The Minerals Council SA says it has received communication from the government affirming that the long-awaited review of SA’s flagship mining legislation will include clauses around illegal mining.
This marks a step towards the clearer and more comprehensive legal framework that the council has been calling for in recent months, particularly after the tragic death of 72 illegal miners at an abandoned gold mine in Stilfontein rocked global headlines in January.
Minerals Council CEO Mzila Mthenjane told a media round-table on Wednesday that SA’s department of mineral and petroleum resources had “indicated in our conversations that they have included clauses that speak to illegal mining, which is great”.
While the state’s engagement was an encouraging sign, Mthenjane said the limited scope of SA’s illegal mining laws remained a concern and that the review should encompass the full value chain, rather than bring limited to primary mining.
“There needs to be clarity in other pieces of legislation around the transport of legitimate material. For example, if you’re found to be in possession of [mined] material, you must have the necessary paperwork that indicates that you are the rightful owner and transporter,” said Mthenjane.
The Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA) of 2002 criminalises illegal mining activities, but the council has long criticised the law’s narrow and vague definitions of illegal mining.
At the Investing in African Mining Indaba in February, the Council said it hoped that the review of the MPRDA, which was expected to be published by end-March, would include clearer definitions of illegal mining to facilitate harsher sanctions.
“There’s got to be a lot more in terms of content and providing some kind of definition for and sanctioning of illegal mining. We need legislative support to enable the police to able to do their jobs,” said Minerals Council senior executive for public affairs and transformation Tebello Chabana.
The call for sharper definitions of illegal mining comes amid a broader push to eliminate regulatory uncertainty in the domestic mining industry, which the council hopes that the MPRDA review will deliver.
In particular, it hopes that the review will provide more clarity on prospecting rights. While mining minister Gwede Mantashe has “often said that no ownership is required at the point of applying for prospecting rights,” this is not made clear in the MPRDA, said Mthenjane.
“Making that clear in the law would have a huge impact in terms of a shift in sentiment towards investing in exploration in SA,” he said.
“I would hope that there will be lessons learnt from the past. Given where we are as a country and an economy, the role that the mining industry can play in stimulating investment should be the number one priority of the department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR) minister.
“Economic growth and job creation is the number one priority, and the mining industry can make a significant contribution, but it needs to be supported by an appropriate legislative environment, and that’s what we would like to see from the review of the MPRDA,” said Mthenjane.
The rise of illegal mining in SA poses a serious risk to the sustainability of the local mining industry with negative social and financial effects on the state, employees, companies and the country.
The sector hopes is that a reworked MPRDA, together with a more efficient rehabilitation programme for abandoned mines, will support the police in its efforts to crack down on so-called zama zamas.
In 2021, the auditor-general published a scathing report on the department’s slow progress in rehabilitating derelict and ownerless mines — a key part of the effort to cut down on illegal mining.
The audit found the department’s rehabilitation programme “achieved only minor improvements over the past 12 years”, with the average number of mines rehabilitated in a year increasing from 1.67 in 2009 to only 2.25 in 2021.
Department spokesperson Makhosonke Buthelezi told Business Day last year that the situation had since improved, with 297 mines having been rehabilitated since the 2021 audit.
“We have sealed about 797 derelict and ownerless mines from the 1,170 that were identified,” said Buthelezi, adding that the department would continue with its programme of closing derelict and ownerless mines in line with its operational plan, which aims to close 40 shafts or openings per year.
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