficient and environmentally safe dressing technologies for these ores.Most of rare metals in the area (Nb, Sc, Y, and other elements) are stored in the giant Tomtor field, which has a complex structure and history. A special technology designed for the Tomtor ores ensures more than 60% extraction of ore components.Good prospects for the bauxite potential are expected from the Timan district where bauxite may occur in Vendian and Early Carboniferous formations.It is suggested to include the development of the Russian Arctic as a priority target in the national economic strategy.     

数字化矿山资源储量计算方法

矿产资源储量管理是数字化矿山的有机组成部分,储量计算是储量管理工作的重要内容。以似三棱柱为基本体元,根据控制点信息成功构建了矿体空间模型,并在此基础上提出了基于似三棱柱的储量算法和回归储量算法。结果表明,这两种方法可以准确地计算出矿体空间的资源量,并能够根据不断增加的控制点信息实现储量的动态更新,应用实例也验证了算法的可行性和有效性。     

Symposium on the Geomorphology of Southern Africa

Reports

Symposium on the Geomorphology of Southern Africa     

Symposium on the Geomorphology of Southern Africa

Reports

International/National Conference on Advances in Ground-Water Hydrology, dedicated to the memory of Dr. C. V. Theis, will be held Nov. 16–18, 1988 Tampa, Florida, USA