‘Dept must act against coal mines polluting water – CER’ 4 December 2019

The department of water and sanitation’s failure to ensure coal mining companies comply with water use licences could potentially be a human right violation, according to the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER). Wits University School of Law professor and chair of the board of the CER, Tracy-Lynn Field, said the department’s failure to hold coal mining companies accountable for polluting water resources and not abiding by water use licences could see the department being hauled over the coals. Field said the department had an obligation to ensure industries do not pollute water resources and by its failure in ensuring coal mining companies do not commit such environmental crimes, the department was violating people’s basic human right of access to quality water.

She said the department was responsible for pressing criminal charges against any company or individual posing a threat to this right. Earlier this year, research by CER found eight coal mining companies in Mpumalanga had failed to comply with water use licences and threatened the quality and availability of water in the area. The eight coal mining operations for which water use licences and independent audit reports obtained were: Tweefontein South, Manungu Colliery, Leeuwpan Coal Mine, Khutala Colliery,Vanggatfontein Colliery, Isibonelo Colliery, Goedgevonden Colliery and Kangala Colliery. The research revealed that not one of the companies took responsibility for the contamination of rivers caused by water leaving their sites during rainy conditions.