Strategic Environmental Management Plan (SEMP) for the Central Namib Uranium Province 2017 Annual Report

Strategic Environmental Management Plan (SEMP) for the Central Namib Uranium Province 2017 Annual Report December 2018 Prepared by Geological Survey of Namibia Project management: Ministry of Mines and Energy, Geological Survey of Namibia, Divi- sion of Engineering and Environmental Geology Status of data received: December 2018 Compiled by: Norwel Mwananawa (GSN) and Sandra Müller (NUA) Contributions from: Geological Survey of Namibia (Israel Hasheela, Norwel Mwananawa, Alfeus Moses, Michelle Hijamutiti) DWAF (Anna David and Laurica Afrikaner) MET (Hiskia Mbura) Namibian Uranium Association (Frances Anderson, Carlene Binne- man, Werner Ewald, Murray Hill, Sandra Müller, Jacklyn Mwenze, Martin Hirsch) NamPort (Tim Eimann) NamWater (Merylinda Conradie, Erwin Shiluama, Selma Muundjua, Abednego Shinana and Willem Venter) NERMU (Elbé Becker and Theo Wassenaar) NRPA (Joseph Eiman) Swakopmund Municipality (Paulina Engelbrecht) Walvis Bay Municipality (Nangula Amutenya, David Uushona and André Burger) Final editing: Norwel Mwananawa, Sandra Müller and Carlene Binneman © Geological Survey of Namibia, Ministry of Mines and Energy 2018 Citation Geological Survey of Namibia (2018): Strategic Environmental Management Plan (SEMP) for the Cen- tral Namib Uranium Mining Province, 2017 Annual Report. Ministry of Mines and Energy, Windhoek, Republic of Namibia Additional Information and queries to: Mr. Norwel Mwananawa Coordinator Geological Survey of Namibia Ministry of Mines and Energy Private Bag 13297 Windhoek Namibia Tel: +264-61-2848157 Email: Norwel.Mwananawa@mme.gov.na 2017 Strategic Environmental Management Plan Report for the Central Namib Uranium Province EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Strategic Environmental Management Plan (SEMP) for the Namibian uranium province is a public-private collaborative initiative housed within the Geological Survey of Namibia, Ministry of Mines and Energy. The SEMP is an over-arching framework and roadmap to address the cumulative impacts of existing and potential developments, within which individual projects have to be planned and implemented. Annual SEMP reports measure the performance around twelve Environmental Quality Objectives (EQOs) that show the extent to which uranium mining is impacting the central Namib. Each EQO articulates specific goals and targets that are monitored by a set of key indicators. Figure 1 shows the EQO performance trend since 2011. The number of indicators that were MET and those that were NOT MET has increased in 2017 compared to 2016, while there were fewer indicators IN PROGRESS or NOT APPLICABLE. This change was attributable to a more stringent as- sessment approach that tried to avoid rating an indicator IN PROGRESS when the situation was un- clear or no real progress could be shown. The persistent relatively high number of outstanding issues suggests that more resources will be required if the desired outcome of the SEMP is to be achieved. 140 120 100 Not applicable 80 Exceeded Met 60 In progress 40 Not met Number of indicators of Number 20 0 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 Figure 1: EQO Performance Trends over Time The results for the various EQOs in 2017 can be summarised as follows (Figure 2): The Socioeconomic Development (EQO 1), Employment (EQO 2) and Air Quality (EQO 6) objectives and the two applicable indicators in Heritage (EQO 11) were all MET. The objectives for Water (EQO 4) and Mine Closure (EQO 12) were mostly MET with a small percentage IN PROGRESS. Mixed results ranging from MET to NOT MET were obtained in the following EQOs: Infra- structure (EQO 3), Effect on Tourism (EQO 7), Ecological Integrity (EQO 8) and Governance (EQO 10). In Health (EQO 6) and Education (EQO 9) the number of indicators NOT MET or IN PRO- GRESS was higher than the ones that were MET. Other indicators that were NOT MET relate to the availability of safety of the B2 road in EQO 3 and the protection of sensitive areas in EQOs 7 and 8, as well as the implementation of biodiversity offsets in EQO 8. One EQO 10 indicator was NOT MET because of possible corrup- tion in the allocation of a mining licence. i 2017 Strategic Environmental Management Plan Report for the Central Namib Uranium Province Two indicators were EXCEEDED, one in EQO 3 concerning Namport’s infrastructure and one in EQO 7 regarding tourists’ expectations of their visual experience in the Central Namib. Percentage 0 20 40 60 80 100 Development 1 Employment 2 Infrastructure 3 Water 4 Air quality 5 Health 6 Effect on tourism 7 Ecological integrity 8 Education 9 Governance 10 Heritage 11 Mine closure 12 Exceeded Met In progress Not met Not applicable Figure 2: EQO Performance in 2017 In view of the cyclical nature of commodity markets it is expected that the demand for uranium will increase in future. The implementation of the EQO targets remains critical to ensure that the region is well positioned for future uranium mining projects. The most important actions to address the shortcomings that have been identified in this report are summarised in Table 1. Table 1: High-level Actions to Achieve SEMP Compliance EQO 3: Traffic volume on the B2 has • Upgrade the road to double lanes or create passing increased so that the road has be- lanes at least up to Arandis come unsafe (Roads Authority) EQO 3: Optimum use of rail infra- • Upgrade the railway line so that bulk freight (e.g. fuel) structure (TransNamib) can be shifted from the road EQO 4: Continuous availability of • Upgrade the Erongo desalination plant to be able to desalinated water to meet the keep operating during sulphur outbreaks mines’ demand (NUA/Orano) EQO 6: Number of healthcare pro- • Employ the number of healthcare professionals identi- fessionals and facilities (MHSS) fied in the SEA, add or enlarge healthcare facilities EQO 8: Implementation of biodiver- • MET to create enabling legislation for the lasting protec- sity offsets (MET, NUA) tion of offsets • Mines to offset damage to important biodiversity areas EQO 9: Improvement of school per- • Improve teacher to learner ratio and performance in formance in the region (MEAC) Grade 10 and 12 exams EQO 12: Lack of mine closure regula- • Update Minerals Act and regulations for mine closure tions (MME) ii 2017 Strategic Environmental Management Plan Report for the Central Namib Uranium Province The SEMP is a living document that has to be amended to keep up with development. Some goals, targets and indicators have been changed in this SEMP report to make the wording clearer or more appropriate. It has become clear over the years that many indicators were formulated under the assumption that the “uranium rush” that triggered the SEA would lead to the development of quite a few new mines. The current mining scenario, which closely resembles the base case, was not fore- seen in the SEA. There are only two operating mines, Rössing Uranium and Husab Mine, while Lang- er Heinrich Uranium was mothballed in 2018. All the other projects are still awaiting improved mar- ket conditions. Seeing that the uranium rush was revealed as a short-lived phenomenon, the impact on the envi- ronment and the demand for social services in the Erongo Region will evidently not continue rising as a result of uranium mining. The SEMP Steering Committee has therefore raised the question whether it was worthwhile to keep on evaluating all indicators on an annual basis. It was suggested that “slow-moving” EQOs like infrastructure, health and education could be assessed every second year. Issues of public concern such as economic development, employment, tourism and ecological impact, as well as air and water quality would still be monitored and updated annually. This would maintain the function of the SEMP as a long-term monitoring and decision-making tool through which potential impacts are highlighted so that measures can be introduced to avoid un- necessary impacts or mitigate unavoidable impacts. A continuing aim of the SEMP process is to increase the commitment of key government institutions, the uranium industry and NGOs to under- take whatever actions will take the Erongo Region towards the desired future state where communi- ties and industry are able to co-exist in harmony. In conclusion, it is worth mentioning that the SEMP Office compiled a brochure in 2018 to inform the public and stakeholders such as government and parastatal institutions about the objectives of the SEMP and the importance of their contributions. iii 2017 Strategic Environmental Management Plan Report for the Central Namib Uranium Province CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................................................................................. i CONTENTS .................................................................................................................................. iv ABBREVIATIONS ........................................................................................................................ viii SEMP BACKGROUND .................................................................................................................. 10 URANIUM MINING SCENARIO IN 2017 ........................................................................................ 15 EVALUATION OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY OBJECTIVES ..................................................... 19 EQO 1. Socio-Economic Development ............................................................................................................. 19 EQO 2. Employment ........................................................................................................................................

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