Pan African community engagement for re-mining waste in Soweto

Thokozile Mntambo

The latest gold tailings re-treatment project of Pan African Resources is bound to start after five 5 years in the Soweto Cluster. The Mogale Tailings Retreatment ( MTR) is located on the west rand of Johannesburg in Krugersdorp. Its main objective is to remediate all the ecological degradation of tailings facilities brought about by the gold mine rush in 1886.

Pan African Resources hosted a community training around Soweto as they are the new owners of the Vlakfontein tailing mine dump that has been contributing to ecological degradation and causing pollution for more than a decade since Mintails Limited became liquidated in 2018.

The mining company focused mainly on three communities who are living around the tailing mine dump that they recently bought to start their retreatment project. The communities they have focused on are Braamfitcher, Tshepisong, and Thulane ( Snake Park ), the training was effective from the 23rd to the 26th of July 2024.

Community members gathered on the 26th of July in the Thulane community hall eagerly anticipating answers about the re-mining of the mine waste which has caused a lot of social and environmental challenges, to their health and well-being.

The councilor miss Phumlile Shange opened the meeting by welcoming the community and Pan African Resource and permitted them to start the meeting with calm spirits and urged the community to give the mining company a chance to explain what their project will bring to the community.

“It’s been a while since we wanted the mining company to interact with the community and we are going to grab this opportunity with both hands,” she said.

Mr Soza Nkuna who is a community liaison of the Pan African Resource opened the program of the day and he explained the aims and objectives of the mining company, he also welcomed Mariette Liefferink the executive director of the Federation of Sustainable Development.

“We aim to rehabilitate the Vlakfonten mine tailing dump, by using new technologies that can trace small particles of gold which were left on the mine waste, The method that we are using is the hydrochloric method which is safe and only uses water, the project will start after five years in Soweto. We are now still busy with the Mogale cluster and we will finish it after 13 years. This training is for the community to learn about the dangers of tailings and practice safety first.” said mr Nkuna.

Mariette Liefferink was the facilitator for three engagements with affected communities. Her presentation was focused on informing the interested affected parties about the hazards and risks of mine dumps and emphasised emergency preparedness in the unlikely event of failure.

According to Miss Liefferink waste from gold mines constitutes the largest single source of waste and pollution in South Africa. At the Witswaterand more than 120 mines have extracted over 116 00 tons of gold and uranium, leaving a legacy of more than 270 tailings facilities that cover approximately 400km². Contamination, including air, water, and soil pollution, has significant health impacts on surrounding communities, many of which are composed of low-income homes. These tailings consist of cobalt, arsenic, copper, and uranium which is radioactive and can cause radon gas.

“ Every person that contributes to pollution and ecological degradation must prevent pollution,” she said.

She urged the community to also not use the sand from the tailing as building sand, Because the metals from the soil are very harmful and can cause diseases such as lung cancer, asthma, eczema, and pregnant women giving birth to children with deformities.

Current laws and regulations such as the NEMA and the MPRDA have failed to prevent and mitigate the detrimental effects of tailings dams, particularly unsafe and abandoned facilities. This has given Pan African Resources the privilege to re-claim residues and start mining because they do not have to apply for a mining license. The community could not understand how the company obtained mining rights since the company had never done any public participation meetings and the mining project.

“ This is not the first and the last time we visit communities we will come again, “ said Sonwabo Modimoeng who is responsible for community engagements at Pan African Resources.

According to Daniel Mkhwanazi member of Bambanani Co-operative in Thulani, the mining company has started to put signpostings on the tailing without even hiring locals to do the work. The signposting is relevant but they won’t stop the dust and they will only bring illegal miners into the community.

“ As people who are living with disabilities, we have been sidelined and we also want to know what the project is bringing for people who live with disabilities,” said Bongani a community member who is living with disabilities.

Mr. Sthebe who is a member of an organization that focuses on business in Snake Park said “ Civil society must stop bashing mining, because mining is one of the major contributors to the economy of South Africa. As small SMEs, we are more interested in the project opportunities and we want the mining company to create value in our community.”

Mr. Soza Nkuna concluded by saying that they’re still creating a system for community members who want job opportunities and investments and they can send their CVs and proposals.

In the meantime, the community can send their communication to this email address: mtrv@mogaletr.co.za