OUTCOMES OF THE MEETING WITH NGOs ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE HIGHVELD PRIORITY AREA HELD ON 12 DECEMBER 2017

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), acting for several NGOs, sent a letter to the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) on 19 January 2018. The letter outlines the outcomes and commitments from a meeting held on 12 December 2017 regarding the implementation of the Highveld Priority Area (HPA), specifically addressing the DEA's delayed response to the 'Broken Promises Report' and the roles of NGOs in community representation.

• The Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) committed to providing a comprehensive written response to the substantive demands of the 'Broken Promises Report' by 30 January 2018. This follows a previous commitment by the DEA spokesperson, Mr Modise, to respond by 11 October 2017, which was not met.
• The CER and its clients dispute claims attributed to the National Air Quality Officer, Dr Thuli Khumalo, suggesting that NGOs do not represent communities and that information is not shared with them. The CER asserts that these NGOs protect environmental and health rights in the public interest and support vulnerable communities, though they do not claim to represent every individual in the HPA jurisdiction.
• There is an agreement that Atmospheric Emission Licences (AELs) should be accessible to the public and that updated versions should be readily available from the competent Licensing Authority, the Nkangala District Municipality.
• The DEA's representative, Mr Senene, acknowledged that listed operators have failed to report their compliance status at Multi-Stakeholder Reference Group (MSRG) meetings. The NGOs advocate for a requirement that industries submit evidence of compliance with AELs and the Air Quality Management Plan six months prior to every MSRG meeting.
• The NGOs oppose a proposal by the DEA to hold separate MSRG meetings for industry and affected communities, arguing that such a move contradicts the 'multi-stakeholder' design and the participatory structure of the Air Quality Management Plan (AQMP).
• The meeting acknowledged that achieving compliance with National Ambient Air Quality Standards requires the participation of various government departments, specifically those responsible for health, energy, and mining.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (2018). OUTCOMES OF THE MEETING WITH NGOs ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE HIGHVELD PRIORITY AREA HELD ON 12 DECEMBER 2017. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Annexure-A-1.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. OUTCOMES OF THE MEETING WITH NGOs ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE HIGHVELD PRIORITY AREA HELD ON 12 DECEMBER 2017. 2018. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Annexure-A-1.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=OUTCOMES OF THE MEETING WITH NGOs ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE HIGHVELD PRIORITY AREA HELD ON 12 DECEMBER 2017 |date=19 January 2018 |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Annexure-A-1.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centreforenvironmentalrights2018outcomes, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{OUTCOMES OF THE MEETING WITH NGOs ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE HIGHVELD PRIORITY AREA HELD ON 12 DECEMBER 2017}}, publisher = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, year = {2018}, month = jan, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Annexure-A-1.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }