Water Issues in SA

Appoint a Water Tribunal! ^Featured

Written by / Maintained by Webmaster Friday, 27 March 2015 04:15

In Mpumalanga the Escarpment Environmental Protection Group (EEPOG) and the Wonderfontein Community Organisation have applied to the Pretoria High Court for an order to reinstitute the Water Tribunal.

Published in WATER

AngloGold Spills Toxic Waste Near South Africa's Vaal River

Written by Kevin Crowley Friday, 30 August 2013 21:53

Anglo Gold Ashanti Ltd., Africa's largest producer of the metal, said it spilled toxic waste from a gold-dump treatment unit into a tributary of South Africa's Vaal River.

By Kevin Crowley

Published in WATER

"Fracking threatens our water resources" 64% vote yes

Written by / Maintained by Webmaster Friday, 30 May 2014 21:29

‘Fracking threatens our water resources’: This was the topic in the third of WWF and SAfm’s Decisive Debate series.

Published in WATER

Water Pollution Near Mines Prompts South African Ombudsman Probe ^Featured

Written by Kevin Crowley Friday, 23 May 2014 19:59

South Africa’s anti-corruption ombudsman has begun a probe into water pollution allegedly caused by mining companies.
The inquiry by the Public Protector is in its early stages, spokesman Oupa Segalwe said by e-mail.
“The investigation has to do with alleged pollution of water as a result of mining operations in a number of provinces,” Segalwe said.

By Kevin Crowley

Published in WATER

Water channels blighted by AMD and age place Gauteng's biodiversity at risk ^Featured

Written by / Maintained by Webmaster Thursday, 22 May 2014 20:23

A confidential report in the possession of amaBhungane has painted an alarming picture of the threat posed by acid mine drainage to critical water pipelines owned by Africa's largest water utility Rand Water.

By ZWANGA MUKHUTHU

Published in WATER

Legal not technical problems bedevil water delivery in SA

Written by LEANDI KOLVER Thursday, 17 April 2014 19:45

The barrier to efficient water service delivery in South Africa was not of a technological nature but rather related to legal and Constitutional challenges, Water Research Commission (WRC) CEO Dhesigen Naidoo said on Thursday.

BY: LEANDI KOLVER

Published in WATER

Mintails: Conditions for Water Use License

Written by / Maintained by Webmaster Wednesday, 26 March 2014 09:09

In terms of Condition 12.9 of the authorised Water Use License “The Licensee shall attend and actively participate in the Wonderfontein/Loopspruit catchment forum to which the Licensee must report and present all aspects of water management as contained in the conditions of this license such as compliance with the licence conditions and progress with all investigations in terms of this license or related studies...”

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New treatment plant opened as acid water pours

Written by / Maintained by Webmaster Saturday, 15 March 2014 02:38

As Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs Edna Molewa unveiled a new multi-million rand acid mine drainage treatment plant yesterday, a few kilometres away of a torrent of untreated toxic water was gushing uncontrollably into an already blighted river system.

Published in WATER

LUR tree in bres vir ‘fabrieke van water’

Written by / Maintained by Webmaster Monday, 03 March 2014 00:00

Pinky Phosa, LUR vir ekonomiese ontwikkeling, omgewingsake en toerisme, is gister wyd geloof vir die feit dat sy “twee water¬fabrieke” in Mpumalanga tot bewaringsgebiede geproklameer het.
Die een is by Wakkerstroom en die ander by Chrissiesmeer.

Published in WATER

Groen Skerpioene bekyk myns weens besoedling ^Featured

Written by / Maintained by Webmaster Monday, 03 March 2014 09:35

Die Groen Skerpioene en die polisie gaan saam 'n besoedelingsaak teen die Blyvooruitsicht myn en sy direkteure ondersoek. So het adv. Francis Craigie, hoof van die Groen Skerpioene, eergister gese.

Published in WATER

Tackling Acid Mine Drainage in a big way ^Featured

Written by / Maintained by Webmaster Sunday, 16 February 2014 16:09

A mammoth new plant is nearly ready to treat toxic water. A hundred tons of lime a day and a " hell of a lot" of electricity. This is some of what it will take to power the biggest acid mine drainage (AMD) plant of its kind in South Africa and the continent.

