Mining and your Community: Know your Environmental Rights

This guide, produced by the Centre for Environmental Rights and Lawyers for Human Rights, provides information for communities and individuals in South Africa on their environmental and legal rights when facing proposed mining activities. It details the mandatory government permissions, consultation processes, and legal avenues available to affected parties to protect their land, water, and health.

• Mining companies in South Africa must obtain four primary government permissions before beginning operations: a mining or prospecting right, an authorised environmental management programme or plan, a water use licence, and an environmental authorisation.
• Under the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA), mining companies can obtain the right to mine minerals on land without the owner's consent, although they must negotiate and pay compensation to the landowner or lawful occupier for access to the land.
• Proper consultation is a legal requirement for all licence applications. This involves providing affected parties with information about the mining and its impacts, listening to concerns, and responding to objections. Consultation is distinct from consent; a right may be granted even if the community objects, provided the consultation process was followed correctly.
• Affected communities have the right to access specific technical documents without a formal PAIA request, including the social and labour plan, water use licence, environmental authorisation, mining or prospecting rights, and the environmental management plan or programme.
• The Social and Labour Plan (SLP) is a mandatory document that outlines the mining company's commitments to job creation, skills development, and socio-economic contributions to the local area or province.
• Communities can challenge government decisions to grant mining licences through appeals. Timeframes vary: 30 days for mining or prospecting rights, and for environmental authorisations, a notice of intention to appeal must be sent within 20 days, followed by the appeal 30 days later.
• Mining activities that proceed without required permits, authorisations, or licences, or those that provide false information during the application process, constitute criminal offences under the MPRDA, NEMA, and NWA.
• On communal land, agreements affecting land use cannot be made by a single leader or individual; they require a majority vote by individual right holders under customary law and relevant legislation.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (n.d.). Mining and your Community: Know your Environmental Rights. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/CER-Mining-and-your-Community-Final-web.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. Mining and your Community: Know your Environmental Rights. n.d. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/CER-Mining-and-your-Community-Final-web.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=Mining and your Community: Know your Environmental Rights |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/CER-Mining-and-your-Community-Final-web.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centreforenvironmentalrightsndmining, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{Mining and your Community: Know your Environmental Rights}}, institution = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/CER-Mining-and-your-Community-Final-web.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }