ABSTRACT
The reason for the MMSD (2002) engaging in this study can be gleaned from the project report itself, which says that:
“Perhaps the greatest challenge of all is the fact that past practices and social and environmental legacies, combined with continuing examples of poor performance and inadequate accountability, have undermined trust among companies, governments, and some in civil society. The public’s perception of what industry is doing is often very different from what company managers think they are doing. As far as some observers outside the industry are concerned, companies have been resisting or at best
1 INTRODUCTION
Throughout history mining has had significant impacts on the land, the environment and the people living in and surrounding the area of operation. In some cases the impacts affect people living beyond the vicinity of the mining activities. Accordingly, all those affected by mining operations require, and often demand, significant action and compensation from mining companies for these impacts. Attempts by mining companies to cater for these and other demands have been couched with the concept of Sustainable Development (SD). Legislation and regulations reflect the compensatory desires of interested and affected parties. While such interventions may not be entirely welcomed by mining companies, legislation and regulation are often a response to slow, ineffective, irregular or even the lack of effective responses by mining companies.
