NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
FOR WRITTEN REPLY
QUESTION NO. 945
DATE OF PUBLICATION IN INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER: 18 March 2011
(INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER NO. 8)
Mr P J C Pretorius (DA) to ask the Minister of Health:
(1) (a) How many controlled (i) mines and (ii) works are there in terms
of the Occupational Diseases in Mines Act, Act 78 of 1973, and (b)
what was the income in levies paid by controlled (i) mines and (ii)
works in each of the past three financial years for which information
is available;
(2) how many (a) mines and (b) works are currently not controlled, but
could qualify as controlled mines and works;
(3) what estimated annual levy is lost to the State as a result of (a)
mines and (b) works not having been declared as controlled;
(4) whether steps are being taken to declare more mines and works as
controlled; if not, why not; if so, what steps?
NW1063E
REPLY:
1) (a) (i) As at 31 March 2010 there were 209 mines
(ii) A total of 36 works that were controlled
(b) The amounts that have been received by the office of the
Compensation Commissioner for Occupational Diseases for the past
three years are illustrated in the table below;
|Years |Levies |Interest |Grants |Total |
| | |received |received | |
|2007/ |R |R 110,472,718|R 3,591,735 |R 196, 342,|
|2008 |82,275,166 | | |619 |
|2008/2009|R |R 123,950,146|R 2,355,000 |R 258, 097,|
| |131,819,307| | |453 |
|2009/2010|R 130 463 |R 100,446,380|R 3,679,000 |R 234, 589,|
| |702 | | |082 |
2) A total of 1 327 mines and works are not controlled. This is the total
universe of the mines that were registered with Department of Mineral
Resources that is including both opened and closed mines.
3) The office of the Compensation Commissioner can only provide the
estimated amount if it had the number of risk shifts performed in the
said mines or the number of employees working on the risk area per
mine. However, the table below gives the number of mines that are not
contributing to the fund, the commodity and the rate per risk shift
worked.
|Commodity |Number of |Mines |Mines not |Rate per risk|
| |Mines in |contributing |contributing |shift worked |
| |operation |(controlled |(uncontrolled |(2010) |
| | |mines) |mines) | |
|Andalusite |5 |2 |3 |2.57 |
|Chrome |27 |13 |14 |5.95 |
|Coal |100 |71 |29 |0.82 |
|Copper |5 |1 |4 |5.02 |
|Diamond |394 |10 |384 |2.77 |
|Flourspar |3 |2 |1 |2.49 |
|Gold |88 |23 |65 |4.08 |
|Iron |14 |5 |9 |2.57 |
|Lead |1 |1 |0 |2.94 |
|Magnesite |3 |1 |2 |5.95 |
|Manganese |18 |2 |16 |3.80 |
|Mica & Feldspar|8 |4 |4 |2.17 |
|Phospate |5 |1 |4 |2.49 |
|Quarry |817 |51 |762 |4.17 |
|Uranium |2 |1 |1 |5.95 |
|Vanadium |7 |2 |5 |2.17 |
|Platinum | |14 |0 |1.02 |
|Asbestos | |1 |0 |22.21 |
|Works | |36 |0 |4.74 |
|Other mines |79 |4 |75 |5.95 |
|that their | | | | |
|commodities are| | | | |
|not listed on | | | | |
|the rate table | | | | |
|TOTALS |1572 |245 |1327 | |
4) In the amendment of the Act which is in progress we are planning to
revisit the declaration process of controlled mines and works.
END.