Key correspondence
Automatically available documents
On 27 September 2016, the Centre for Applied Legal Studies (CALS) and the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) sent a letter to the Director-General (DG) of the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) requesting that certain documents, including mining rights, prospecting rights, social and labour plans and environmental management programmes, are made available automatically – without the need to submit a formal request for those records in terms of the Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000 (PAIA)
- Letter from CALS and CER to the DG (27 September 2016)
- News post (28 September 2016)
Permission to conduct commercial mining in protected environments
On 17 February, the Association for Water and Rural Development (AWARD), BirdLife South Africa (BirdLife), Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), Federation for a Sustainable Environment (FSE), groundWork, the Mining and Environmental Justice Community Network of South Africa (MEJCON-SA) and the Worldwide Fund for Nature South Africa (WWF-SA) wrote a letter to the Minister of Environmental Affairs noting their concern for the dangerous precedent set by her recent decision to allow commercial mining in the Mabola Protected Environment in terms of section 48(1)(b) of the National environmental Management: Protected Areas Act, 2003 (NEMPAA). In the letter, the Minister was also called upon to conduct pubic participation in relation to all decisions relating to the exercise of her discretion in terms of section 48(1)(b) of the NEMPAA.
- Letter from AWARD, BirdLife, CER, EWT, FSE, groundWork, MEJCON-SA and WWF-SA to the Minister of Environmental Affairs, the DG of the Department of Environmental Affairs and the Department of Environmental Affairs (17 February 2017)
- Media Release by the Department of Environmental Affairs, ‘Environmental Affairs clarifies matters around Atha-Africa Ventures to mine within the Mabola Protected Environment in Mpumalanga Province’ (23 February 2017)
- Joint media release in response to the Department of Environmental Affairs’ media release of 23 February 2017 (7 March 2017)
Correspondence with the Chamber of Mines regarding Zero Hour
Following the launch of Zero Hour in May 2016, the Chamber of Mines addressed a letter to the CER, offering its perspectives on the report. The CER has replied to the Chamber’s letter.
- Letter from the Chamber of Mines to the CER (19 July 2016)
- Letter from the CER to the Chamber of Mines in reply to their letter of 19 July 2016 (6 September 2016)
Submission to the South African Human Rights Commission on Mining-affected Communities
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) is conducting a national investigative hearing on the underlying socio-economic challenges in mining-affected communities in South Africa. SAHRC invited the CER to make submissions to it relating to the environmental impacts of mining for he purposes of its hearing.
- SAHRC’s invitation to CER to make written submissions for the purposes of its hearing (4 August 2016)
- CER’s written submission to SAHRC (26 August 2016) and Annexures A, B and C
The hearings were scheduled to take place on 13 and 14 September 2016
Review of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 2002 and the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Amendment Act, 2008
In 2011, the CER addressed a letter to the Minister of Mineral Resources requesting an an opportunity for non-governmental organisations to discuss review of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 2002 (MPRDA) to the extent that it relates to environment, environmental impact assessment and the MPRDA Amendment Act, 2008.
- CER letter to the Minister of Mineral Resources (14 February 2011)
Also on 2011, the CER addressed a letter on behalf of 13 non-governmental organisations to the Minster of Mineral Resources proposing amendments to the MPRDA
- CER letter to the Minister of Mineral Resources (6 April 2011)
- Reply from the Minister of Mineral Resources (15 April 2011)
- CER’s follow-up letter to the Minister of Mineral Resources (21 September 2011)
The Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Amendment Bill was introduced to Parliament in 2013.
No-go areas for mines
In 2010, the CER wrote a letter on behalf of eight civil society organisations (CSOs) and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to the the Task Team on Mining in Sensitive Areas, recommending the declaration of no-go areas for mines in sensitive ecosystems.
- Letter to the Minister of Mineral Resources and the Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs (19 July 2010)
- Reply from the Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs (18 September 2010)
In 2011, the CER wrote a letter on behalf of thirteen NGOs and CSOs to the Minister of Mineral Resources requesting the Minister to exercise her discretion in terms of section 49 of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 2002 to prohibit and restrict prospecting and mining operations in areas of critical biodiversity and critical hydrological value and sensitivity. The CER did not receive a response from the Minister of Mineral Resources.
- Letter to the Minister of Mineral Resources (1 February 2011)
- Reply from the Chamber of Mines (18 March 2011)
- Response to the Chamber of Mines (28 Mach 2011)
- Follow-up letter to the Minister of Mineral Resources (21 September 2011)
Acid Mine Drainage
- Letter by the CER and 51 other civil society organisations and individuals to the Minister of Mineral Resources, Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs, the Minister in the Presidency for National Planning, the Minister of Science and Technology and the Minister of Finance (25 January 2011)
- Follow-up letter by the CER to the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Acid Mine Drainage (3 February 2011)
- Appeal to Parliament to intervene and assist in getting the Team of Experts’ Report released to the public (9 February 2011)
Correspondence with The Voice Community Representative Council, Volksrust
- The Voice Community Representative Council letter to CER (20 June 2018)
- CER letter to The Voice on behalf of coalition of eight civil society organisations (25 June 2018)
- The Voice letter to CER (26 June 2018)
- The Voice Memorandum of Grievances (26 July 2018)
- CER and Coalition’s reply to The Voice Memorandum of Grievances (16 August 2018)