Published in WATER

Ways to kill a wetland

Written by Franz Fuls Monday, 13 January 2014 18:33

In late June 2013, Exxaro, one of South Africa’s largest coal-mining companies with assets of R41.6-billion, commenced opencast mining at Weltevreden pan close to Delmas, in the mineral-rich province of Mpumalanga.

Or rather, re-commenced.

Report by Franz Fuls

Published in WATER

Charges laid against AngloGold Ashanti over polluting min

Written by / Maintained by Webmaster Monday, 02 September 2013 21:52

Further charges are being laid against AngloGold Ashanti for a spill that resulted in uranium-laden water going into a tributary of the Vaal River.

Published in WATER

National Water Resources Strategy

Written by / Maintained by Webmaster Thursday, 13 June 2013 04:52

The Department of Water Affairs has written to the FSE, expressing appreciation for the submission to the draft National Water Resources Strategy 2 (NWRS2) of 30 January 2013.

Published in WATER

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More water news

Project to heal polluted river . System will·create stream·of jobs

THE POTENTIAL to create 100 climate jobs and to help : bring a "dead river system" back to life -that's the rationale behind a proposed pilot project to heal one of Gauteng's most heavily polluted river systems, the Tweelopiespruit, which has been contaminated by more than a century of mining.

'Mine Water can be treated, safe'

SOUTH Africans have to "change their mindsets" that they can't drink acid mine drainage (AMD).

Eastern Basin acid water plant is "sledgehammer"

The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has used a "sledgehammer" for its R1bn treatment plant for acid mine drainage (AMD) on the Eastern mining basin that could ultimately create more toxic water. This is the view of water strategy and consulting mining hydrologist Kym Morton, who believes government is "wasting money" by pumping large volumes of water and adding lime that makes it alkaline but still toxic and hazardous.

SABC Health Talk, Environmental Health: 25 February 2017

Focus on preventing illness rather than incurring the expense of treatment.

Rand Water tightens the taps in Gauteng

In the Midvaal suburb where Sipho Mosai lives, the gardens are lush and green because the sprinklers run all day. There's little sense of alarm at the fast-declining water levels in the Vaal water system after which the suburb is named.

Objection: Sedibelo Platinum Mine Water Use Licence

The Federation for a Sustainable Environment has objected to the Water Use Licence granted to Sedibelo Platinum Mine within the Moses Kotane Local Municipality, North West Province. An extract from the objection follows, and the full document is available to download.

Corruption seeps into South Africa’s R26 billion water project: report

Water affairs and sanitation minister Nomvula Mokonyane is in the cross-hairs of the Public Protector after delaying South Africa’s Lesotho Highlands Water Project, allegedly to award contracts to a company she has a long-standing relationship with. This is according to a report by the City Press, noting that the Public Protector will meet with Mokonyane over the issue this week. The project has been delayed by over a year due to Mokonyane’s direct intervention, the report said, pushing its completion date to 2025, and pushing the price up to R26 billion. The entire project is being funded by taxpayers. Senior officials told the City Press that the delay was forced by Mokonyane so that consulting firm, LTE Consulting, could get involved. According to the City Press’ findings, LTE has been awarded R5 billion worth of contracts in water and sanitation over the past year. It was also found that the company had donated as much as R3.5 million to the ANC in the past two months. The standard fee for consultation is 10% of the total cost, the paper said, meaning a spot on the water project could net the company as much as R2.6 billion. Executives from LTE have reportedly been contacting and paying delegates involved with the project, trying to convince them the give them tenders. When told by officials that the company had to bid for tenders, LTE CEO Thulani Majola allegedly said that he was not interested in bidding, and would approach Mokonyane directly. Subsequently, the bids for a number of tenders – from other companies – were rejected by the department soon thereafter. http://businesstech.co.za/

Water Quality Management Policies and Strategies

In response to the country's need to take an improved integrated approach to Water Quality Management, the Department of Water and Sanitation has recently initiated a project to revise its current Water Quality Management (WQM) Policies and Strategies.

