KM_C554e-20170511160812

The South African Department of Water and Sanitation informed the Centre for Environmental Rights that the Minister lifted the suspension of a water use licence for Atha Africa Ventures (Pty) Ltd's Yzermyn underground coal mine on 26 March 2017. Despite objections from the Centre regarding rezoning and socio-economic impacts, the Department found AAV's existing mining and environmental authorisations persuasive and determined that the remaining disputes should be resolved by the Water Tribunal.

• The Minister of Water and Sanitation decided to lift the suspension of the water use licence issued to Atha Africa Ventures (Pty) Ltd (AAV) on 26 March 2017.
• The Department of Water and Sanitation determined that the objections raised by the Centre for Environmental Rights were similar to those in the existing appeal and should be decided by the Water Tribunal, while finding AAV's reasons for lifting the suspension to be persuasive.
• Atha Africa Ventures (Pty) Ltd (AAV) justified the request to lift the suspension by citing several obtained authorisations for the Yzermyn underground coal mine: a Mining Right (MPT 43/2016) granted on 28 June 2016, an Environmental Authorisation (EA) granted on 07 June 2016, and a water use licence granted on 07 July 2016.
• The Centre for Environmental Rights opposed the lifting of the suspension on several grounds: the lack of necessary rezoning authorization, a one-sided view of socio-economic consequences, the absence of the Social and Labour Plan in the application, and the concern that acting on the licence before the appeal's determination would render the right to appeal nugatory.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (n.d.). KM_C554e-20170511160812. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Reasons-for-decision-AVV.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. KM_C554e-20170511160812. n.d. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Reasons-for-decision-AVV.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=KM_C554e-20170511160812 |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Reasons-for-decision-AVV.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centreforenvironmentalrightsndkmc554e20170511160812, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{KM\_C554e-20170511160812}}, publisher = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Reasons-for-decision-AVV.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }