The Council for Geoscience (CGS) continues to advance the work it has undertaken on five national earth science programmes to ensure the growth and sustainability of the mining industry in South Africa, while also mitigating the industry’s negative impact on the environment.

CGS COO Dr Mosidi Makgae, speaking to Mining Weekly on the sidelines of the CGS’s 2016 conference, which took place in Tshwane earlier this month, said that the council’s role was to ensure that it generated data by mapping the mineral resources of the country.

“We also advise the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) about where there is potential for new mining operations to be initiated. With this information, we can attract local and international investment in the South African mining industry,” she explained.

The five projects the CGS is working on are shale gas research in the Karoo, management of derelict and ownerless mines, mine water management and promotion of investment in exploration and mining, as well as the monitoring of seismic microzonation of Johannesburg.

The first project entails the geological mapping of the Karoo for shale gas, establishing an environmental baseline and a groundwater assessment and the impacts thereof on the Karoo.

Makgae said that, during the course of this year, the CGS would conduct geophysical surveying of the area. She noted that this research on the potential for shale gas exploration in the Karoo would inform the regulatory framework of the DMR on shale gas extraction.

The CGS has been undertaking a research programme on the Karoo since July 2015, and initial studies, including geological mapping, ground geophysics and hydrogeology work, are scheduled for completion by the end of March.

The second project that the CGS is undertaking entails a detailed mapping of the country to discover new mineral resource deposits.

“Providing this geoscientific data to the government and the public is, therefore, critical to assist in stimulating new investment interest in the local mining industry,” Makgae asserted.

She remarked that, traditionally, these type of studies had focused predominantly on mainstream commodities such as gold, coal and platinum-group metals. However, the second research project would also focus on discovering mineable deposits of rare-earth elements, uranium and thorium resources.

Makgae commented that the CGS intended to eventually undertake exploration work throughout the country to ensure accurate quantification of these resources.

She informed Mining Weekly that mineral mapping of resources had been completed in the Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal and part of the Northern Cape.

The CGS intends to release the initial mapping results – excluding for the Northern Cape – to the public during the course of the 2016/17 financial year.

Makgae said the mapping of the remainder of the Northern Cape would be completed by the end of 2017 and the results would be released during the 2017/18 financial year.

The third project relates to the management of derelict and ownerless mines in South Africa. This project has been ongoing for the past three years and its priority areas are Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape and Limpopo.

Makgae remarked that the CGS had quantified the environmental liability for the rehabilitation of the mines at about R45-billion and about 95% of the fieldwork on the project had been completed.

Moreover, she pointed out that the council had created an interactive, Web-based database as part of this project and provides users with information about the commodity that was mined in particular areas, how long the mines were in operation and other related information.

“The DMR has recognised the efforts that the CGS has placed on this project and has, therefore, decided to continue funding the project for the next three years,” Makgae highlighted.

She also pointed out that the CGS had closed over 200 abandoned shafts that were located near to informal settlements in Gauteng, Mpumalanga and Limpopo as part of this project.

The fourth project the CGS is undertaking is the seismic microzonation of Johannesburg. The project aims to provide an understanding of mining- related seismicity through a detailed analysis of the region’s seismic source parameters.

It will seek to establish how stable Johannesburg’s high-rise buildings are owing to the challenge of seismic activity occurrences in the city.

Makgae explained that the results of this study would provide Johannesburg authorities with “critical information” about the areas of the city that were most prone or at risk owing to seismic events. She said that this would enable authorities to develop plans to mitigate the impact of such occurrences on Johannesburg residents.

The project has been ongoing for the past three years and the preliminary results of the study are set to be released after March. The final results of the study for Johannesburg are expected to be released by the end of the 2016/17 financial year.

The next phase of the project is for the CGS to examine the Klerksdorp-Orkney-Stilfontein-Hartebeesfontein (KOSH) area for seismicity, owing to its long history of mining-related activities. Fieldwork in KOSH started in January and the CGS’s contract with the DMR is scheduled to expire at the end of the 2016/17 financial year.

However, Makgae contended that she was “confident” that, owing to the nature of the work, the DMR would provide the council with additional funding to continue with the study for at least another year.

The fifth project that the CGS is working on relates to a mine water management project (MWMP) in South Africa. The project has been ongoing for the past ten years.

The MWMP is focused on developing passive treatment technologies for acid mine drainage (AMD) seepages. Makgae noted that these technologies were intended for use only on small seepages and not for large volumes of AMD.

These passive treatment methods include, among others, the planting of plants that can absorb AMD without being negatively affected, and the use of limestone and manure to neutralise the water and absorb the heavy metals that it contains.

“The CGS has two pilot projects in operation in Mpumalanga using some of these passive treatment methods, and, to date, the results have been promising,” Makgae stated.

Additionally, she said the project was aimed at monitoring the contamination of groundwater resources. “The MWMP is also closely linked to the first project as there has to be certainty on whether there is sufficient water in the area for mining and exploration activities to be undertaken by companies.”

Makgae added that the project would also investigate whether there were any additional environmental concerns that the DMR needs to be notified about before exploration and/or mining is undertaken in a particular area.