Questions raised about govt's approach to acid mine drainage

The Department of Water and Sanitation's existing treatment programme involving pumping acid mine drainage out of the Witwatersrand basin and then partially treating the water by neutralising it will not assist in alleviating the challenge in the long term, says the Federation for a Sustainable Environment (FSE) CEO Mariette Liefferink.

Water scientist disputes NGO's claim of Mintails' criminal noncompliance

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Environmental risk analyst Dr Anthony Turton has vehemently denied claims by independent environmental organisation the Federation for a Sustainable Environment (FSE) that tailings extractor Mintails has not complied with the terms of its water-use licence (WUL) and other environmental requirements to the extent that makes it criminally culpable.

DWS is not compliant on AMD

Mariette Lierfferink, CEO of the Federation for a Sustainable Environment states that while the Department of Water and Sanitation alleges that the Acid Mine Drainage situation is no longer a reason for concern, the investigation report by the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) adduces evidence to the contrary.

"Fracking threatens our water resources" 64% vote yes

‘Fracking threatens our water resources’: This was the topic in the third of WWF and SAfm’s Decisive Debate series.

Legal not technical problems bedevil water delivery in SA

Mintails: Conditions for Water Use License

New treatment plant opened as acid water pours

LUR tree in bres vir ‘fabrieke van water’

Pinky Phosa, LUR vir ekonomiese ontwikkeling, omgewingsake en toerisme, is gister wyd geloof vir die feit dat sy “twee water¬fabrieke” in Mpumalanga tot bewaringsgebiede geproklameer het.Die een is by Wakkerstroom en die ander by Chrissiesmeer.

Ways to kill a wetland

Charges laid against AngloGold Ashanti over polluting min

Further charges are being laid against AngloGold Ashanti for a spill that resulted in uranium-laden water going into a tributary of the Vaal River.

AngloGold Spills Toxic Waste Near South Africa's Vaal River

Anglo Gold Ashanti Ltd., Africa's largest producer of the metal, said it spilled toxic waste from a gold-dump treatment unit into a tributary of South Africa's Vaal River. By Kevin Crowley

National Water Resources Strategy

The Department of Water Affairs has written to the FSE, expressing appreciation for the submission to the draft National Water Resources Strategy 2 (NWRS2) of 30 January 2013.

Presentations:Greater Pilansberg Water Forum Meeting

The Federation for Sustainable Environment presented at the Greater Pilansberg Water Forum Meeting, among other presenters. These presentation are presented here to download.

Greater Pilansberg Water Forum

The FSE facilitated and organised a successful Water Forum on the 30th of April, 2013 at the Maslow Hotel, Sandton in order to address the water resource constraints within the Greater Pilanesberg area.

Water scarcity could increase ratings pressure on mining companies

Ratings agency Moody’s Investor Service on Thursday warned that environmental factors, such as water scarcity, could adversely impact on the ratings of global mining companies if they failed to proactively manage the accompanying operational and political risks to their businesses.

Plea for Clean Water

Without clean water, there is no dignity. And that's why for Janet Love the acid mine drainage (AMD) crisis on the Witwatersrand's goldfields centres on the preservation of human rights.

Environmental group threatens to sue authority if acid mine drainage not cleaned up

The Federation for a Sustainable Environment will sue the Trans-Caledon Tunnel Authority (TCTA) if it doesn't start cleaning up the acid mine drainage (AMD) poisoning the Witwatersrand.

Water News

Appoint a Water Tribunal! Featured

Water Pollution Near Mines Prompts South African Ombudsman Probe Featured

Water channels blighted by AMD and age place Gauteng's biodiversity at risk Featured

Groen Skerpioene bekyk myns weens besoedling Featured

Tackling Acid Mine Drainage in a big way Featured

More water news

It’s all about the money

Addressing waste and pollution of the past

Coalition defending Mpumalanga water source area

Appoint a Water Tribunal! ^Featured

Water Pollution Near Mines Prompts South African Ombudsman Probe ^Featured

Water channels blighted by AMD and age place Gauteng's biodiversity at risk ^Featured

Groen Skerpioene bekyk myns weens besoedling ^Featured

Tackling Acid Mine Drainage in a big way ^Featured