Mining for Closure: Policies, practises and guidelines for sustainable mining and closure of mines

chardt, 2002). 98 Here it is important to note the underlying factors for failures – none are directly

related to insufficient economic returns. Rather, it is institutional failures that dominate.

Box 6 Bricks from tailings

Case example

Bricks from tailings

Market opportunity

Tailings and waste rock in some instances make a very suitable substitute to river sand as an input to cementatious building aggregate.

Capital expenditure

Minimal

Longevity

Elands Brick operated at Elandsrand Gold Mine for five years.

Infrastructure

Established on a redundant mine tennis court.

Employment

42 people.

Market

Supplied regional low-cost housing projects and mines at competitive prices.

Additional benefit

Saved mine the cost of relocation of tailings from ad-hoc clean-up operations and pipebursts.

Fate

Failed due to personal conflict between entrepreneurial partners.

Box 7 School from mine buildings

Case example

Redundant Hostel/School Conversion

Market opportunity

Redundant Hostel – expensive to convert to residential or apartment usage. Design ideal for boarding school – secure facility and accommodation. If replicated at 4 earmarked sites closure savings could have exceeded 18 million South African Rand (ZAR).

Capital expenditure

ZAR 3 million

Longevity

Not pursued for political reasons

Infrastructure

Redundant worker hostel

Employment

(Projected) 59 mostly mineworker spouses, 72 temporary construction jobs.

Market

Teaching & Boarding Facilities for 900 students. Addressing a critical social need – affordable quality education at rates competitive to public schools.

Additional benefit

Avoidance of Closure cost in excess of ZAR 4 million. Transfer of asset at zero cost a key factor in commercial viability.

Fate

Not pursued due to union objections to entrepreneur not being a Previously Disadvantaged Indi- vidual (PDI) Company (a PDI company is a company that is black owned, or black people are the majority shareholders of that company, i.e. they own 51% or more of shares of the company)

98. This is available online on the Mining, Minerals and Sustain- able Development site hosted by the IIIED at: http://www.iied. org/mmsd/rrep/s_afr.html

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MINING FOR CLOSURE