Harmony claims pollution directive invalid
Publish date: 04 February 2014
Issue Number: 345
Diary: Legalbrief Environmental
Category: Corruption
A Business Day report says Harmony Gold's attempt to avoid the expense of cleaning up land it had mined will rest on the argument that a National Water Act directive compelling landowners to prevent pollution on their property becomes invalid once the property has been sold, according to papers filed with the Constitutional Court.
The mining company is seeking a Constitutional Court order declaring that a government directive in November 2005 became invalid in 2009 when Harmony ceased to be a landowner in the Klerksdorp, Orkney, Stilfontein and Hartbeesfontein area of the North West. The report adds in its application, Harmony said it had been a landholder in the area for just five years and was therefore only responsible for a small portion of the water pollution caused over the past 50 years. Harmony's Melanie Naidoo-Vermaak said because of the directive, Harmony was removing and re-using polluted water from a mining shaft it did not operate, own or control, according to the report. It notes she said the SCA's finding that Harmony's interpretation of the law would result in a situation where 'a polluter could walk away from pollution caused by it with impunity' ignored another mechanism for dealing with the effects of pollution: that the Mining Minister would remedy the pollution and recover the costs from past landholders. Full Business Day report (subscription needed)
