Jagersfontein dam collapse to cost hundreds of millions of rands

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The damage from the collapse of a tailings dam in the diamond-mining town of Jagersfontein in the Free State could run into hundreds of millions of rands, according to human rights attorney Richard Spoor.

The disaster on 11 September caused large volumes of grey sludge to engulf and destroy homes, killing two people — Shadrach Williams and Ralehana Aaron Mosoeu — while Mantele Mokhali remains missing. Hundreds of people were displaced and farmers suffered large-scale livestock losses.

Spoor’s firm is representing 30 of the affected families, including the dead and missing. 

“It’s clear to me considering the kind of liabilities that the mine has that they’re insolvent now,” he said. He plans to file a class action “against everybody we can find” or seek to liquidate Jagersfontein Developments.

“If you start adding it up, there are 160 houses destroyed and there are 200 houses that were inundated [with the slimes] so … really, really conservatively, you’re talking R500 000 and a million rand per house, if you include the contents. Then there are the waterworks that were destroyed, which belong to the municipality, then there’s an electrical substation that was destroyed,” Spoor said.

Many farmers downstream have suffered damages, too. “If we just consider the loss of grazing and make some assumptions about how long it will take for that grazing to be restored, then I’m pretty sure you’re sitting at R500-million before you wipe your eyes out,” he said.

These costs did not include those to secure the tailings dam. “That thing can’t sit there the way it is. Every time it rains there’s going to be a flood of tailings into the river, so they have to fix that.

“The environmental damage, how do you quantify that? I’ve been advised by the farmers and their attorney that every fish, every frog, every crab, in that water is dead. Everything was destroyed,” he said, adding that the sludge had formed a “concrete-like” substance that would cause dust pollution.

Wasteland

On Tuesday, Jaco Loots, the director of legal firm PhosaLoots Inc, which has been appointed by the Kopanong municipality to ensure it is able to reclaim for infrastructural damage, said 11 September marked one month after the Jagersfontein tailings dam collapse because of structural failure “causing the resulting mudslide, loss of life and property and the desolate wasteland to be seen today”.

The disaster site is situated next to the biggest hand excavated hole in the world, where about 9.6 million carats (1 900kg) of jewel quality diamonds, including the 927 carat Excelsior diamond, were found. “Now it is a site of despair and desperation,” Loots said. 

In the first phase of its programme, his firm had dispatched four teams to seek justice and compensation and to help the victims to come to terms with the “utter desolation and despair” that had been caused. It had also contracted survey teams to determine as quickly as possible what the damages are and what the estimated compensation to victims should be.

Six directives

Jagersfontein Developments said it has been issued with six “comprehensive directives” by the department of water and sanitation, the Free State department of economic, small business, tourism and environmental affairs and the South African Heritage Resources Agency.

“Those directives contain some 40 different instructions as to compulsory actions, steps and conduct modes demanded of the company. The company is currently engaged in a full-time process ensuring compliance with those statutory directives in cooperation with those regulatory authorities.”

The company, which has made R20-million available in relief funds for displaced residents, has been involved in the clean-up operations and putting in place a range of measures to contain and address the various environmental impacts of the dam breach on the surrounding areas and affected watercourses, in compliance with regulatory directives. 

“An immediate remedial action plan and longer-term rehabilitation plan has been developed by external professional experts appointed by the company and will be commenced with, once reviewed and approved by the authorities,” it said. 

160 houses

Although the Free State government announced last month that it would build about 160 houses that were destroyed, Spoor said he had been told that Jagersfontein Developments had allegedly withdrawn its offer to build these houses because “some residents had the temerity to appoint their own attorneys”.

Spoor said he had written to Jagersfontein Developments, asking them to give clarity about the building of these houses but “they declined to answer anything”.

“It’s [the] government making promises on the basis of unclear agreements with the mine. Why is the government going to build 160 houses at their cost when the mine is responsible? That’s just lunacy,” he said. 

Jagersfontein Developments said “no offers as alleged have been made by the company, neither has the company made any remarks regarding court proceedings”.

“Jagersfontein Developments has since the incident provided and continues to provide material support and assistance to all affected residents of Charlesville and Itumeleng. Until the tailings dam is found by the relevant regulatory authorities to pose no further risks, all displaced residents are for the time being not however permitted to return to their homes.” 

The company is in discussions with relevant parties to establish the nature and extent of the damaged homes and buildings. “It is the prerogative of affected residents to appoint legal counsel to act on their behalf.  We understand that some affected residents are legally represented, however such legal representation aforesaid has not affected the company’s sympathetic attitude and continued supportive approach towards victims of this unfortunate incident,” it said.

Spoor said a month after the disaster, there are “no indications whatsoever that the company is going to take responsibility for the property and environmental damage”.

Ecological damage

The ecological impacts of the spill are “still being played out,” said Gordon O’Brien, of the school of biology and environmental sciences at the University of Mpumalanga.

“The estimated more than 6 000m3 of tailings has spread over a massive area and reached the Kalkfontein Dam and the Riet River,” he said in a recent report. “From the Kalkfontein Dam, the moderately utilised Riet River flows for about 200km into the Vaal River just 35km upstream of the confluence between the Vaal and Orange Rivers.”

The spill of tailings is now spread “over such a huge area that a clean-up is impossible”, the report said. 

“The important next question we need to ask is what is going to happen next? This year’s rains are now expected to mobilise the tailings and wash a lot of it into the upper Proses Spruit and the Kalkfontein Dam.”

The harmful effects may spread beyond the dam after the season’s first rains and possibly affect the Riet River along its length to the Vaal River and possibly the Orange River.

Worst to come

The Riet River has been a refuge area of aquatic biodiversity and a favoured destination of yellowfish anglers. These fish are the “living gold” of South Africa, he said.

“Should the tailings of the Jagersfontein mine contaminate the Kalkfontein Dam and affect the 200km of the Riet River, another regional disaster that may affect many more thousands of South Africans and threaten one of the few remaining refuge areas for aquatic biodiversity in South Africa is expected to occur. The worst ecological impact of the Jagersfontein slimes dam spill is yet to come.”

Although O’Brien said urgent action was needed to ascertain the potential for the spill to spread across the landscape and contaminate the Kalkfontein Dam and the associated Riet River, the government has limited resources.

 “It’s actually very difficult because we don’t have the capacity to respond the way we used to to pollution events like these.”

On the river pollution, Jagersfontein Developments said detailed investigations into the extent of the environmental impacts are still under way.

“Jagersfontein Developments is working with the various regulatory authorities in this regard and implementing measures as instructed in terms of applicable regulatory directives.”

Various remediation activities have been implemented to date as guided by regulatory authorities. “The company has also engaged a team of engineers and specialists to assist with the engineering design and implementation of further remediation activities, who have commenced with surveys along the watercourses to identify, amongst others, mechanisms to desilt the downstream watercourses.”

The engineering team has assisted the company with further containment activities such as rock pack barriers implemented at various sites “as a matter of priority” to control flows, subject to the regulatory directives.