People in communities next to coal mines and power stations in eMalahleni, Mpumalanga, on March 7 told members of the Presidential Climate Commission of their experience of the impacts of air pollution.

The commission was holding its first community consultation and, according to civil and environmental organisations Vukani Environmental Movement and GroundWork Friends of the Earth South Africa, many community members said they were suffering from poor health and were concerned for the future of their children.

Community members expressed their alarm at the absence of plans to replace the coal economy in their areas.

The civil and environmental organisations say the community members are not aware of any planning to create alternative economies, and have not been consulted about them. These plans must be made and shared; for example, how the renewable energy economy will work and how it will provide jobs to people losing their jobs in the local coal economy.

However, there are also a large number of people without jobs.

"They are also concerned about the low level of understanding in their communities of climate change and how climate change creates the need for a just transition. The commission must provide resources and a process for communities to be better informed about climate change and the just transition, so that community members can fully participate in determining their own future," the organisations say.

Further, communities expressed their unhappiness about the process of consultation so far. For a transition to be just, communities need to be included in all decision-making about the transition, and have their voices heard. However, this process has been delayed for more than a year, since December 2020, and they have not been consulted, the organisations state.

"They made it clear that consultation should be more than a one-off meeting. Communities need to be consulted throughout the remaining four years of the commission’s work and beyond that for the three decades to 2050 when the commission is saying that coal and other fossil fuel use will be phased out.

"Communities' voices need to be heard and their concerns and proposals need to be reflected in the commission’s plans and documents. The community must have the opportunity to see how their inputs are used and whether they agree. They also want to be involved in plans for the transition," the organisations say.