JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Across South Africa, and globally, affected locations should have the opportunity to have a “life after mining”, but Department of Science and Technology/National Research Foundation Research Chair Mineral Law in Africa postdoctoral research fellow Bernard Kengi laments that mine waste often makes this a “challenging” endeavour.
During a mine waste and closure-focused webinar, co-hosted by the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (SAIMM) and Minerals to Metals (MtM) on August 26, he explained that a “life after mining” refers to the state of a piece of land, or area, having been rehabilitated to such an extent that it can be used again.
Agricultural-related use is often not on the cards for these locations, which are rather used for projects such as solar farms or attraction sites.
Before one can get to this stage, however, Kengi said that, not only was there a significant financial cost to rehabilitate these sites, a challenge in itself, but it also required accountability, good governance and participation – all of which were often lacking.
Accountability was key when driving a rehabilitation project, but accountability in itself required competency, capacity and a supportive legislative framework and policies, he stated.
Kengi lamented that capacity was often lacking, as institutions required “the right and [qualified] people to do the job”, presenting another challenge as education and training – particularly in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics sector – was often lacking in South Africa.
Additionally, good governance was needed to ensure effective participation and collaboration, which “cannot take place or be fair without transparency and access to information”.
The legislative framework and policies also influenced good governance, as these frameworks and policies could often guide and assist in the decision-making process.
Lastly, Kengi emphasised that community participation was important, as this would pave the way to further empowering the host or affected local communities.
“The communities need to be engaged regarding the future use of the site,” he said, noting that “this will help people to understand” the procedure and requirements.