A mine and a plant nursery – two apparently contradictory concepts – have been brought together at the Vele Colliery of Coal of Africa (CoAL).

Last week, just two weeks before the official opening of the Vele Colliery, the Zoutpansberger was invited to visit the Vele Colliery .

Long before the gaping hole of the mine’s central pit becomes visible, visitors to the mine will pass CoAL’s temporary nursery filled with indigenous plants.

Even around the “dune-coloured” coal plant itself, mopani bush can be seen – trees that were not in the way were left standing. Additionally, the plant tower was also built a bit lower for "aesthetic reasons".

Together with a road, lined with natural bushveldt, the gigantic opening of the central coal pit comes as somewhat of a surprise. In just five months' time, 55 000 tones of coal have already been exhumed from the pit.

Yet in accordance with the law, CoAL general manager Ben Nolan said that they were determined to leave a legacy and become trendsetters in the mining industry. They are after all, he said, the first mine in South Africa that is operating with the approval of three different state departments and their laws.

“We don’t just talk the talk, we walk the walk,” Nolan said.

As part of the footprint that they want to leave after the mine is closed, the central pit is mined according to a “rollover open-cast mine methodology". This means that before another pit is opened up, the first one will be rehabilitated. Plants and trees that have been removed will be replanted. This is why a nursery had to be built. All the plants - mopani, baobab and aloe - were removed carefully during the ground-clearance phase and are being taken care of until such time that regrowth will be started.

An existing experiment is also underway in this nursery. According to CoAL's environmental manager, Ephraim Monyemoratho, they are currently experimenting with mopani trees to see if they can be grown in a nursery and then replanted in the wild.

Nolan further confirmed that  Vele is currently not using all the water allocated to them in their water licence. Water is precious to them, and every drop is saved by means of closed-tank systems. Currently, the mine is using salt water that is unfit for human or animal use, which is being stored and recycled afterwards. The water is also closely monitored, at the mine as well as on the surrounding farms.

Another important asset to CoAL is their employees and their safety. They are currently employing close to 500 people, most of them from the Vhembe region. "Vele is for Limpopo," remarked Nolan.

As part of their employment strategy, CoAL has established the King Mphephu Bursary Fund for Vhembe students interested in disciplines such as engineering, surveying, geological and environmental sciences. The fund was started in 2009, and Vele currently has absorbed three students that have completed their studies.

"We want to mine in a sustainable manner, with particular emphasis on the environment, but also on the people of the region," explained CoAL's investor relations manager.