Catalyzing Biodiversity and Protected Lands Remediation, Restoration and Expansion around Retired Mining Sites in South Africa
Basic Information
Grant ID: K-206
Region: Africa
Country: South Africa
Approval Year: 2023
Grant Year: Year 11
Amount Approved by Donor: $600000.00
Sector: Environment
Grant Status: Active
TTLs: Sarah Belle Underwood Moyer (Senior Environmental Specialist)Min Ji Sohn (Environmental Analyst)
Grant Activities
Project Summary:
To increase investment in three target protected area (PA) landscapes to grow the biodiversity economy and benefits to local communities.
Grant funded activities are designed to build on the objective of the Catalyzing Financing and Capacity for the Biodiversity Economy around Protected Areas project (P170213), which aims to expand the area of land under protected area status using South Africa’s Stewardship Programme in Limpopo, Eastern Cape, and Kwazulu-Natal Provinces.
List of Activities:
- Support land restoration & repurposing of retired mining sites in Mpumalanga to add biodiversity value
Biodiversity assessment in selected closed mining sites of Mpumalanga
Analysis of investment options for repurposing selected retired mining sites with a focus on biodiversity restoration and conservation
Knowledge exchanges with South Korea focusing on remediation and repurposing of retired mining sites and disseminating lessons from the Korean experience to Mpumalanga
- Amplify lessons from South Africa’s Biodiversity Stewardship Programme & support expansion of Stewardship in Mpumalanga, especially around retired mining sites
Development of community outreach and environmental educational tools and materials to disseminate the benefits of biodiversity and conservation areas expansion in the Mpumalanga Province
Training workshops to build capacity within stakeholders in the Mpumalanga Province to improve community outreach in raising awareness and capacity building
Knowledge exchange event in South Korea focusing on strategies and policies for effective protected area expansion to meet global conservation targets
- Analyze carbon sequestration potential from reforestation & biodiversity restoration in Mpumalanga
Assessment on soil carbon stock status in strategic areas of Mpumalanga province
Options analysis on methodologies and technologies to improve soil carbon sequestration and potential options for carbon finance generation
Knowledge exchange event in South Korea focusing on case studies and strategies for soil carbon sequestration
Outcomes:
- Facilitate repurposing of retired mining sites, prioritizing ecosystem and biodiversity restoration
- Support the expansion of land under protected area status through enhancement of the Biodiversity Stewardship Programme
- Engage in analytical work to understand the potential for remuneration for carbon sequestration soil carbon storage in Mpumalanga Province.
Collaboration with K-Partners and Others:
- Korea Mine Rehabilitation and Mineral Resources Corporation: KOMIR has expressed interests and willingness to collaborate with the World Bank for the Activity 1 under the Component 1.
- National Institute of Green Technology: NGIT has expressed interests and willingness to lead the analysis for the delivery of Activity 2, Component 3.
- Ministry of Environment of Republic of Korea, International Cooperation Division: MoE has expressed interests and willingness to collaborate with the World Bank in facilitating partnerships with relevant Korean agencies and experts on biodiversity conservation and expansion.