Critical challenges of acid mine drainage in South Africa’s witwatersrand gold mines and mpumalanga coal fields and possible research areas for collaboration between south african and german researchers and expert teams

Abstract

More than a century of mining of gold, uranium, coal and other minerals in South Africa has left significant mining legacies. One of the most serious environmental legacies is that due to acid mine drainage, which has received significant public attention in recent years. The long histories of mining in both South Africa and Germany present excellent opportunities for collaboration between researchers to allow the identification and implementation of optimal solutions to these problems. In the past two decades German mining industry has implemented a number of successful rehabilitation projects, the focus of which has been on the treatment of mine water. In doing so various solution strategies, methodical concepts and technologies have been developed, which – as part of the bilateral METSI Project – will be made available to South Africa’s mining industry.