JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Following a plea agreement between the State and Samancor Chrome, the Lydenburg Magistrates Court has ordered the chrome-ore mining and smelting group to pay a penalty of R200 000 for contravening the Environment Conservation Act.
The conviction related to the operation of a disposal site and disposing of waste without the requisite waste authorisations at Samancor Tubatse, in Steelpoort, and followed a seven-year investigation by the Department of Environmental Affairs’ (DEA’s) Green Scorpions unit.
An additional R700 000 was to be paid to the DEA by November 23 to facilitate environmental initiatives at the Steelpoort Primary School, which had been negatively impacted by the company’s unlawful waste disposal activities.
A further R1-million would be paid to the DEA for the purposes of “proper execution of their duties, environmental rehabilitation and enforcement training”.
The court also ordered that R100 000 be paid into the account of the DEA for the costs incurred by the public prosecutor. This, in turn, would be paid to the National Director of Public Prosecutions.
The DEA said in a statement on Thursday that, while Samancor was in the process of dealing with the impact of the unlawful hazardous waste activities, the court recognised the importance of imposing a harsh sentence irrespective thereof.
“The outcome of this matter emphasises the responsibility of large corporates in terms of complying with environmental law.
“This judgment demonstrates to the community that such contraventions will be detected and prosecuted. It is hoped that this judgment sends out a strong warning to companies that compliance with environmental legislation is not negotiable,” commented DEA spokesperson Albi Modise.