WRITTEN COMMENTS ON THE DRAFT NATIONAL APPEAL REGULATIONS

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) submitted written comments on September 22, 2014, regarding the Draft National Appeal Regulations. The CER strongly opposes the proposed truncated timeframes for submitting appeals and making decisions, arguing that they violate the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (PAJA), and the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA). The CER recommends widening the definition of 'independent' for experts, limiting the regulations' application to mining-related matters, and introducing provisions for the condonation of late filings.

• The CER strongly opposes the proposed 20-calendar-day timeframe for appellants to submit appeals and the 20-day window for appeal authorities to make decisions following an administrator's recommendation. The CER argues these timeframes violate the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, 2000 (PAJA), and environmental management principles in the National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (NEMA).
• The CER contends that the 20-day appeal submission period is inadequate for interested and affected parties (IAPs), especially affected communities with limited resources, to secure necessary legal and expert advice for technical environmental authorisations. Furthermore, the CER notes that the Draft Regulations lack explicit provisions for the condonation of appeals submitted after the deadline.
• The CER criticizes the proposal to calculate the 20-day appeal window from the date the decision notice was sent to registered IAPs. They argue this is impractical because it forces IAPs to determine the sending date and allows postal delivery times to reduce the actual time available for submission, potentially resulting in the deadline expiring before the IAP even receives the notice.
• The CER recommends that the application of the Draft Regulations be limited to decisions related to prospecting, exploration, mining, or production under the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 2002 (MPRDA) that are subject to appeal under NEMA or the National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 (NEMWA). They question the inclusion of the National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act, 2004 (NEMBA) given the capacity implications of the short timeframes.
• The CER suggests amending the definition of 'independent' to apply not only to appeal panel members but also to experts providing advice to an appeal authority. They propose that independence should require both the absence of business, financial, or personal interests (excluding fair remuneration) and other specified requirements, rather than these being alternative options.
• The CER argues that the Draft Regulations fail to provide a mechanism for appellants to answer new information introduced by respondents in their responding statements. They recommend that the ability to answer new material be clearly provided for to avoid appeal decisions being set aside for violating principles of natural justice.
• The CER recommends that the appeal authority be required to constitute an appeal panel for all appeals to ensure consistency and quality, rather than using the subjective 'is of the view' standard. They also suggest a 5-day deadline for the authority to instruct the administrator to source experts to prevent delays.
• The CER proposes replacing the current communication rules with a list of acceptable means of communication that specifically excludes ordinary mail. This is intended to prevent parties from using slow mail services to intentionally shorten the time available for opposing parties to respond within the tight regulatory windows.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (2014). WRITTEN COMMENTS ON THE DRAFT NATIONAL APPEAL REGULATIONS. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/CER-comments-on-the-Draft-National-Appeal-Regulations-Sept-2014.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. WRITTEN COMMENTS ON THE DRAFT NATIONAL APPEAL REGULATIONS. 2014. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/CER-comments-on-the-Draft-National-Appeal-Regulations-Sept-2014.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=WRITTEN COMMENTS ON THE DRAFT NATIONAL APPEAL REGULATIONS |date=22 September 2014 |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/CER-comments-on-the-Draft-National-Appeal-Regulations-Sept-2014.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centreforenvironmentalrights2014written, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{WRITTEN COMMENTS ON THE DRAFT NATIONAL APPEAL REGULATIONS}}, publisher = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, year = {2014}, month = sep, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/CER-comments-on-the-Draft-National-Appeal-Regulations-Sept-2014.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }