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nnhauser newcastle kzn cer s community mine blasting engagement what is mine blasting impact assessment and export report main findings of expert report what recommendations did the expert report make the dmpr s new mine blasting standards download the full report download abridged report cer s history of engaging with communities impacted by mine blasting the activist support training programme at the centre for environmental rights has for over a decade supported and empowered activists communities and organisations around south africa who are affected by environmental and climate injustice we provide practical and empowering tools to support the environmental and climate justice movement through training networking enforcing compliance with environmental laws and securing environmental activist spaces our goal is to provide enabling mechanisms and spaces for activists to advance their constitutional right to an environment not harmful to health and wellbeing for years we have received first hand reports from communities across south africa describing in detail how blasting operations from mines violate the basic human rights of neighbouring communities we saw the impacts of mine blasting with our own eyes inhaled the fumes following recent blasts heard the explosions and felt the tremors in mining affected communities when visiting our partner organisations to conduct training workshops in order to support communities impacted by mine blasting we launched a campaign we engaged communities submitted parliamentary questions provided training workshops amplified the voices of impacted activists and raised the profile of mine blasting complaints in the media we requested information using the promotion of access to information act and engaged technical and expert specialists to provide us with more information to better understand the problem and work on possible solutions impact on women the levels of stress due to the blasting and all the other things to do with this mine is terrible many women have to constantly worry about their children they even blast during school times they have no respect this mine i was walking in the veld when suddenly the blast came it threw me down on the ground and i hurt myself my leg was sore for a long time afterwards while i was lying there after the blast i could smell the gas in the air it was burning my eyes psychosocial impacts are those impacts arising from unwanted changes that specifically relate to mental health psychological wellbeing and emotions of people these unwanted changes can include a change in their feelings of security i e they feel that they are no longer safe in their home and community a change in their feeling of belonging and a change in a sense of place what is mine blasting many mines use explosives to break up a solid rock or coal into smaller fragments when the charge is detonated the energy in the explosives is released and the pressure shatters the area around it and exposes the rock to very high stress this causes cracks to form and allows mines to extract smaller more manageable pieces ground and air vibration shockwaves are generated when mine blasting explosions detonate these shock waves impact communities property roads infrastructure and the surrounding environment in addition to ground and air shockwaves mine blasting can also result in projectiles called flyrock being flung out from the blast site mine blasting can also produce chemical smelling fumes dust and air pollution an underground explosion is detonated which exacts immense pressure in all directions this results in a strong air blast the air blast can fling dusts rocks flyrocks and toxic gases into the air ground and air shock waves emanate from the blasting point on the surface as well as below ground impact assessment and expert report on the social impact of mine blasting by dr gwendolyn wellmann in february 2024 the centre for environmental rights commissioned dr gwendolyn wellmann an independent sociologist with 30 years experience in community development to conduct a social impact assessment and draft a report on the impacts of mine blasting on the surrounding community the study was conducted in the danhauser municipality and interviews were conducted with communities and many other stakeholders which live close to the ikwezi coal mine dr wellmann s expert report found that mine blasting significantly impacted communities surrounding the mine the report details the psychosocial cultural economic and productivity impacts it found that women children elderly sick and other vulnerable and marginalised groups within the community suffered disproportionate impacts as a result of mine blasting in her report dr wellmann also made several recommendations in order to mitigate the social impacts of mine blasting read dr wellmann s complete expert report on the social impacts of mine blasting impact on children the blasting is terrible for the children they will start to cry and run into the house sometimes the shock is so much that they wet themselves some of the children just freeze and others start crying we try to calm them down until the noise is gone we also do not allow them to play outside on the day because there will be a lot of dust and everything just looks black there was a baby crawling outside in the yard when there was a blast the child went into some type of attack from the shock he could not breathe properly afterwards the babies and young children are all traumatized from this blasting children s mental health is suffering my young child when she hears the car with the ambulance sounds she already starts to cry from fear she has become a clingy scared child always afraid always waiting for the blast economic impact i lost a lot of cattle during that time because my cattle would run away from fright every time they blasted and because i am an old woman i could not always get them all back and people would steal them it was not good primary social impacts of mine blasting according to the report psychosocial and cultural impacts trauma in young children and the elderly constant disruptions to life as a result of mine blasting for example evacuations road closures loud explosions dust air pollution and fume emissions water pollution teachers concerned that the classrooms will collapse on top of the children during and in the aftermath of blasts spiritual beliefs and connection to tradition and culture impacted as a result of the destruction by the mine of sacred areas teachers and nurses concerned about the safety of children and patients in their care sense of place belonging and wellbeing negatively impacted as a result of the transformation of the biophysical and cultural landscape from rural and agricultural to an active open cast coal mine older community members experiencing feelings of helplessness exacerbated by the lack of a functioning grievance mechanism to address community concerns