Acid Mine Drainage | savingwater.co.za

Fracking the Karoo and unanswered questions

Posted by: Saving Water SA (Cape Town, South Africa) – partnered with Water Rhapsody conservation systems – 07 February 2011

Shell, Sasol and Bundu are names of companies that are going through application processes to drill exploration holes very deep into the ground in the Karoo in search of water and gas.

Millions of litres of water are needed for fracking - per drilling site.

Shell has opened up a can of worms with their public participation meetings, and there are too many questions that have been unanswered; though the questions have been asked of them directly.

To drill explorative holes, and to look for water at limitless depths, Shell has applied for an EMP (Environmental Management Plan). I am not aware of how deep existing boreholes go down to get water for farming purposes, but all of the farmers say that there is just enough water for them to exist in that harsh environment. Other hydro-geologists say that there is no more water for any purposes whatsoever in the Karoo.

At the outset, it must be stressed that the problems relating to “chemical fracking” are all about water.

How much water is needed by Shell for drilling and fracking? Shell and the others need millions of litres of water per drilling site, but nobody is willing to say how many drilling sites there are in their proposals, nor how many millions of litres are needed per drilling site.

Will Shell compete with farmers for water? If there is a finite volume in the fossil aquifer, and Shell is to extract more water than before, it is only logical that there will be less water than before. The process may go ahead without any research as to the re-charge of the aquifer. A full Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) should be done to find these facts out. Continue reading Fracking the Karoo and unanswered questions

Drought or floods for the Western Cape?

Posted by: Saving Water SA (Cape Town, South Africa) – partnered with Water Rhapsody conservation systems – 01 February 2011

By: Jeremy Westgarth-Taylor – Founder of Water Rhapsody and winner of a WWF Green Trust Award

There have been two conflicting reports about the predictions of weather patterns for the Western Cape winter of 2011. In the Cape Times last week Mmaphaka Tau – Senior Manager of National Disaster Management Centre – seems to be making a faux pas. He voiced criticism of the handling of the release of flood water saying that the sluice gates were opened too late. The chaps in charge of the dams, however, say that they operated the opening in compliance of best international practice.

Drought or flood?

It matters not whether the sluice gates were opened too early or too late. The real reason why we have floods that do so much damage is the dams themselves.

Dam building

During years of lower than average and average rainfall, a period that lasts up to thirty years, a swollen river gives no warning not to build on a flood plain. Rainfall of perhaps a ten year flood may very well be handled by the flood control mechanisms of dams that are able to handle the rise, allowing water to be let out in a controlled way.

When one gets a flood that happens every 30 years, as has happened this year, the dam only makes things worse. In other words the dam makes no difference to the flood, and even makes it worse.

What has happened is that the ability of the dam to control small floods has drawn cash strapped municipalities to allow development and allow people to build on the flood plain. The lesson of course is: Don’t build on a flood plain. The dam built to control floods will not work. Continue reading Drought or floods for the Western Cape?

Water Affairs happy with AMD recommendations

Posted by: Saving Water SA (Cape Town, South Africa) – partnered with Water Rhapsody conservation systems – 24 January 2011

The Department of Water Affairs says it is doing everything possible to control the acid mine drainage (AMD) problem that has recently been made worse by heavy rains.

Government acknowledges that amd needs to be urgently addressed

The department’s inter-ministerial committee, which was formed to address the problem last year, – will hand over a report to the cabinet in the next two weeks.

“We are on top of the acid mine drainage problem. We appointed a team of experts to compile a report. They have handed the report to us and we are happy with their findings and recommendations,” said the inter-ministerial committee spokesperson, Makhosini Nyathi.

AMD is a chemical reaction process that is a result of sulphate-bearing minerals or pyrite, found predominantly in gold mines, as well as in coal mines, being exposed to oxygen and water.

Nyathi said government acknowledged that AMD was a challenge that needed to be addressed urgently. “This should be done in a coordinated manner between a range of stakeholders that include the mining industry and government,” said Nyathi.

National Water Forum chairman Louis Meintjies said the problem with the contamination of water was not only due to AMD – but also with raw sewage getting into the water system.

“The past heavy rains have caused raw sewage from our treatment plants to overflow and get into our dams. The damage has been done – we need to urgently address this problem,” said Meintjies. Continue reading Water Affairs happy with AMD recommendations

Short term AMD measures recommended

Posted by: Saving Water SA (Cape Town, South Africa) - partnered with Water Rhapsody conservation systems – 18 December 2010

The team of experts advising the inter-ministerial committee (IMC) on acid mine drainage (AMD) has recommended a series of short-term measures to help address the problem, it said on Friday.

Government accepts that acid [...]

Johannesburg farms at risk from tailings dams

Posted by: Saving Water SA (Cape Town, South Africa) – partnered with Water Rhapsody conservation systems – 08 December 2010

Tailings Dams are holding millions of tonnes of dangerous metals and leading to severe damage to farms in the Johannesburg area.

Gold mines constitute the largest single source of waste and pollution in South Africa

That’s according to Mariette Liefferink, from the Federation for a Sustainable Environment who showed Business Day around the West Rand and outlined some of the major environmental challenges.

Liefferink says acid mine drainage is exacerbating the problem, because it dissolves the heavy metals and precipitated them in water sources and wetlands, where people grow crops and abstract water.

She says the Lancaster dam in Krugersdorp, which is surrounded by tailings dams, is the source of the Wonderfonteinspruit.

The stream is now filled with acid mine water and its wetlands had been classified as the radiological hotspot by the by the Nuclear Regulator.

“Lancaster dam historically was indeed the source of the most pristine water. It was classified by a 1934 German documentary as one of the seven wonders of South Africa. Today as you can see it is filled with acid water. The Lancaster dam is filled with water of a PH of about 2, 6. It is similar to lemon juice. There is absolutely no life,” she added.

“It is as a result of 120 years of mining and obviously very poor management of wastes from the gold mines. The gold mines generate the most cost of the socio-economic impact and also ecological impact. The gold mines generate 47% of the mineral wastes.”

“Waste from gold mines constitutes the largest single source of waste and pollution in South Africa… Acid mine drainage may continue for many years after mines are closed and tailings dams decommissioned,” Liefferink said. Continue reading Johannesburg farms at risk from tailings dams

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Fracking the Karoo and unanswered questions

Drought or floods for the Western Cape?

Water Affairs happy with AMD recommendations

Short term AMD measures recommended

Johannesburg farms at risk from tailings dams

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