Clean water and
Clean water and community parksare creating healthy environmentsThe Sustainable Mining Plan of Anglo American Kumba Iron Ore is focussed onbuilding healthy environments.A refurbished community park in Postmasburg.At the heart of our Sustainable MiningPlan is how we can improve people’slives so it is central to how we live up toour purpose of reimagining mining toimprove people’s lives.Our Sustainable Mining Plan is built aroundthree Global Sustainability Pillars aligned to theUN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Thesepillars are:• Healthy environment• Thriving communities• Trusted corporate leaderClimate change, biodiversity and water usagefall under the Healthy Environment pillar, as dopublic open spaces, as part of creating greenzones in urban areas.The group’s goals are to reduce withdrawal offresh water by 20%, a figure which should riseto 50% by 2030, and to increase water-recyclinglevels to 75% against the 2015 baseline.In the water-scarce region of the NorthernCape province, innovative solutions are necessaryfor reliable water supply to the surroundingcommunities and businesses, particularly themining industry.“Our Kolomela mine near Postmasburg in theNorthern Cape sits above an extensive aquiferthat we abstract water from to facilitate dry andsafe mining. This groundwater is high quality, andwe send over 80% of our total dewatering volumeto the Vaal Gamagara Water Supply Scheme. Thissupports downstream towns, industrial usersas well as our local community in Tsantsabane.Without the water we supply to the region,additional water would need to be treated andpumped from the Vaal River,” reports HamiltonMoswathupa, Specialist Water Management andHydrogeology, Kumba Iron Ore.An aquifer is permeable rock which containsand can transmit groundwater. By extractinglarge volumes of groundwater to create drymining conditions, Kolomela mine has turnedwhat could be an operational challenge into avaluable community resource by literally takingwater from a rock. Water extracted from theLeeuwfontein pit supplies the mine with waterfor operational use. Importantly, excess water isthen channelled to the Vaal Central water board,which distributes it to the Tsantsabane LocalMunicipality, helping to address chronic watershortages in the region.For the municipality, which includesPostmasburg, water supply challenges arecompounded by rapid economic developmentand population growth tied to mining activities.“The additional water supply from the minemakes such a difference to the communitiesthat receive this water. We can supply water toall our community members, which enablesus to also focus on other challenges thatour communities are faced with,” says CindyMathebula, Water Superintendent at TsantsabaneLocal Municipality.Water security is considered a principal risk forNORTHERN CAPE BUSINESS 2025/2622
FOCUSKumba Iron Ore, with 83% of its operating siteslocated in water-scarce or water-stressed regions.The company’s approach to water managementis guided by its Group Water ManagementStandard, which incorporates leading practicesand ensures sustainable water managementthroughout the life cycle of each operation.“We take our role as responsible water stewardsvery seriously and we continuously engage andcollaborate with our stakeholders. Kolomela is ashining example of the positive influence miningcan have, and we endeavour to fulfil our purposeto reimagine mining to improve people’s lives,”says Moswathupa.This innovation is a true reflection ofapplying expertise to challenges that presentopportunities to the businesses and thecommunities that they operate in. Like Kolomela,Anglo American’s Sishen iron ore mine in theNorthern Cape is also a net-water-positiveoperation. Dewatering operations there withdrawmore high-quality groundwater than required forthe mine, allowing excess water to be pumpedto nearby communities and regional bulk watersupply systems.The collaboration extends beyond physicalinfrastructure to capacity-building through theMunicipal Capacity Development Programme(MCDP). “Everyone needs water. It’s a basichuman right, and participating in programmesof this nature gives us a sense of pride as abusiness,” concludes Sfiso Gumede, Civil EngineerCorporate Affairs at Kumba Iron Ore.Green zones for healthy communitiesAs recreational public spaces, parks contributetowards the establishment of social cohesionwithin communities. Beyond being availablefor leisure and physical activity, parks play anessential role in developing green zones in urbanareas required for a healthy environment.Responding to the needs of the communityfor safe social spaces, Kumba Iron Ore, alongsidecommunity representatives, has opened twonewly renovated parks in Postmasburg in theTsantsabane Local Municipality. Named Die PuntPark and Postdene Park, the strategically locatedfacilities were refurbished by local SMMEs,installing fencing, walkways, benches, trees andExtracted water being channelled.Groundwater from the dewatering processes.ablution facilities. High Mast Solar lighting wasalso installed.At the opening ceremony of one of the parks,Kumba Iron Ore’s Northern Cape Hub CorporateAffairs Manager, Adriana Slambert, urged thecommunity to take care of the parks and torefrain from vandalising the facilities.“As articulated in our Sustainable Mining Plan,protecting our natural environment forms part ofour Anglo American values. Parks are importantecological assets that do not only cater forpeople but animals and plants as well.“Let’s take pride in this investment because thisis something done for the community, that willbe managed by the community.”Receiving the parks as assets for socialcohesion, Executive Mayor of Tsantsabane LocalMunicipality, Helena English, shared an inclusivemessage: “Let us steer away from using theparks for selfish reasons, as they belong to thecommunity and must accommodate all.”As part of the operations and maintenancemodel, the parks will be maintained by localcivil society groups through “for hire” equipmentsuch as sound systems, umbrellas and jumpingcastles that were procured on their behalf, toassist in generating operational income andfacilities management. ■
