#WestWitsMine dust is not settling yet
If DMR does not approve the application, we cannot continue to mine gold
The dust surrounding the #WestWitsMine project is not about to settle soon, but in a candid and exclusive interview with the Record, representatives of Hulme Scholes Incorporated explained exactly what the project entails.
According to Malan Scholes and Robyn Mellett, the law as to where mining companies were allowed to operate was amended in January 1992. The amendment now requires the mined area to be rehabilitated. “Prior to that, there was no obligation to rehabilitate the areas. Mining without rehabilitation continued without the required rehabilitation, despite the plans that had to be in place.
But, because government neither had the money nor the expertise to enforce its own legislation, the mess at closed-down mines continued,” said Scholes.
Read the initial article here: Mining contract applied for on Albertina Sisulu/ Main Reef Road
He and Mellett explained what is transpiring at Sol Plaatjes at the moment. “We received an additional directive from the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) instructing West Wits to commence with mining at Sol Plaatjes in order to eliminate illegal miners’ activities. The directive only applies to the Sol Plaatjes area. No mining is being done anywhere else. In terms of section 28 of the National Environmental Act 107 of 1998, the owner who is in control of the land is ordered to clean up the area. The directive’s instruction was to extract gold, thus removing the zama-zamas, and to rehabilitate the area,” Scholes said.
No mining company can continue mining without a permit or a licence. In order to obtain that, there has to be a trust fund in place with proof that there is money and a plan to rehabilitate the area.
“Misconceptions among residents, however, are that West Wits is causing the mess. This is not true, it was already a mess. West Wits aims to mine the reef (under the directive) and rehabilitate the area (which we are doing).
Another misconception is that West Wits applied for two mining permits and rights. This is also not true.
“There are two mining permits and one mining right application as referred to below but they don’t form part of the Directive – they form part of the proposed activities that fall outside the activities dealt with under the Directive,”said Scholes.
“In order to apply for mining rights, DMR needs proof that money is available for rehabilitation. The money has to be in the bank. No permission will be granted if there are no bank statements to validate the availability of the required funds.”
“This is funded through bank guarantees, a Trust Fund and / or a cash deposit. The amount required for rehabilitation is determined by an independent specialist,” Scholes said.
He said part of the process is to determine the costs involved, which is independently determined and audited. Rehabilitation is required for both current and potential latent impacts. There are massive property development opportunities in the area, but illegal mining needs to stop first,” he said.
He explained that the rumours about West Wits mining in the other areas are unfounded. “Many developing companies – not just West Wits – are prospecting and digging trenched to assess the stability of the ground. We have maintained from the beginning that West Wits is not conducting any blasting. The Xcentric rippers cannot operate with blasting,” he said.
“Blasting requires explosives. Rippers break up the rock, with no explosives.”
The Record can confirm that blasting is being done by a company in Rand Leases and it is not affiliated to the mine in any way.
Another myth they wished to bust is the affiliation between West Wits and Dino Properties. “Dino Properties owns the land at Sol Plaatjes. There are three reefs and only one has slight traces of uranium. We are busy with various tests to confirm the levels, but they are below the threshold,” Mellett explained. “What we don’t understand is that residents now complain about uranium, silica, lead and arsenic particles in the dust. But it has always been there, ever since the mine was established in 1896. We believe that only now residents have a platform to complain and blame someone,” she said.
The application for a mining permit and licence that was submitted in March and April this year was, according to Scholes and Mellett, to continue with open-pit mining in the area, but has yet to be approved. “If DMR does not approve it, we cannot continue to mine gold. We also have to ensure that there is sufficient money to rehabilitate the area. If we cannot do that, the window for rehabilitation closes and the area will forever remain a moonscape,” Scholes said.
He said the mining permits were lodged in March and the mining right application was lodged in April and subsequently re-lodged in order to give more time to consult with the public.
According to Mellett, the end result will be an improvement. “The community always wanted the area to be cleaned up and rehabilitated, and this is what we are doing, given the opportunity. But, it has to be done now, we only have a two-year window period.
“The landowners and developers in the area, would like to develop and the sooner the gold resource is removed the better it is for them, otherwise they may be forced to invest elsewhere. Legally they can’t develop on top of an identified resource. This is the very reason why development in this area has been so slow.”
They said even though money is provided by an Australian company, they are still obliged to pay taxes, royalties and wages, and invest in the communities. “The investments made to date include establishing gardens, soup kitchens, educational development and community-led initiatives at a current rate of about R50 000 per month.”
They urge the residents to take part in the open days that were scheduled for this week. “Residents are welcome to ask questions. We want to put their minds at ease about the project.”
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