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Mineral Resources Resou MineralMineral resources resou YEARBOOK 2011/12 Mineral resources 16 South Africa’s mining industry has been and the changes in South Africa’s overall transforma- remains the bedrock of Africa’s economic power- tion of its social, political and economic landscape. house. The mining sector and its related indus- In 2010, the Department of Mineral Resources tries are critical to the country’s socio-economic concluded an assessment of the progress of development. the industry’s transformation against the Mining South Africa is well endowed with a consider- Charter objectives. able mineral resource base, estimated by Citibank The racial ownership pattern of the country’s at US$2,5 trillion. The country’s mining sector mining assets had remained largely unchanged, contributes about 8% to gross domestic product with only 8,9% black ownership attained by 2009 (GDP), which increases further to 18% when against the target of 15%. taking into account the indirect effect of mining The reviewed Mining Charter, launched in on the economy. South Africa ranks among the September 2010, seeks to correct this, putting top 10 countries in terms of the production of min- emphasis on 26% of South Africa’s mining assets erals such as manganese, iron ore, gold, chrome being Black Economic Empowerment (BEE)- and ferrochrome. compliant by 2014. The Mineral Policy and Promotion Branch of It also provides for the complete elimination the Department of Mineral Resources is respons- of hostels on South Africa’s mines by 2014, and ible for formulating and promoting mineral-related introduces a sustainable element, premised Mineral resoupolicies that will encourage investment in the min- on the understanding that the social licence to ing and minerals industry, making South Africa operate includes environment, health and safety attractive to investors while ensuring that environ- performance. mental management forms an integral part of the Under the charter, companies found not com- ongoing exploitation of mineral resources. plying could face penalties, which could include The Mine Health and Safety Inspectorate the revoking of a mining company’s licence. (MHSI) is responsible for implementing mine- Working with the Mining Industry Growth, health and -safety legislation. Development and Employment Task Team The Mineral Regulation Branch regulates (Migdett), the Department of Mineral Resources the mining and minerals industry to achieve identified industry constraints, including infra- transformation and contribute to sustainable structure, the lack of a beneficiation policy, skills development. shortages and regulatory issues. A set of interventions was put in place to Policy and initiatives address these constraints, culminating in the Mining and minerals policy is based on the prin- signing of the Declaration on the Strategy for ciples of the Freedom Charter, according to which Sustainable Growth and Meaningful Transforma- the mineral wealth beneath the soil will be trans- tion of the South African Mining Industry on ferred to the ownership of the people as a whole. 30 June 2010. The Mineral and Petroleum Resources Develop- All stakeholders represented in Migdett signed ment Act (MPRDA), 2002 (Act 28 of 2002), has the declaration document. The relevant trans- opened doors for the substantial and meaningful formation aspects of the declaration document participation of historically disadvantaged South were effectively migrated to constitute the bulk of Africans in the exploration and exploitation of the amendments of the Mining Charter. mineral resources. The MPRDA, 2002 enshrines A single window for processing mineral rights, equal access to mineral resources, irrespective associated environmental authorisation and of race, gender or creed. Section 100 of the water licences will ease administrative processes MPRDA, 2002 provides for the development of within government and mining companies. This is the Broad-Based Socio-Economic Empowerment addressed by the following interventions: Charter, which is popularly known as the Mining • amending the MPRDA, 2002 to address ambi- Charter. guities in interpretation of the law, mining of The introduction of the Mining Charter in 2002 associated minerals, the consultation process, was aimed at transforming the mining industry the partitioning of mineral rights, rehabilitation to redress historical imbalances engendered by issues and alignment with the Beneficiation apartheid so that the industry is consistent with Strategy South Africa Yearbook 2011/12 – Mineral resources 370 Mine environmental In April 2011, the Ministry of Mineral Resources launched the online South African Mineral Resources Administration Sys- management tem for applyling for prospecting rights, mining permits and Mine