Rehabilitation of Mine Contaminated Eco-Systems

Gold and uranium mining in the Witwatersrand gold fields has resulted in the contamination and destruction of wetlands, as well as negative impacts on biodiversity and on soil, groundwater and air quality, thus also exacerbating the adverse impacts of climate change. The impacts of global warming include changes in rainfall and in ambient temperature that will have an over-all negative impact on subsistence activities and commercial agriculture, as well as on biodiversity and the health of river systems. This book makes the case for a project to address the waste and pollution legacy of mining in the Witwatersrand basin, with a clear linkage between the potential for revenue generation through materials reclamation and comprehensively addressing the entire rehabilitation challenge, with the participation of all stakeholders. It sketches the background and the extent of the challenge, the legislative and regulatory context and the imperatives for urgent action, then focuses in on the Tweelopiespruit wetlands area for a potential pilot project.