Obligations

When a mining company applies for a permit, the approval process requires it to lodge an Environmental Management Programme Report (EMPR) produced by an external professional with the Department of Mineral Resources.

In the context of mining, rehabilitation refers to the process whereby the damage done by mining operations is repaired to make the land safe and stable. The EMPR sets out, upfront, how the mining company intends to handle rehabilitation and the approximate costs.

Per the Mineral & Petroleum Resources Development Act 28 of 2002, read with the National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998, all mining operations in South Africa require a financial provision to be in place during the life of a mine, on premature closure, or at final closure to guarantee that sufficient funds exist to undertake rehabilitation.