A systems thinking approach to sustainable manganese mining: A case for system dynamics modelling

The mining industry has dominated the economic development and the export goods market space in South Africa for more than a century. In the past century, many towns and cities were developed around the mining activities, creating dependence on mining for sustainability. The overall decline in mining production between the 1990s and the early 2000s has driven some of the once vibrant towns into ghost towns. In this paper, the operation of the Manganese value chain is reviewed based on systems thinking approach and dynamic simulation of the key industry drivers. The paper addresses the impact of a Manganese beneficiation policy on sustainable infrastructure development. First, the systems thinking concepts applicable to complex social problem solving are reviewed, followed by the analyses of the Manganese business dynamics over a 10 year period. A performance pattern based on revenue earned per ton is presented to highlight the investment potential for infrastructure and alternative business development.