ISSN 2375-0936
African Journal of Water Conservation and Sustainability ISSN 2375-0936 Vol. 13 (5), pp. 001-010, May, 2025. Available online at www.internationalscholarsjournals.org © International Scholars Journals
Full Length Research Paper
Water Scarcity Mitigation in Mining: A System Dynamics Approach for Decision Support at Jwaneng Diamond Mine
Sennye Masike
University of Botswana, Department of Environmental Science, Private Bag 0022, Gaborone. E-mail: [email protected].
Accepted 3 March, 2025
Business operations under water scarcity requires efficient water management to avoid disruptions to prolong lifespan of the water resources. One way to enhance effective water resource management is the use of approaches that study the system in holistically. One such approach is system dynamic approach. Thus, in this article, water use by mining sector in Botswana is assessed using system dynamic approach. Results indicate that water use per tonne at the mine is highly erractic. Consequently, this leads to ineffective water resource management. Simulation of the developed model reveal that if average water consumption of 0.8 m3/t is achieved, the mine could have saved a total of 0.26 million m3 for 3 years. Moreover, findings also reveal that water use is also highly erratic. Results from the simulating reveal that reducing water use per tonnage and increasing water reuse will lead to water saving and conservation at the mines.
Key words: System dynamic approach, demand, supply, use, reuse, feedbacks, system, mine.