NOTICE OF THE APPLICATION FOR AN ENVIRONMENTAL AUTHORISATION, A WASTE MANAGEMENT LICENCE AND A WATER USE LICENCE FOR THE PROPOSED ACTIVITIES AT THABA CHROME MINE (Reference: “LP 30/5/1/2/3/2/1 (0115) EM”)

This letter gives notice to potential Interested and Affected Parties (“I&APs”) about where information in respect of the application for the proposed activities at Thaba Mine can be obtained, as well as the opportunity for I&AP’s to comment on the draft Environmental Impact Assessment Report (“EIAR”), Environmental Management Programme (“EMPr”) and Water Use Licence (“WUL”) Technical Reports.

BACKGROUND TO THE PROJECT

Limberg Mining Company (Pty) Ltd (“LMC”) owns and operates the Thaba Mine. The proposed activities at Thaba Mine comprises of the following:

• Upgrade of the existing authorised tailings treatment facility to extract residual Chrome and Platinum Group Metals (“PGM”) from tailings stored at the existing Tailing Storage Facility (“TSF”).
• Tailings from the TSF and tailings from material processed from the continuation of mining of other opencast pits will be deposited into one of the Opencast Pits (Pit 1 (ML)).
• Construction of stormwater channels, clean and dirty water systems, pipelines, boreholes, including scavenger boreholes, a return water dam (“RWD”), an existing process water dam will be upgraded, the affected water stormwater dam at the TSF will be upgraded, and the RWD at the TSF will be upgraded. All dirty water dams and dirty water stormwater channels will be lined with a High-density polyethylene (“HDPE”) liner.
• The upgrade of a 1 Mega Watt (“MW”) Photovoltaic (“PV”) Solar Power Plant to 26.65 MW for electricity to be used at the mine.

LEGISLATIVE REQUIREMENTS

Procedure applied to the application:

The project triggers listed activities requiring an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in compliance with:

• the National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (Act No.107 of 1998) (NEMA) for the authorisation of listed activities contained in GNR 983, GNR 984 and GNR 985 of 4 December 2014, as amended published in terms of Sections 24(2), 24 (5), 24D, 44 and 47(A) (1)(b) of the NEMA and
• the National Environmental Management Waste Act, 2008 (Act No.59 of 2008) (NEMWA) for the authorisation of waste management activities contained in GNR 921 of 29 November 2013 (GNR 921), as amended, published in terms of Section 19(2) of the NEMWA.
• the National Water Act, 1998 (Act 36 of 1998), Section 21. The Water use licence application (“WULA”) the following water activities will be applied for:
• Section 21 (a) taking water from a water resource.
• Section 21 (g) disposing of waste in a manner which may detrimentally impact on a water resource.
• Section 21 (j) removing, discharging, or disposing of water found underground if it is necessary for the efficient continuation of an activity or for the safety of people.

Application submitted to competent authority

An application for authorisation in terms of the NEMA and NEMWA, as amended and the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations, 2014 was submitted on 1 September 2023 to the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (“DMRE”).

Listed activities applied to the application

The listed activities which have been applied for include GNR 983 Listing Notice 1 Activity 21F, 36 and 67, GNR 984 Listing Notice 2 Activity 6 and 19 under NEMA, and GNR 633 Category B: Activities 9, 10 and 11 under NEMWA.

Legislation associated with the application

South African legislation requires that a Scoping Report (“SR”) and an Environmental Impact Assessment Report (“EIAR”) be compiled in accordance with Regulation 21 to 24 of Chapter 4 of GNR 982. To do so Shangoni Management Services (Pty) Ltd (Shangoni) has been appointed as the independent Environmental Assessment Practitioner (EAP) in terms of Regulation 12 of GNR 982, in order to undertake and manage the processes to apply for the required environmental authorisations. Furthermore, Shangoni meets the requirements of an EAP contemplated in Regulation 13 of GNR 982.

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

People have a right to be informed about potential decisions that may affect them and to be afforded an opportunity to influence those decisions. This advertisement forms part of a Public Participation Process as part of the NEMA and NEMWA process. It describes the various components of the project to enable I&APs to get a better understanding of the potential environmental, economic, and social impacts that could be expected from the proposed project. It also outlines the NEMA, NEMWA, and WULA processes and the opportunities for the public to become involved during the study.

Register as an Interested and Affected Party (I&AP)

You may register as an I&AP. To register as an I&AP of this project, or to obtain more information or submit comments, please request a Registration Form from Shangoni and return it together with any comments to Shangoni by no later than 03 March 2024 at the details provided below.

Public meeting

A public meeting will be held in February 2024, the date and venue is to be confirmed. If you wish to attend the meeting, please contact the EAP below for details of the meeting.

Availability of the Draft EIA Report and WUL Technical Report

The EIAR and WUL Technical Report is available to the public for review for a period of thirty (30) days, from 02 February 2024. Hard copies of the mentioned documents are available at the Thabazimbi Police Station. A register and comment sheet will accompany the hard copies at the public viewing stations. Please complete the register subsequent to reviewing the report. Alternatively, e-mail or fax your comments to Shangoni (details provided below) by no later than 03 March 2024.  An electronic copy of the EIAR, WUL Technical Documents, and the appendices will also be posted on the Shangoni’s website (www.shangoni.co.za) for public comment for the same period of thirty days.

Where to obtain more information

To obtain additional information please contact the EAP at the details provided below.

Environmental Assessment Practitioner (EAP): Shangoni Management Services (Pty) Ltd

Contact person: Colleen van der Merwe

Tel: 012 807 7036/ Cell: 076 756 3874

E-mail: colleen@shangoni.co.za

Fax: 012 807 1014

Postal Address: P. O. Box 74726, Lynnwood Ridge, 0040

Fax: 012 807 1014

Postal Address: P. O. Box 74726, Lynnwood Ridge, 0040