JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The draft scoping report for the proposed extension of the underground mining area of Kuyasa Mining subsidiary Delmas Coal’s mine, in Mpumalanga, as well as the rehabilitation of the mine’s coal discard disposal facility and the upgrading of two pollution control dams, would be published for public comment on Friday.

The extension of the underground mine area at the Delmas mine would potentially extend the mine life by about 30 years, with the existing infrastructure currently used by Delmas Coal for the mining and processing to be used to process the coal from the new areas.

Consultants Jones & Wagener noted that the only additional infrastructure that would be required to mine the extended area was nine refuge bays.

Jones & Wagener said that, to understand the potential impacts of the proposed developments, specialist assessments would be commissioned following the finalisation of the scoping report.

These included a geohydrological assessment to investigate the current situation with regard to groundwater and the potential impacts on groundwater as a result of the mining area being extended.

Further, it would entail wetland delineation and assessment and a stability assessment to investigate the current status and the potential impact with regard to underground mining.

Further, an air quality impact assessment and a surface water impact assessment would also be undertaken.

These studies would form part of the scoping and environmental impact assessment process and would be included in the draft environmental impact report and environmental management programme report to be submitted to the relevant authorities.

Meanwhile, Jones & Wagener noted that the rehabilitation of the coal discard disposal facility and upgrading of the pollution control dams had become necessary, as it had been found that seepage from the discard disposal facility could have influenced the downstream water quality of the Wilge river.

In addition to the seepage into the Wilge river, currently contaminated runoff discharges occurred into the natural environment as the pollution control dams were, periodically, silted up and were unlined.

To ensure that this did not occur in the future, Delmas Coal intended to remediate and upgrade the coal discard disposal facility and the associated pollution control dams.

In addition, it had also been identified that the surface water drains associated with the coal processing plant, which discharged into the pollution control dams required upgrading, while measures to improve the air quality at the North shaft would also be required to comply with new legislative requirements.

The draft scoping report would be available for public comment until October 8.