INTERNAL APPEAL TO THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE DEPARTMENT OF MINERAL RESOURCES

The Federation for a Sustainable Environment (FSE), represented by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), filed an internal appeal to the Director General of the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) on July 21, 2015. The appeal challenges the DMR's partial refusal to grant access to records regarding the Yzermyn underground coal mine project in Mpumalanga, which the FSE requested under the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (PAIA).

• The FSE requested several records regarding the Yzermyn underground coal mine project by Atha-Africa Ventures (Pty) Ltd, including the mining right application, mitigation measures, wetland exclusion maps, the executed mining right, the environmental management programme (EMPR), the social and labour plan (SLP), and the mining works programme (MWP).
• The DMR granted access to some records on May 29, 2015, but denied access to records of financial provision, the mining works programme (MWP), and correspondence related to the National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act (NEMPAA).
• The DMR's refusal was based on sections 36(1) and 44(1) of PAIA, citing the protection of third-party trade secrets, commercial interests, and the deliberative process of the public body.
• The appellant argues that the DMR failed to provide adequate reasons for the refusal as required by section 25(3) of PAIA, providing only a blanket invocation of statutory sections without explaining how they applied to specific records.
• The FSE contends that the records of financial provision and the MWP are in the public interest because they are essential for assessing environmental protection and rehabilitation obligations for the Yzermyn project.
• The appeal asserts that the NEMPAA correspondence should be disclosed because the deliberative process is complete now that the mining right has been issued, and the records form part of the 'record of decision' required under the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (PAJA).
• The appellant claims that the granting of the mining right to Atha may have been unlawful, potentially involving a failure to comply with the law or a disregard for national policy in Mpumalanga, which would trigger mandatory disclosure under section 46 of PAIA.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (2015). INTERNAL APPEAL TO THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE DEPARTMENT OF MINERAL RESOURCES. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Internal-Appeal.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. INTERNAL APPEAL TO THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE DEPARTMENT OF MINERAL RESOURCES. 2015. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Internal-Appeal.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=INTERNAL APPEAL TO THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE DEPARTMENT OF MINERAL RESOURCES |date=21 July 2015 |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Internal-Appeal.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centreforenvironmentalrights2015internal, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{INTERNAL APPEAL TO THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE DEPARTMENT OF MINERAL RESOURCES}}, publisher = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, year = {2015}, month = jul, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Internal-Appeal.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }