By Sohaib Shams
Illegal gold mining in abandoned shafts around Johannesburg has surged as global gold prices climb, triggering sinkholes, draining community water supplies, and overwhelming police efforts to curb the practice.
Rising Activity Amid High Gold Prices
Known locally as zama zamas – a Zulu phrase meaning "to take a chance" – the miners have flocked to disused mine shafts west of the city. In late September, dozens set up operations across from the Claw animal welfare charity in Roodepoort, drawing water from the organisation's two 25,000-litre tanks meant for rescued animals. Founder Cora Bailey said the charity was forced to close its gate at midday after supplies dwindled to just two buckets.
Police Actions Fall Short
Police told Bailey the scale of illegal mining was too large to address. Although officers cleared vegetation hiding the miners, a smaller group returned within days. Nationally, police reported arresting 71 suspected zama zamas in one week in October, but researchers estimate the total number of illegal miners runs into tens of thousands. A 2019 study suggested a tenth of South Africa's gold production, worth about $1 billion, was being exported illegally.
Historical Context and Abandoned Mines
South Africa's gold industry peaked in the 1970s, and the Witwatersrand reef has yielded more than a third of all gold ever mined. The Durban Deep mine, whose old offices now house Claw, closed around 2000. Mining Minister Gwede Mantashe told parliament in 2025 that the country had 6,100 derelict and ownerless mines and 1,170 unsafe mine openings, which companies are legally required to seal and rehabilitate.
Experts Blame Industrial Mining for Sinkholes
Collapsing roads such as Wemmer Pan Road have been blamed on zama zamas by local politicians, including Johannesburg transport council member Kenny Kunene. However, Columbia University anthropology professor Rosalind Morris argues the primary cause is formal industrial mining, which removes hundreds of millions of gallons of groundwater daily, destabilising porous dolomitic rock. She acknowledges illegal mining contributes to structural collapse in some areas but calls the notion that zama zamas invented the problem "completely fallacious."
Gang Violence and Economic Desperation
Violence in mining areas, including a mass shooting in Wedela township, is often attributed to illegal miners. Bench Marks Foundation researcher David van Wyk says the real culprits are feuding gangs that control shaft access and take the gold, while the underground workers are "super-exploited cheap labour." In Khutsong, 80 km west of Johannesburg, illegal mining sustains the local economy. Campaigner Vusi Cele, who advocates for artisanal mining licences, said without the income the township would be a ghost town.
