Environmental justice group groundWork, represented by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), has launched High Court proceedings against Environmental Affairs Minister Nomvula Mokonyane and President Cyril Ramaphosa and is asking the court to set aside government’s plan to double the amount of sulphur dioxide (SO2) polluters are allowed to emit.
The weakening of the standards will allow all coal-fired boilers to emit double their previously allowed SO2 pollution from April 1, 2020, states groundWork.
This includes the already heavily-polluted Vaal, Highveld and Waterberg priority areas.
The weakened standards for SO2 are now about ten times weaker than the equivalent standards in India and about 28 times weaker than the standards in China, the group states in a media release.
Should the court agree with groundWork, big SO2 emitters like State-owned Eskom and petroleum company Sasol will have to immediately reduce their pollution and, in doing so, reduce their impact on people’s health and wellbeing.
According to groundWork, the doubling of the SO2 standards – from 500 mg/Nm3 to 1 000 mg/Nm3 – was introduced by the Department of Environmental Affairs as an amendment to the minimum emission standards (MES) – but without first publishing the proposed doubling of the SO2 standard for comment as the law requires.
The Air Quality Act indicates that any proposed change to the MES has to be published for public comment and must “contain sufficient information to enable members of the public to submit meaningful representations or objections”.
Although other proposed changes to the relevant law were made available for comment in May 2018, there was no indication whatsoever that any changes were being considered in relation to the MES for coal-fired boilers, groundWork avers.
“Air pollution from coal mining and power is already killing thousands of people every year in places like the Mpumalanga Highveld. Instead of enforcing compliance with our already weak standards, government now wants to weaken the standards even further.
“If government will not defend the right to a healthy environment, we have no option but to ask the court to do so,” groundWork director Bobby Peek says.
The Minister has indicated her intention to oppose groundWork’s court application. The Minister’s answering affidavit is expected at the end of May.