Hoedspruit and Phalaborwa residents are up in arms at the prospect of a gold rush starting all over again as Transvaal Gold Mining Estates Limited (TGME) is applying to rework Pre-Mined Residue (PMR) mines, as well as undertake Hard Rock Mining (HRM) in the Pilgrims Rest area, which will form part of a larger project named the TGME Mine Development Project 10167.
But residents are up in arms as no public participation by Batho Earth is scheduled, according to them.
‘We are aware that there was a consultation meeting held with residents in Sabie, but to date we are still left in the dark,’ a concerned resident told the Herald.
If there is one common misconception about this historic town, it is that there is no more gold beneath it.
Seven mining rights have been granted to reopen historic mines to unearth the precious metal, and six additional exploration rights have already been implemented.
One of the biggest concerns that residents of Hoedspruit and Phalaborwa are having, is what the mining impact will have on the Elephants River catchment area as well as the Blyde river system.
According to a Public Participation document, in order for the PMR Mining Project to be part of the Life of Mine Plan, a rapid build-up of tons that could be sustained for at least the first 5 years would be developed.
The planned strategy is to open-up the entrances/portals to the mines.
This will be followed by ensuring that these portals and access ways are safe to use, to access the PMR sources, sampling the reserves and verifying the conditions in detail.
Hereafter it is planned that equipping would start and finally the removal/mining of the reserve.
The application for a Mining Right is thus an outcome of the prospecting completed over the past 8 years.
This application will be undertaken in terms of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 2002, (Act No.28 Of 2002).
Transvaal Gold Mining Estates Limited (TGME) has appointed Globesight (Pty) Ltd as the independent Environmental Assessment Practitioner (EAP) to undertake the required applications.
Batho Earth Social and Environmental Consultants have been appointed as the Public Participation consultants for the project.
In the Pilgrims Rest area, significant mineral resource pre-mined residue (PMR) and virgin hard rock gold and other mineral reserves remain in the ground.
Recent sampling and analysis of previously mined material was carried out which indicated that the material carried significant grade, and that the bulk of the gold could be concentrated up into the finer size fractions.
Significant quantities of PMR are thus available which resulted in the project initiation by TGME.
This new Mining Rights at Pilgrims Rest are required to mine gold and other precious metals from various mines located on the farms in the area.
TGME is planning to reopen these mines at the position of the old main entrances.
They will exploit the PMR gold resources of the historic mines.
This would lead the way to open-up, make safe, equip and continue with hard rock mining (HRM) on the reef to exploit the reserves in virgin ground.
The minerals to be mined are Gold and other precious metals and associated commodities i.e. Gold ore; Silver ore; Stone aggregate (from rock dumps – surface PMR); Copper Ore; Zinc; Bismuth; Arsenic and Iron.
The pre-planning phase would commence should authorisation be granted.
The life span for the individual mines ranges from 11 months to some 84 months (7 years) at a production rate of 22kton/month.
The mines are planned to deliver the monthly volumes in a 15-hour operating day.
The mine will operate three eight hour shifts per day with a fourth shift rostered off to allow for a 7 day week of operations.
‘All of the planned PMR/HRM mines are covered (by some extent) by approved water licenses and these licenses have been in place for some time now,’ according to Batho Earth.
As part of the approval process for the various water licenses, there is a requirement to complete various environmental studies prior.
A public open day discussion was held in Sabie on April 25. But, according to residents, none to date have been scheduled with stakeholders in Hoedspruit and Phalaborwa.
Given that the licenses are approved for certain geographical areas, there are further environmental studies, amendments and applications required.
An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process is crucial as the main purpose is to inform decision makers of the likely impacts of a proposal before a decision is made.
An EIA will provide an opportunity to identify key issues early in the life of a proposal so that potentially adverse impacts can be addressed before final approval decisions are made.
An EIA will furthermore help to protect the environment, by ensuring that a local planning authority, when deciding whether to grant planning permission for a project (which is likely to have significant effects on the environment), does so in the full knowledge of the likely significant effects, and takes this into account in the decision making process.
According to a source the Kruger National Park already objected to the development as pollution is a major concern.
‘Amongst others, the biggest concern is the arsenic that can cause major pollution into the river systems,’ the source told the Herald.
The Herald understands that the DA in the Mopani area, various residents as well as the Hoedspruit Business Chamber are currently registered to the database of Interested and Affected Parties.
For the the detailed list of information pertaining to the proposed applications, visit: www.bathoearth.co.za
