(2) The appointment of a chief executive officer does not relieve the employer of any obligation imposed on owners by this Act or any other Act. A number of other sections of the Act provide for the appointment of persons to support the owner or employer (CEO) and together these sections form a “legal appointment structure” through which the day-to-day functions of the mine can be safely performed. In the first article of this series, we saw that although the Minerals Act 50 of 1991 has been repealed, the provisions of the Minerals Act are still in force. Some appointments are therefore made in connection with the Minerals Act Regulations, while others are made in relation to the Mining Health and Safety Act – this can be confusing. (2) Without prejudice to any liability of the chief executive officer within the meaning of subsection (1), the chief executive officer may delegate any contemplated function in that subdivision to any person under the control of the chief executive officer who must act under the control and direction of the chief executive officer. (3) If the employer is a corporation, the duties of chair of the board of directors under subsections 1 and 2 may be performed by a member of the board of directors of the body appointed by the board of directors. 2A (1) Every chair of the board of directors shall take reasonable steps to ensure that the employer`s duties under this Act are properly performed. It is also important that the appointee acknowledges that his or her responsibilities are the same as those of the manager, but that they are limited to what is stated in the letter of appointment. It is therefore important that the appointee has a very good understanding of the manager`s responsibilities and responsibilities. (5) Any person appointed in accordance with § 3 or § 4 (1) shall perform his duties under the control and direction of the Chairman of the Board of Directors or the person referred to in paragraph 3. (ii) in the absence of an exploration authorisation or a mining authorisation, the person for whom the activities provided for in point (b) of the definition of `mine` are carried out, but excluding an independent contractor; This is an extremely important definition because it fills a serious gap in previous versions of the act. This is because it covers all eventualities – if an exploration licence or mining licence has been legally granted, the owner is the person on whose behalf the licence or licence was granted. The problems associated with the exploitation of mines disused by illegal miners are therefore the responsibility of the employer/owner and raise the question: to what extent should an owner protect the old farms, adequate fencing and signage, or should armed guards be installed at the old entrances to the mining sites? The fact that so many illegal miners have had access to former farms suggests that the owner has not complied with paragraph 2.

(2). We have also previously examined the origins and structure of the Mining Health and Safety Act 29 of 1996 (MHSA). In this article, I would like to examine an important feature of the law – the placement of responsibility through the provisions relating to legal appointments: who is responsible in the event of a problem? We are not dealing with the entire legal appeal structure – we are only interested in appointments that directly affect the exploration drilling operation – so I will limit our review to those appointments. Table 1 summarizes the key legal appointments that will affect an exploration drilling contractor. Section 2.6.1 (Minerals Act Regulations): The manager may appoint one or more competent persons as junior managers to assist in the control, management and management of the mine or work, and each of these persons has the same responsibilities under the Regulations as the manager to an extent that can be clearly defined in his or her letter of appointment: Provided that the appointment of these persons does not serve to release the manager from any personal liability in accordance with the regulations. Whether or not the manager appoints a junior manager, he or she must appoint one or more “persons to assist”, 2.9.2 appointees. In an exploration operation, this is usually the supervisor or foreman responsible for one or more drill rigs. All legal appointments must be made on official company headers, dated and signed by both the agent and the person making the appointment. Letters of appointment are usually worded in a very general way – this serves to protect the employer if a regulation is repealed, amended or supplemented. However, this places an extremely high burden on the appointee to ensure not only that they perform their day-to-day duties, but also keep abreast of any changes to the Mining Health and Safety Act. Section 2.9.2 (Minerals Act Regulations): The manager shall appoint the persons necessary to assist the Manager in enforcing these observations of the Regulations. A legal appointment is not an exercise on paper, but a formal assumption of legal responsibility.

It is essentially a contract that requires the designated person to understand the objectives of the law and the requirements imposed by law. It is extremely important that the appointee has a clear understanding of the duties imposed on him or her by the letter of appointment. Second, if no permits or permits have been granted – in other words, the exploration activities are carried out “illegally”, then the owner is the person for whom the activities are carried out. It is important to realize that the “independent contractor” doing the work is not considered the owner. Depending on the complexity and structure of the mining or exploration company, contractor personnel may be asked to accept a position of 2.6.1, “subordinate manager”, or 2.9.2, “person to assist”. (3) If no executive director within the meaning of subsection (1) is appointed, the employer shall perform the duties of a manager within the meaning of this Act. (b) empowering directors to carry out their duties; and (a) appoint one or more managers with the prescribed qualifications and, if more than one manager is appointed, ensure that the functions of the managers do not overlap; Table 1: Legal Appointments Required by MHSA for an Exploration Drilling Operation Article 2(2) is very important in the current climate, as it states that even after the mining activity has ended, the employer (owner) must ensure that no one is injured or damaged in or because of the mine.