Gomolemo learns that mining and environmentalism go hand-in-hand
East Manganese Environmental Intern | Gomolemo Fritz
“I am learning a lot and enjoy working here at East Manganese. I think the size of the mine makes it easy to be compliant with the regulations, and that’s fun,” says Gomolemo Fritz (31), from Vaal Gamagara in the Northern Cape. An Environmental Intern at East Manganese, Gomelomo holds a Masters in Environmental Science from the China University of Geosciences and an Honours in Geography and Environmental Studies from the North-West University in South Africa.
One of her responsibilities is ensuring the protection of an indigenous plant, which is believed to offer medicinal value called Devil's claw. Gomolemo highlights that it is very important to protect indigenous plants as they are also the foundation of healthy wild ecosystems.
Gomolemo’s interest in the environment started at a young age, as her town had a rich mix of diverse fauna and flora and she felt most comfortable picking wild berries in the veld. “I much prefer the rural nature to living in a concrete urbanised city,” she states.
Gomolemo reports to Melissa Pillay, who is Menar’s Head of Environmental Compliance and is providing her mentorship and guidance on all aspects of environmental compliance at the mine. It is this guidance that enables Gomolemo to conduct regular inspections to ensure all environmental licenses issued to the mine are adhered to and educating contractors and employees on environmental matters through talks to reinforce the importance of environmental compliance.
“Since she arrived at East Manganese Gomolemo has worked well and exceeded all expectations, while settling into her role. She has conducted herself in a professional manner and has gone beyond the requirements of her internship and has ensured that the environment at East Manganese is taken care of,” Melissa says of Gomolelo.
Gomolemo highlights that there are many environmental regulations that mines need to adhere to including but not limited to managing environmental monitoring programmes comprising of surface water, groundwater, air, noise, soil, bio-monitoring, acoustic and seismic events.
“Working for a leading mining company like Sitatunga which values the protection of the environment makes my job a lot less stressful. As compliance with regulations is very important to Menar, which is Sitatunga’s parent company,” Gomolemo explains.
