APPENDIX C
(Standing Rule 213)
FORM OF PETITION
GENERAL FORM OF A PUBLIC PETITION
PETITION TO THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF NAMIBIA
Subject: Protection of the Stampriet Transboundary Aquifer System and Opposition to Uranium In-Situ Leach Mining in the Stampriet Area
To: The Honourable Speaker, National Assembly of the Republic of Namibia, Windhoek
I/We, the undersigned,
citizens and residents of the Republic of Namibia, including farmers, community members, traditional leaders, and stakeholders in the Omaheke, Hardap, and Khomas Regions who depend directly on the Stampriet Transboundary Aquifer System for drinking water, livestock, irrigation, and livelihoods,
DRAW the attention of the House to the following:
1. The Stampriet Transboundary Aquifer System (STAS) is one of the most important groundwater resources in southern Africa, spanning approximately 87,000 square kilometres across Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa. It is the sole source of drinking water for more than 50,000 people and sustains farming, tourism, and rural livelihoods across the basin.
2. The Stampriet Aquifer has been declared a water protection area under Section 85 read together with Section 132 (deeming provision) of the Water Resources Management Act (Act No. 11 of 2013), which prohibits any form of pollution of the underground water in proclaimed water reserves.
3. Headspring Investments, a company 100% owned by Uranium One, which is in turn 100% owned by Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom, proposes to conduct uranium mining in the Omaheke Region using the in-situ leach (ISL) method. This method involves injecting sulphuric acid solutions into the aquifer to dissolve uranium underground, then pumping the solution to the surface for processing.
4. On 13–16 March 2026, the Namibia-Russia Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation and the Russia-Namibia Business Forum took place in Windhoek, during which Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yury Trutnev announced that Rosatom plans to begin commercial uranium mining by 2029. This announcement was made before regulatory approvals are complete and before any cumulative impact assessment of the aquifer has been conducted.
5. A U.S. Geological Survey study (Hall, 2009) examining all uranium ISR mines in the United States found that no ISR mine has ever successfully restored groundwater to pre-mining baseline conditions. In 68% of well fields studied, uranium levels were higher after mining and attempted restoration than before mining began.
6. The WISE Uranium Project has documented more than 80 ISL spills and violations worldwide between 2000 and 2024, and at least 69 separate incidents at ISL mines in the United States between 2010 and 2024, including underground excursions of leaching solution, surface spills, leaking evaporation ponds, and equipment failures.
7. Based on expert evidence and established international guidance on in-situ leach (ISL) uranium mining, including publications of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the hydrogeological characteristics of the Stampriet Transboundary Aquifer System (STAS) are considered incompatible with the conditions under which ISL mining can be conducted safely. IAEA technical guidance outlines that ISL requires controlled and predictable aquifer conditions. However, expert assessments indicate that the STAS does not meet these conditions in several key respects:
(a) Aquifer confinement — The STAS is not a fully confined system but exhibits hydraulic connectivity and leakage, undermining the containment required for ISL operations.
(b) Groundwater control — The STAS is a high-pressure artesian system with dynamic flow conditions, making reliable hydraulic control of leaching solutions difficult.
(c) Potable water resource — The STAS is a critical source of fresh, potable water relied upon by communities across Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa, increasing the risk and consequence of contamination.
(d) Hydraulic stability — The aquifer system’s pressure regime and complexity reduce the predictability and control necessary to safely manage ISL processes.
Taken together, these factors indicate that the fundamental conditions required for safe and controlled ISL uranium mining are not present in the STAS.
8. Namibian and Southern African hydrogeological experts — including Dr. Roy Miller, Dr. Stephen Emslie, Frank Bockmühl, Dr. Detlof von Oertzen, and Dr. Chris Brown — as well as the Legal Assistance Centre, IGRAC, and UNESCO GGRETA have unanimously concluded that ISL uranium mining in the STAS is scientifically incompatible with the aquifer’s geology, hydrology, pressure regime, and transboundary nature.
9. The Standing Committee on Natural Resources recommended that Headspring Investments be permitted to proceed with drilling and ISL exploration, despite engaging only with Headspring and excluding the Stampriet Aquifer Uranium Mining Association (SAUMA), affected farming communities, and other stakeholders from the consultation process.
10. The IAEA delegation that visited Namibia from 9–13 February 2026 to assess the Headspring proposal operates under structural conflicts of interest: the Head of the IAEA Department of Nuclear Energy, Mikhail Chudakov, is a former senior Rosatom executive; the IAEA signed a formal partnership agreement with the Rosatom Corporate Academy; and Russia holds a permanent seat on the IAEA Board of Governors. Botswana and South Africa, as co-owners of the transboundary aquifer, were not included in this process.
11. Former Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform Carl-Hermann Gustav Schlettwein has publicly called on Parliament to reject the Standing Committee’s recommendation, emphasising that the Water Resources Management Act prohibits pollution of water resources in proclaimed water reserves.
THAT,
affected communities, SAUMA, individual farmers, and concerned citizens have repeatedly attempted to engage with the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Natural Resources, the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform regarding the risks posed by proposed ISL mining in the Stampriet Aquifer. Despite these efforts, meaningful consultation has not taken place, the Standing Committee engaged exclusively with the mining company, and the concerns raised by stakeholders have not received satisfactory response.
THAT,
the issues in respect of which this petition is made are not pending before any court of law.
WHEREFORE, the petitioner(s) pray that Parliament —
1. Immediately review all agreements, negotiations, and project approvals related to uranium exploration or ISL mining activities within the Stampriet Transboundary Aquifer System, including the terms of the Namibia-Russia Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation as they relate to the Wings uranium project.
2. Impose an immediate moratorium on all uranium in-situ leach mining exploration and development activities within declared water protection areas, including the Stampriet Aquifer, until a comprehensive, independent, cumulative hydrogeological impact assessment has been completed by scientists independent of both the mining company and Rosatom.
3. Reject the recommendation of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources to permit Headspring Investments to proceed with drilling and ISL exploration in the Stampriet Artesian Basin, on the grounds that it contradicts the Water Resources Management Act (Act No. 11 of 2013) and was made without adequate stakeholder consultation.
4. Require that the IAEA report expected in June 2026 be subjected to independent peer review by Southern African hydrogeological experts before any government decisions are based upon it, given the documented structural conflicts of interest between the IAEA and Rosatom.
5. Ensure full transparency and meaningful public consultation with affected communities, farmers, traditional authorities, and regional stakeholders prior to any approval of mining activities in the area.
6. Engage with Botswana, South Africa, ORASECOM, and the SADC Groundwater Management Institute to ensure that Namibia’s transboundary obligations regarding the Stampriet Aquifer are honoured and that no unilateral decision is taken that could contaminate a shared water resource.
7. Ensure compliance with the Water Resources Management Act (Act No. 11 of 2013), which prohibits pollution of groundwater in proclaimed water protection areas, and confirm that no exploration or mining licence will be granted or renewed in contravention of this Act.
We respectfully request that Parliament treat this matter with the utmost urgency in order to safeguard Namibia’s water security and protect the interests of present and future generations.