The threat of mining to transboundary water resources

A worrying trend has emerged, with SADC member states awarding mineral exploration licenses to mining companies in critical transboundary aquifer systems.The exploration licenses were awarded despite poor environmental impact assessments and a lack of consideration for surface and groundwater resources.This indicates that either those professionals who have the responsibility to evaluate the impact assessments do not have the capacity to do so, or there is political pressure from higher up that forces the acceptance of these applications.Both scenarios pose an existential threat to important water resources.Some government officials openly state that water is meaningless to their people if they are poor.This statement demonstrates a lack of understanding of the severity of neglecting water security in water-scarce countries.This research consists of two case studies where mineral exploration licenses were awarded for the Kavango-and the Stampriet transboundary aquifers despite the applicants not providing sufficient evidence that their activities would not detrimentally affect the groundwater resources.These case studies demonstrate the importance of member states having personnel with the capacity to evaluate environmental impact assessments for groundwater resources.