Abstract
In Chap. 4, the nature of the Vaal River system and the significance of AMD in South Africa were discussed. The situation in each of the basins in the Witwatersrand was explained. AMD is caused by abandoned mines or those that became liquidated and were no longer active and had to shut down their operations. Thus, the problem is not new but one that has been developing and becoming more severe throughout the years, especially since 2002, when there have been cases of harm to the environment. What is transparently evident thus far is that AMD is a concern and the parties concerned, irrespective of who remains responsible at this stage, have to ensure that consistent and adequate clean-up takes place so that the earth’s resources can be preserved and the principles of sustainable development are abided by.
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Parts of this chapter derive from Naidoo, S. 2015. ‘An assessment of the impacts of acid mine drainage on socio-economic development in the Witwatersrand: South Africa’. Environment, Development and Sustainability journal, Springer 16 (6): 1045–1063.
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Naidoo, S. (2017). The Policy Response to Acid Mine Drainage in the Gold-Mining Sector. In: Acid Mine Drainage in South Africa. SpringerBriefs in Environmental Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-44435-2_5
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