Modern Mining July 2025

SUSTAINABILITY

Carl Haycock, CEO of Talbot.

CEO Gourish Chakravorty, CEO of ION Exchange.

Water reuse & recovery - a lifeline for SA’s mining sector With many of South Africa's mining sites located in water-scarce regions, efficient water reuse is becoming a question of survival for mines. W ith many of South Africa’s mining sites located in water-scarce regions, efficient water reuse is becoming a question of survival for mines. Efficient water reuse is a crucial strategy for survival laboratory technology, analysis, biotechnology and diagnostics in South Africa. The event will be held in Johannesburg in July this year. Advisory board members and exhibitors note that more effective water management has become crucial for the mining sector.

Lesego Gaegane, Senior Project Manager at the Water Research Commission (WRC).

and sustainable operations. The Water Research Commission (WRC) has highlighted this issue, emphasising the importance of water reuse schemes to address the country’s projected water deficit. Efficient water reuse and recovery could be a much-needed lifeline for South Africa’s mining sector, as water scarcity and infrastructure issues increasingly threaten productivity and revenues, say water sector experts who were speaking ahead of IFAT Africa - the leading conference and trade fair for water, sewage, refuse and recycling in Southern Africa. Organised by Messe Muenchen India and Messe München GmbH, IFAT Africa will be co-located with analytica Lab Africa, the only trade fair for

Lesego Gaegane, Senior Project Manager at the Water Research Commission (WRC), says: “As we look to IFAT Africa 2025, one thing is clear, water reuse is not only an environmental imperative but a business imperative. Industry must invest now in circular water systems that support sustainable growth, resource efficiency, and climate resilience. Research by the Water Research Commission has demonstrated that mine-impacted water, when treated to fit-for-use standards, can be safely reused, offering both economic and environmental returns. Passive treatment systems, modular reuse technologies, and real-time water quality monitoring

Wayne Taljaard, Managing Director of WEC Water

20  MODERN MINING  www.modernminingmagazine.co.za | JULY 2025