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Elders Irrigation and Ventilation Project

Short Project Title

Elders Irrigation and Ventilation Project

Project Title

Environmental Authorisation process for the Irrigation and Ventilation Shaft Projects proposed at Elders Colliery, Mpumalanga

SRK Project Reference Number

579785

Official Reference Number

MP 30/5/1/2/3/2/1 (10117) EM

SRK Project Manager

Natasha Moodley

Contact Person

Julia Bell

Contact Email

JBell@srk.co.za

Contact Number

+ 27 87 087 4863

PROJECT SYNOPSIS

Anglo American Inyosi Coal (AAIC), a member of Thungela Resources Limited (Thungela) is applying for an environmental authorisation (EA) and water use licence (WUL) for proposed irrigation project and ventilation shafts at Elders Colliery.

  • Irrigation system: The proposed irrigation system will be implemented in phases and includes central pivots which will irrigate an area of 406 ha. It will utilise underground water to irrigate seasonal and perennial crops.
  • Ventilation shafts: Upcast ventilation shafts are proposed for ventilation at Elders Colliery. Associated infrastructure for the shafts includes an 11 kV overhead line, electrical substation, and transformer bay.

Before AAIC may commence with constructing the irrigation scheme, ventilation shafts and associated auxiliary infrastructure, the following environmental authorisations and licences need to be applied for:

  • A Scoping and Environmental Impact Assessment (S&EIA) process in terms of the National Environmental Management Act (Act No. 107 of 1998) (NEMA) Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Regulations (2014). The required documentation will be submitted to the Mpumalanga Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE).
  • A Water Use Licence Application (WULA) to be undertaken in terms of the National Water Act (Act No. 36 of 1998) (NWA) for submission and approval from the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS).

PROJECT LOCATION

The proposed projects will be located approximately 25 km north of Bethal and 12 km west of Kriel in the Govan Mbeki Local Municipality in the Gert Sibande District Municipality of the Mpumalanga Province. They will be situated on Portion 2 & 3 of the farm Schoonvlei 52 IS, Portion 4, 7, 8, 13, 16/12 and 15 of the farm Elandsfontein 75 IS and RE/3, 6/3 of the farm Middelkraal 50 IS.

579785_A3L_EldersIrrigationPrj_LocalityMap_20240718

STATUS OF PROJECT

Status of Project:

SRK Consulting South Africa (Pty) Ltd (SRK) has been appointed as the independent Environmental Assessment Practitioner (EAP) to conduct the S&EIA process, WULA and associated public participation process.

 The Draft Scoping Report (DSR) was made available for public comment for 30 days and finalised with the feedback received during this period. The Final Scoping Report (FSR), available below, was submitted to the DMRE Mpumalanga for consideration. Please note that Appendix B3 is not publicly accessible, as it contains personal information of registered stakeholders.