On 19 May, the Federation for a Sustainable Environment submitted a report to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Water and the Environment, on invitation. The subject, the current status of AMD.
An extract from the report reads:
The current status of the AMD within the flooded West Rand mining basin, from a grassroots level point of view, is as follows:
- Rand Uranium is partially treating 12.5 million litres of AMD per day and discharging it into the Tweelopiespruit. The water is toxic and unfit for any use.
- Between 18 and 36 million litres of AMD are flowing, uncontrolled and untreated into the Tweelopiespruit (Limpopo Catchment) and seep into the Wonderfonteinspruit (Vaal River Catchment)
- There are significant volumes of water decanting from different point sources within the Randfontein area. On some samples, the sulphate concentrations are high when compared to typical values for fresh water, which would be an appropriate benchmark as we are concerned with the source of the water. The concern has been expressed by Dr. Henk Coetzee of the Council of GeoScience that the obvious local source of sulphate would be related to mining, underlining the need to trace the source of the water and to monitor the situation.
- Fish kills have been reported within the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site. From the report (appended) it can logically be inferred that AMD is migrating deep into the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site.
The report may be downloaded here.