The Minister of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism, Pohamba Shifeta, is set to decide whether the amendments made to Recon Africa's Environmental Clearance Certificate were lawful or not.

This comes after concerned members of the public launched an appeal against the Environmental Commissioner's decision to grant an amendment.

The appellants argued that the Environmental Commissioner acted beyond his powers and failed to comply with the provisions of Section 39 of the Environmental Management Act in approving the amendments to Recon Africa's Environmental Clearance Certificate.

They say the Environmental Commissioner should have gone through the entire process as he did with the initial application when considering an amendment, including community and public engagement and input.

A media statement released by the Legal Assistance Centre states that the appellants made submissions about the inadequacies of the environmental impact assessment, particularly on how it addressed and mitigated potential environmental impacts.

In opposition, Recon Africa argued that the Environmental Commissioner, when amending the Environmental Clearance Certificate, acted under Section 39 of the Environmental Management Action and in line with the general powers conferred on him.

At the moment, Recon Africa can still continue to clear land and carry on with exploration activities under the amended Environmental Clearance Certificate.

After nine hours of hearing testimony and legal submissions from both parties, the Minister of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism decided to deliver his findings next month.