WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS TO THE SOUTH AFRICAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION FOR THE NATIONAL INVESTIGATIVE HEARING ON THE UNDERLYING SOCIO-ECONOMIC CHALLENGES IN MINING-AFFECTED COMMUNITIES IN SOUTH AFRICA

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) submitted these written submissions to the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) in August 2016. The document outlines systemic failures in the environmental governance of the South African mining sector, detailing how poor monitoring, inadequate enforcement, and flawed impact assessment processes lead to the violation of environmental rights in mining-affected communities. It provides evidence of water pollution, ecosystem destruction, and severe health impacts, while recommending a transfer of regulatory authority from the Department of Mineral Resources to environmental authorities.

• The environmental compliance monitoring and enforcement system in the mining sector is severely compromised by a lack of institutional capacity within the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) and the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS). As of May 2016, only 35 Environmental Mineral Resource Inspectors (EMRIs) were designated to monitor 1,757 operational mines, and these officials often undergo only a three-week training programme.
• Mining operations cause significant degradation of water resources through excessive abstraction and pollution. Acid mine drainage (AMD), particularly from gold and coal mining, sterilises soils and contaminates food crops. In 2012, AMD decanting into the Boesmanspruit Dam in Mpumalanga left the people of Carolina and Silobela Township without a water supply for seven months.
• Mining rights are frequently granted in sensitive areas, including those classified as "irreplaceable" or designated as strategic water source areas (SWSAs). For example, the Minister of Mineral Resources granted a mining right to Atha-Africa Ventures (Pty) Ltd within the Mabola Protected Environment in Mpumalanga only eight months after its declaration as a protected environment.
• Mining-related pollution leads to chronic health problems and premature deaths. In the Witwatersrand area, research is investigating links between uraniferous mine dumps and high incidences of cancer, nephrotoxicity, and mental retardation. Additionally, air pollution from Eskom's coal-fired power plants is estimated to cause between 2,200 and 2,700 premature deaths annually.
• The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process is criticized for having rigid and insufficient timeframes that hinder meaningful public participation. The CER notes that the 30-day public participation window is inadequate for consulting affected communities, particularly those requiring translation of technical documents into local languages.
• There is a systemic failure to enforce water laws; in July 2014, 103 mines were reported to be operating without water use licences, yet the DWS issued only 12 directives and opened 6 criminal cases. The Minister of Water and Sanitation reported in 2015 that only 6 cases involving NWA offences had been successfully prosecuted since 1999.
• Mining activities often deprive rural communities of land and water. Under the MPRDA, mining rights holders have exclusive use of land, often cordoning off areas used for housing and agriculture. In some cases, such as the Somkhele Mine owned by Petmin (Pty) Ltd, mines accessed underground water during the 2015/2016 drought while the local community relied on trucked water from the Mtubatuba Local Municipality.
• The CER recommends a fundamental shift in governance by removing the responsibility for environmental regulation of mines from the DMR and transferring it to environmental authorities to resolve the conflict between promoting mineral development and protecting the environment.
• The document advocates for the adoption of the principle of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), arguing that the MPRDA should be reformed to require community consent as a prerequisite for granting prospecting and mining rights.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (2016). WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS TO THE SOUTH AFRICAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION FOR THE NATIONAL INVESTIGATIVE HEARING ON THE UNDERLYING SOCIO-ECONOMIC CHALLENGES IN MINING-AFFECTED COMMUNITIES IN SOUTH AFRICA. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/CER-Submission-to-SAHRC-on-Mining-Affected-Communities.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS TO THE SOUTH AFRICAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION FOR THE NATIONAL INVESTIGATIVE HEARING ON THE UNDERLYING SOCIO-ECONOMIC CHALLENGES IN MINING-AFFECTED COMMUNITIES IN SOUTH AFRICA. 2016. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/CER-Submission-to-SAHRC-on-Mining-Affected-Communities.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS TO THE SOUTH AFRICAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION FOR THE NATIONAL INVESTIGATIVE HEARING ON THE UNDERLYING SOCIO-ECONOMIC CHALLENGES IN MINING-AFFECTED COMMUNITIES IN SOUTH AFRICA |date=26 August 2016 |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/CER-Submission-to-SAHRC-on-Mining-Affected-Communities.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centreforenvironmentalrights2016written, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS TO THE SOUTH AFRICAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION FOR THE NATIONAL INVESTIGATIVE HEARING ON THE UNDERLYING SOCIO-ECONOMIC CHALLENGES IN MINING-AFFECTED COMMUNITIES IN SOUTH AFRICA}}, institution = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, year = {2016}, month = aug, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/CER-Submission-to-SAHRC-on-Mining-Affected-Communities.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }