GCS Discard Dump EMPR (2016)
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Annex 2B GCS Discard Dump EMPR (2016) Kangra Coal (Proprietary) Limited (Reg No. 2001/003104/07) Unit 12b, 2nd Floor, 3 Melrose Boulevard, Melrose Arch Melrose North 2196 Postnet Suite 379, Private Bag X1, Melrose Arch, 2076 P O Box 745, Piet Retief 2380 Telephone: +27 (0) 17 826 9700 Facsimile: +27 (0) 17 826 5284 Kangra Coal (Pty) Ltd.: Proposed Discard Dump at Maquasa East Mine Environmental Impact Report and Environmental Management Programme In terms of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (Act No. 28 of 2002) Report Version – 1 26 January 2016 Kangra Coal (Pty) Ltd GCS Project Number: 13-347 DMR Reference: MP 30/5/1/23/2/1/133 & 134 EM Submitted on behalf of Kangra Coal (Pty) Ltd. by GCS Water & Environment (Pty) Ltd. GCS Project Number: 13-347 4a Old Main Road, Judges Walk, Kloof, Kwazulu-Natal, 3610 PO Box 819, Gillitts, 3603 South Africa GCS (Pty) Ltd. Reg No: 2004/000765/07 Est. 1987 Offices: Durban Johannesburg Lusaka Ostrava Pretoria Windhoek Directors : AC Johnstone (Managing) PF Labuschagne AWC Marais S Pilane (HR) W Sherriff www.gcs-sa.biz (Financial) Non-Executive Director: B Wilson-Jones Kangra Coal (Pty) Ltd Maquasa East Discard Dump Kangra Coal (Pty) Ltd. Maquasa East Discard Dump Environmental Impact Report and Environmental Management Programme In terms of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (Act No. 28 of 2002) Report Version – 1 26 January 2016 DOCUMENT ISSUE STATUS Report Issue Final GCS Reference Number 13-347 DMR Reference MP 30/5/1/23/2/1/133 MR Kangra Coal (Pty) Ltd Maquasa East Discard Dump: Final Title Environmental Impact Report and Environmental Management Programme Name Signature Date Author Renee Francis-Steele January 2016 Document Reviewer Renee Janse van Rensburg January 2016 Director Pieter Labuschagne January 2016 LEGAL NOTICE This report or any proportion thereof and any associated documentation remain the property of GCS until the mandator effects payment of all fees and disbursements due to GCS in terms of the GCS Conditions of Contract and Project Acceptance Form. Notwithstanding the aforesaid, any reproduction, duplication, copying, adaptation, editing, change, disclosure, publication, distribution, incorporation, modification, lending, transfer, sending, delivering, serving or broadcasting must be authorised in writing by GCS. 13-347 9 March 2016 Page ii Kangra Coal (Pty) Ltd Maquasa East Discard Dump EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Background Kangra Coal (Pty) Ltd (Kangra) owns various operational and defunct coal mines in the vicinity of Piet Retief in the Mpumalanga Province. An application to combine the approved Environmental Management Programme (EMPr) for these operations was approved by the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) in August 2014. These operations comprise the Maquasa East (mining completed), Maquasa West (current), Rooikop (historical) and Nooitgesien (current) mining areas, situated approximately 40km west of the town of Piet Retief. All coal from the operational mining areas is transported via conveyors and trucks to the coal washing plant located at Maquasa East, from where the produced coal discard is dumped onto the current Discard Dump, also located within the Maquasa East surface area. Input from the proposed future mine expansion at the proposed Savmore Colliery: Kusipongo will produce additional discard material in the future which cannot be accommodated within the existing Discard Dump footprint. To make provision for the additional discard, a new Discard Dump, to the west of the Maquasa East mining area, is proposed. Motivation for the project In order to facilitate the proposed expansion of Kangra’s mining area and the subsequent extension of the life of mine (LoM) of these operations, a new Discard Dump is required to accommodate the additional discard material which will be produced. An expansion of the LoM will also facilitate the retention of jobs in the long term. The option for the expansion of the existing Discard Dump was rejected because it was not considered feasible. The available area would not provide sufficient capacity for the additional discard disposal required for the extended LoM for the proposed expansions. Summary of Proposed Development The proposed new Discard Dump will be situated on Portion 0 (RE) the farm Rooikop 18 HT, with a portion of the dump overlapping onto Portion 0 (RE) of the farm Maquasa 19HT. The dump has been designed to cover an area of approximately 65ha, to accommodate approximately 20 million tonnes of discard, comprising a volume of approximately 11 million m³ over a period of 20 years. 13-347 9 March 2016 Page iii Kangra Coal (Pty) Ltd Maquasa East Discard Dump The proposed new Discard Dump will be equipped with an underdrainage system, liner and catchment paddocks, Pollution Control Dam (PCD) (two compartments HDPE lined), stormwater management infrastructure such as trenches and berms, internal haul roads and fencing/access control. The proposed dump will be developed in three compartments/phases. Each compartment will be concurrently rehabilitated to reduce the infiltration of rainwater and to reduce the amount contaminated runoff, thereby reducing the required capacity of the PCD. The proposed PCD capacity is 100 000m³, which will be able to accommodate the 1:50 year storm event, provided that concurrent rehabilitation is undertaken and that a minimum of 200m³/day of water is pumped out of the PCD. Waste Classification An assessment of Mineralogy and Total Chemical Composition of a sample of discard found that the sample consists mostly of Gypsum and Quartz. The acid-base accounting (ABA) and net acid generation (NAG) analyses revealed that the discard material has a significant potential to generate acid mine drainage (AMD)/seepage. Based on the comparison of the leachable concentrations (LC) and total concentrations (TC) of the discard material to the threshold limits specified in Section 6 of the Norms and Standards, the discard is classified as Type 3 Waste. This waste may only be disposed of at a landfill with a Class C liner. Environmental Authorisation Applications The following environmental authorisations are being applied for: • Mineral Resource Development Act, 2002 (Act No. 28 of 2002) (MPRDA): An addendum to the approved EMPr is required for the proposed Discard Dump. This application constitutes an amendment to the Consolidated EMPr (approved in August 2014); • National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (Act No. 107 of 1998) (NEMA): The development of the proposed Discard Dump triggers activities listed in terms of the NEMA. An environmental authorisation is required, this includes a Scoping and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process; and • National Water Act, 1998 (Act No. 36 of 1998) (NWA): The construction and operation of the proposed Discard Dump and PCD require an Integrated Water Use Licence (IWUL). Furthermore, an exemption from Regulation 4 (a) of Government Notice 704, published in Government Gazette vol. 408, No. 20119 on 4 June 1999 (GN704) is required due to the proposed Discard Dump being located within 100m of 13-347 9 March 2016 Page iv Kangra Coal (Pty) Ltd Maquasa East Discard Dump a surface water resource. These exemptions must be issued as a condition of the IWUL. • A Waste Management Licence (WML) is also required in terms of the National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 (Act No. 59 of 2008) (NEMWA), as per Government Notice Regulation 633 (GNR633), which was published in Government Gazette No. 39020 on 25 July 2015. A full scoping and EIA process is also required, which must be undertaken in terms of the NEMA Regulations. The WML application does not form part of the scope of the current process being undertaken, therefore, it is recommended that the DMR be consulted in order to determine the process to be followed in respect of the NEMWA requirements. Public Consultation The Public Participation Process (PPP) has been undertaken for the three application processes and complied with the NEMA regulations PPP, which is more comprehensive than the MPRDA and NWA public consultation requirements. The PPP included the placement of advertisements (English and Zulu) in the Excelsior News; the placement of site notices; the distribution of Background Information Documents (BIDs); sms notifications; a Scoping Phase and an EIA Phase public meeting; the public review of the draft and final Environmental Scoping Reports (ESR); and the public review of the Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR)/Environmental Management Programme (EMPr). The main issues raised include: • Environmental: o The proposed dump lies within one of South Africa’s registered Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) – IBA SA020 Grasslands (an Avifaunal Assessment has subsequently been undertaken). o What measures will be implemented to prevent impacts on air quality, groundwater and surface water resources, including the Heyshope Dam. o Are there downstream surface water users? o The impacts of Kangra’s operations on the environment such as the dewatering of wetlands (this is not part of the scope of the application as was dealt with as part of the Consolidation and Amendment application). o The project may have a secondary impact on farmer support programs run by the Mpumalanga Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Land and Environmental Affairs (MDARDLEA) in the area, such as Masibuyele Emasimini, Masibuyele Esibayeni, etc. o The erosion identified at other parts of the mine site raises questions about Kangra’s ability to manage stormwater within the