Thungela Resources Limited (the “Company” or “Thungela”) confirms that an uncharacteristic environmental incident took place at Khwezela Colliery’s Kromdraai site in eMalahleni, Mpumlanga on Monday, 14 February 2022. A full investigation of the root cause of the incident has started and will be concluded in due course.
The first stage of time critical remedial actions has now been completed. These include containing the overflow, flushing the river system with water from the Bronkhorstspruit Dam to mitigate the effect of mine-impacted water, and clean-up efforts along the stretch of 60km. Screening for possible residual waste will continue.
“We are encouraged by the level of collaboration from the authorities, farming community and members of society who share in our devastation on the impact to ecosystems. We are a responsible mining company and hold ourselves to the highest standards when it comes to our environmental, social and governance obligations. We are fully committed to doing what is right and within our power as citizens of the Mpumalanga community. We will lead the remediation efforts now and, in the future, as well as fully assess the causes and contributing factors that led to this incident,” says July Ndlovu, CEO of Thungela Resources.
Interim findings indicate that a concrete seal at the South Shaft broke which resulted in an uncontrolled release of mine-impacted water. The shaft was sealed in 2019 as part of the water management strategy. Despite a water management plan in place, the volume of water exceeded the maximum capacity for treatment at the dosing site and flowed into the Kromdraaispruit resulting in lowered pH levels of the water.
The collaboration efforts include working with the Department of Water and Sanitation, the Mpumalanga Parks and Tourism Agency, the community, other interested and affected stakeholders. Independent biodiversity, environmental, water and health experts, along with the Company’s experts are providing guidance on the investigation and evaluation of the impact on the environment, the steps to be taken to control the pollution and the remediation steps that need to be implemented to remedy the effects of the pollution.
ENDS
For further information, please contact:
Media
Tarryn Genis
Email: tarryn.genis@thungela.com
Tel: +27 (0) 82 324 4650