Page 90 - SAICE book proof 2 LATEST JULY 2014

s a i c e
NORTH WEST PROVINCE

products are platinum, iron ore and chromium, but a ◊ Below: Mmabatho green belt
host of other minerals also come from the riches in ◊ Bottom: Grain silo
the ground. Water comes from various dams and other
sources, some even conveyed from Gauteng coming
from as far as the Lesotho Highlands about 400 km –
500 km away.
6. Mmabatho green belt is a project that trans-
formed a rather harsh landscape into a recreational and
environmentally sound landscape and wetlands along
the Molopo River that meanders through this extremely
flat piece of land, also ensuring that effluent from the
sewage purification facilities is safely accommodated.
This project shows that civil engineering can even
change landscapes from bleak to blooming.

25°50’15.94” S, 25°35’41.11” E

7. Grain silos around South Africa are a com-
mon sight on the fertile plains of various provinces.
There are more than 240 of these structures and stor-
age capacity is about 15 million tons. A multitude of
grain types including white and yellow maize, wheat,
canola, barley and sunflower seeds are stored in these
massive concrete structures which often dominate the
skyline on approaching a town in the grain production
regions.

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