feelings of anger in some community members which has found expression in demonstrations against the mine community members no longer feeling at peace in their homes community members particularly women concerned about the safety of their children and loved ones and whether their cracked homes and walls will be able to withstand the next blast economic and productivity impacts impacts on grazing lands and livestock with animals fleeing after blasts often injuring themselves in their attempts to escape resulting in community members spending hours searching for them and the reduction of safe grazing areas for livestock as a result of mine encroachment and cracks from blasting insufficient redress to compensate economic loss suffered by community members as a result of mine blasting with few claims against the mine investigated or settled significant negative economic impacts as a result of the community s property and buildings cracking or collapsing as a result of blasting when people are moved out of the 500m zone they lose up to three hours of productive time in which they are unable to conduct their normal activities physical injuries from for example falling when the blast suddenly happens also results in loss of productivity loss of income and can result in the loss of health what recommendations did the expert report make dr wellmann s report includes the following recommendations to mitigate the social harms of mine blasting on communities based on her expert opinion as an experienced sociologist improving education awareness information and training on mine blasting implementing meaningful public participation processes in different forums between mines and communities to improve communication channels reducing blast shockwaves through improved blast design reducing dust and fume emissions from blasts reducing the hours in which mines may conduct blasting operations ensuring meaningful and proper warning before every blasts is given using appropriate channels of communication ensuring adequate transparency and access to information related to mine blasting for example providing easy access to all mine policies procedures permits authorisations relating to mine blasting without the use of the promotion of access to information act implementation of standard transparent grievance mechanism for communities to communicate concerns with blasting operations and deal with claims for economic loss provision of standard procedures for processes relating to mine blasting for example notifications evacuations or claims for damages suitable legally binding blasting standards which are implemented and enforced view the report s full recommendations cultural impact the area we used for the type of ritual ploughing called nomkhubulwane is now unreachable it is surrounded by huge sand mounds the mine dumps we would go to this place to pray for rain but the fences make it impossible to reach there now our children who are supposed to do nomkhubulwane are afraid to go near there now because of the blasting damage to property once the blast was so strong that three of our windows cracked this house is one year old it is my second resettlement house from this mine and it is already cracking from the blasting because the mine is still too close to us here the ceiling boards come loose from the vibrations and we always have to maintain them it is a constant problem know your rights and remedies dr wellmann s report includes the following recommendations to mitigate the social harms of mine blasting on communities based on her expert opinion as an experienced sociologist practical guidance on the department of mineral and petroluem resources new mine blasting standards did you know that in august 2024 the chief inspector of mines published south africa s first mine blasting standards they have been effective from 1 november 2024 and mines were given 3 months to prepare for the implementation of the new minimum blasting standards before they came into force you can find the new mine blasting standards things to know about the new blasting standards 1 all mines which blast must prepare a code of practice document which must comply with the new blast standards this document is called a cop in the guideline and it must be easily available to anyone affected by the mine s blasting operations the cop must describe how the mine manages risks and hazards from blasting operations it must show how the mine manages blasting noise flyrock ground and air shockwaves 2 the cop must show how mines have tried to eliminate control minimise and monitor the risk posed by blasting operations 3 the cop must include the results of a risk assessment survey of any structures including community homes and buildings potentially impacted by blasting 4 the cop must set limits for ground and air shockwaves based on the mine s surroundings for instance if there are informal or mud houses close by the blasting levels will be set lower than if there are no houses or structures different blasting levels are set for different structures for example national roads electricity lines railways wells and houses of different construction 5 the cop must determine how often follow up surveys of structures impacted by blasting must be conducted this means that the mine must return to houses after blasting operations and check on the impacts according to the cop 6 when there is significant risk to communities from blasting the mine must put together team which includes experts and community representatives together this team must create a programme to limit blasting impacts and blasting levels must comply with the new standards 7 mines must monitor every blast and record levels of noise ground and air vibrations and flyrock 8 mines must manage blasting complaints and increase community awareness through posters and consultations 9 surrounding communities must be warned of every planned blasting activity and warning can be given through posters alarms notice boards or whatsapp messages 10 what can you do if you are concerned about mine blasting request the cop from the mine it must be freely available to anyone affected by mine blasting if your home is impacted by blasting the mine must study the risk posed and this must be included in the cop are you concerned about safety impacts from mine blasting to your life or property request the cop and consider joining the risk committee as a community representative navigate cer s community mine blasting engagement what is mine blasting impact assessment and export report main findings of expert report what recommendations did the expert report make the dmpr s new mine blasting standards download the full report download abridged report manage consent to provide the best experiences we use technologies like cookies to store and or access device information consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique ids on this site not consenting or 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