The Negative Impacts of Mining Interpreted From the Problems of Abandoned Mines in South Africa

Abstract

Abandoned mines are in all mining regions of South Africa. The country has more than 6000 documented abandoned mines that present different types and magnitudes of environmental and public safety or health hazards. This chapter discusses the negative impact of mining based on the issues of abandoned mines in South Africa. Based on the South African context, it also discusses the reasons for closing mines prematurely and subsequently getting abandoned, the main problems of these mines, and the progress currently made in closing and rehabilitating them. The last part of the chapter maps the undesirable impacts of abandoned mines on different Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In conclusion, the chapter emphasizes the need for better management of abandoned mines and their rehabilitation in South Africa to ensure that their problems are stamped out more effectively. This will greatly assist in ensuring that some of the SDGs are realized through the rehabilitation of abandoned mines in South Africa.