environmental management forms an mining rights. By February 2012, more than 3 000 applica- integral part of the management of mineral tions had been lodged. resources in South Africa. For the Department of Mineral Resources to manage effectively, it has to undertake research; develop mine environmental • discussions on the proposed amendments policies (legislation and strategies); and provide between the Department of Mineral Resources, strategic guidance on mine environmental man- Migdett, industry stakeholders, mine commun- agement, mine rehabilitation, water ingress, mine ities and various state departments environmental legacies and sustainable develop- • streamlining administrative processes to ment. shorten turnaround times for prospecting and After more than a century, mining has left a mining rights scourge of derelict and ownerless mines, which • auditing all rights since the implementation of cause serious environmental and health hazards, the MPRDA, 2002 particularly for communities living nearby. The • developing an online licensing system. department has prioritised the rehabilitation of The Geoscience Amendment Act, 2010 such mines. (Act 16 of 2010), expands the functions of the The Minister of Mineral Resources, Ms Susan Council for Geoscience (CGS) by: Shabangu, established the Rehabilitation Over- • mandating the CGS to be the custodian and sight Committee within the department to drive curator of geotechnical information, to be a the implementation of a rehabilitation programme national mandatory advisory authority in respect for all mines that were licensed prior to the pass- of geohazards related to infrastructure develop- ing of the Minerals Act, 1991 (Act 50 of 1991), and ment, to undertake exploration and prospecting the MPRDA, 2002. research in the mineral and petroleum sectors The Rehabilitation Strategy was signed off and to add to the functions of the council and the implementation plan and costs for the • putting mechanisms in place to address prob- rehabilitation programme finalised. An amount of lems associated with infrastructure develop- R52 million was set aside for the implementation ment on dolomitic land of this programme in 2010/11. • empowering the CGS to be the custodian of all The programme includes eliminating environ- geotechnical data to compile a complete geo- mental damage by returning the affected land to technical risk profile of the country a sustainable, usable condition. In 2010/11, five • enabling the CGS to become the custodian of derelict and ownerless mines in the Northern technical information relating to exploration and Cape were rehabilitated: mining. • Jebolo The Beneficiation Strategy was approved by • Owendale Cabinet in June 2011. Five value chains were • Strelley prioritised from the selected commodities in the • Prieska strategy, namely: • Prieska Mill. • iron and steel: beneficiating iron ore, chrome, In 2011/12, the following mines were identified for manganese, nickel and vanadium rehabilitation: • energy commodities: focusing on coal and • Osizweni in KwaZulu-Natal uranium • Lusikisiki in the Eastern Cape • autocatalytic converters and diesel particulate • Penge in Limpopo filters: beneficiating platinum group metals • Heuningvlei in the Northern Cape (PGMs) • three more mines in Prieska in the Northern • pigment and titanium metal production Cape • jewellery manufacturing: to increase beneficia- • Vergenoegd in Gauteng tion of PGM, diamonds and gold. • Ga-Motsamai in the Northern Cape • Bestwell in the Northern Cape. 371 South Africa Yearbook 2011/12 – Mineral resources Comprehensive measures have also been put in African Mining place to compel companies to provide financially Partnership (AMP) for post-mining rehabilitation. The AMP was launched in 2004 to further the New Partnership for Africa’s Development objectives Acid mine drainage (AMD) through mining and mineral initiatives in the quest Acid rock drainage occurs owing to reactions for economic development on the continent. between sulphide minerals, oxygen and water, Countries were assigned projects to spearhead catalysed by bacteria. The mining of sulphide- and ensure that they contributed towards growing rich materials exposes sulphide minerals to the Africa’s economy through its mineral wealth. elements, accelerating the natural process and In February 2010, the AMP merged with the forming AMD. African Union (AU). This improved its standing The sulphuric acid generated in these reac- and helped to attract more countries to par- tions can mobilise other components of mater- ticipate. The merger also gave the AMP access ials, often resulting in high concentrations of toxic to the AU’s financial resources and is helping heavy metals in the rivers and streams that drain it achieve its vision of increasing
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