Review of the Yzermyn Financial Provision for the Centre for Environmental Rights Report

The report finds that Atha-Africa Ventures' financial provisions for the Yzermyn coal mine are incomplete and significantly underestimated. GCS Water and Environment identifies critical omissions, including costs for wetland rehabilitation, wetland offsetting, and the construction and operation of a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) to manage post-closure decant. GCS estimates that the 2020 financial provision provided by Atha-Africa is less than one-quarter of the realistic costs required. The report emphasizes that the mine's location within the Mabola Protected Area and its impact on sensitive headwater wetlands necessitate a full-scale revision of closure and water management costs to ensure long-term environmental protection.

• The financial provisions calculated by Atha-Africa Ventures for the Yzermyn coal mine are deemed incomplete and insufficient to protect the receiving environment.
• Atha-Africa omitted two critical components from its financial provision: the rehabilitation and offsetting of surface area wetlands and the post-closure management of residual environmental impacts, specifically the decant of polluted water.
• GCS estimates that the financial provision provided by Atha-Africa for 2020 is less than 25% of the realistic costs required for closure and rehabilitation.
• The report identifies a specific calculation error in Atha-Africa's provision where a Master Rate of R700 per 10 hectares was used for maintenance and aftercare instead of the correct rate of R7,000.
• Conservative estimates for the intensive rehabilitation of 4 hectares of seep wetland are calculated at R6,636,000, or R1,659,000 per hectare.
• Due to significant residual impacts that cannot be mitigated on-site, the report argues that wetland offsets are necessary, suggesting the purchase of land for inclusion in the Mabola Protected Environment.
• The report assumes a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) must be constructed to treat decant at a rate of 6 litres per second, operating for at least 20 years after decant begins (estimated from 2082 to 2102).
• The Yzermyn mine is located within the Mabola Protected Area and impacts wetlands of high to very high Ecological Importance and Sensitivity (EIS), including some that are 'critically endangered' or 'endangered'.

APA

Meyer, S. (2019). Review of the Yzermyn Financial Provision for the Centre for Environmental Rights Report. Centre for Environmental Rights. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Annexure-U-Yzermyn-Financial-Provision-Review.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Meyer, Sharon. Review of the Yzermyn Financial Provision for the Centre for Environmental Rights Report. Centre for Environmental Rights, 2019. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Annexure-U-Yzermyn-Financial-Provision-Review.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Meyer |first1=Sharon |title=Review of the Yzermyn Financial Provision for the Centre for Environmental Rights Report |publisher=Centre for Environmental Rights |date=9 September 2019 |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Annexure-U-Yzermyn-Financial-Provision-Review.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{meyer2019review, author = {Meyer, Sharon}, title = {{Review of the Yzermyn Financial Provision for the Centre for Environmental Rights Report}}, institution = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, year = {2019}, month = sep, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Annexure-U-Yzermyn-Financial-Provision-Review.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }