Palabora wins prestigious award

2006-10-06

The winners of the Nedbank Capital Green Mining Awards, which seek to acknowledge and celebrate the contribution that responsible mining makes to the economic development of Southern Africa , were announced last night at a ceremony at Nedbank's head office in Sandton.

The winners are: Anglo Coal for its Isibonelo Wetlands project in the Environmental Category; Palabora Mining Company for the Palabora Foundation in the Socio-Economic Category and Anglo Platinum for the company's sustainability programme in the Sustainability Category. No award was made in the Limited Resource Category.

Mark Tyler, head of Mining & Resources at Nedbank Capital says: "Nominations received for this year's award were encouraging bearing in mind this is the first official year where nominations were called for. No award was granted in the Limited Resource Category, as nominations did not satisfy all of the award criteria. This demonstrated that stringent judging played a significant role in determining the winners.

"Sustainability is a philosophy, something that all mining companies should be striving for. Yet it is a complex and multi-faceted issue to measure, and therefore genuine success is difficult to determine. The bar for demonstrating sustainability is constantly being raised, whilst at the same time the ground upon which the principles of the philosophy stand, is constantly moving. It is against this background that the winners were chosen."

The Environmental Award presented to Anglo Coal's Isibonelo Wetlands Project is innovative and extends beyond compliance. Anglo Coal and its partners pioneered 'off-site' wetland rehabilitation in South Africa as mitigation action for on-site wetland loss. Anglo Coal recognised that due to its Isibonelo opencast operations, a portion of the Steenkoolspruit wetlands would be destroyed. As a mitigation measure for this loss, the company committed to rehabilitate a wetland area elsewhere in the Upper Oliphants River Catchment. They created a precedent, which other mining companies are following.

Palabora Mining Company's Palabora Foundation, winner of the Socio-Economic Award was recognized for its significant contribution in terms of social and economic upliftment of the communities surrounding the mine. Noteworthy characteristics of the Foundation's work include, amongst others, the benefits of the programme, especially in the fields of mathematics, science and environmental education, educator development, schools governance programmes, skills development training, SMME programmes and healthcare. Whilst the concept of mines forming trusts to benefit communities that surround them is not unique, Palabora's win demonstrates a clear intent to continuously 'push the boundaries' to ensure the benefits are sustained way beyond the life of the mine.

Anglo Platinum, winner in the Sustainability Category, has made a significant effort in converging economics, the environment and society for the benefit of present and future generations with its Sustainable Development Programme. The Programme is strategic, has executive buy-in and is mainstreaming sustainability at Anglo Platinum's operations. The Programme comprises a range of projects including the Anglo Platinum Converting Project (ACP) is acknowledged for its innovative approach to reducing sulphur emissions to well below the legal limit and in doing so setting a new standard for the platinum industry, and working with the community in resolving key issues. In particular, RPM Union Section's Community Environmental Outreach Programme has fostered an appreciation for the environment among learners and encourages them to make a positive contribution to the environment. The project has demonstrated a fruitful partnership between the environmental and corporate social responsibility departments of the mine, whereby a shared vision has reaped tangible benefits.

Other finalists for the Awards included:

Finalist	Project
Environmental
Richards Bay Mineral	Rehabilitation
Socio-economic
Anglo Coal	Landau Colliery Rebuild Schools
Kumba	Kgalagadi Charcoal and Firewood Project

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