POLICY POSITION
New rules sought to combat acid mine drainage
Policy position paper published in the Government Gazette
The government is looking for new ways to regulate the effects of mining activity on SA’s scarce water resources, according to a policy position articulated by Water and Sanitation Minister Nomvula Mokonyane. The policy position paper was published in the Government Gazette. In it, Mokonyane said "emergency interventions" were under way to deal with acid mine drainage in the Witwatersrand gold fields, where new technologies for testing mine water were being tried out. This comes as a team including University of Cape Town students has come up with a salt-based method for mine wastewater treatment, which will be rolled out at the Tweefontein colliery in Mpumalanga. Mokonyane said companies should consider acid mine drainage and other water pollutants not only as a threat, but also as an opportunity for private-public partnerships. "It is possible to use treated mine water to help alleviate the water shortage in the country. A few flagship projects are in operation that produce qualit...
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