In an era concerned with ensuring sustainability in all things, the issue of mine closure and land rehabilitation and reuse has become a major concern. It was a topic for discussion by a panel at the Mining Indaba 2025 conference, being held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, on Tuesday.

University of Cape Town PhD student Helene-Marie Stander highlighted that the environmental impacts of mining could last much longer than the actual mining operation, and could spread far beyond the location of the mine. Mines could operate for decades, she cited, but the problem of the acid mine drainage they created could last for centuries and affect entire watersheds. Fine dust from tailings dams, including toxic particles, could be blown for many kilometres and affect the health of people beyond the mining area. These issues required really long-term management.

“We really need to start looking at how we manage our mine waste,” she affirmed. The responsible approach is to re-use mine waste. Mines shouldn’t leave communities with a legacy that harms them. For miners, the first, basic, stage is to characterise their waste. This is essential for both community health and to facilitate its re-use. While there are a number of “lovely” uses for benign waste, there are not many uses for hazardous waste. More research is needed into re-using hazardous waste.

Andrada Mining sustainability and tailings head Arno Barnard argued that mine closure should be fundamental to the development of the mine, right from the very beginning. This is what Andrada did, and it transformed and informed everything the company did, including (but not limited to) its community support and biodiversity plans. “Mining needs to move beyond the old school model of silo approaches,” he stated. “Closure is not something you look at separately. You need early engagement and authentic engagement [with communities] from the start. Change your mindset from liability to possibility.”

“One of the key challenges I’ve seen over the years is the building of trust [between mines and communities],” reported Faded Black Innovations executive lead and community development-focused social entrepreneur Sonwabo Modimoeng. The second challenge is to ensure the long-term economic viability of the local communities, after the mine has closed. “Point number three is addressing the environmental and social impact [of the mine].”

Engagement by the mining companies with local communities from the very start of a project can, for example, prevent vandalism and theft of mine infrastructure, because the community is aware that it will also benefit them. “It must not be ‘them versus us’ anymore,” he affirmed.

Miners traditionally thought of a mine as a piece of land, with a beginning, middle and an end, after which they moved on, observed niche consultancy Future Terrains International founder and director Dr Peter Whitbread-Abrutat. But that piece of land, and the communities on it, has existed long before the mine, and will exist long after the mine. “The end of the mine is the start of the new chapter in that landscape.”

He preferred to use the term “transition” instead of “closure” for the period at the end of a mine’s life. This process involves challenges and issues, but they are addressable. “We’re not talking blue skies here. We’re talking about real solutions, which exist somewhere in the world.” Bringing in specialists, who are outsiders to mining, to think about these issues, but from different angles, coan be very helpful.