OPPOSITION TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PANEL OF EXPERTS TO PROVIDE STRATEGIC AND TECHNICAL GUIDANCE TOWARDS MANAGEMENT OF SULPHUR DIOXIDE EMISSIONS FROM EXISTING PLANTS

The Life After Coal/Impilo Ngaphandle Kwamalahle Campaign, represented by the Centre for Environmental Rights, groundWork, and Earthlife Africa Johannesburg, formally opposes the Department of Environmental Affairs' (DEA) plan to establish an expert panel to provide guidance on managing sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions from existing power plants. The campaign argues that such a panel is unnecessary, would delay compliance with Minimum Emission Standards (MES), and lacks a legislative basis for potentially weakening those standards.

• The Life After Coal Campaign (LAC) opposes the establishment of an expert panel for sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions management, arguing that it will delay the implementation of actions needed to comply with Minimum Emission Standards (MES). The LAC asserts that operators of existing plants, specifically Eskom and Sasol, should instead be required to retrofit plants with SO2 abatement technology or begin expedited decommissioning for plants unable to meet the MES, noting that once-off suspensions are available for plants to be decommissioned by 31 March 2030.
• The LAC contends that an expert panel is redundant because it would duplicate the extensive five-year multi-stakeholder consultation process used to develop the MES. Furthermore, the campaign states there is no legislative provision allowing the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) to weaken the MES or exempt industry from legal requirements based on compliance costs.
• The LAC expresses concern that the Minister of Environmental Affairs has already weakened the new plant MES for SO2 for existing plants in sub-category 1.1 via an amended List of Activities published on 31 October 2018. The campaign alleges this was done without following the consultative process required by section 57(2) of the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act 39 of 2004.
• The LAC has resolved not to nominate any members for the expert panel due to a lack of information from the DEA regarding the panel's terms of reference, the identity of the convener, and the provider of the secretariat, despite multiple requests sent between 5 December and 10 December 2018.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (2018). OPPOSITION TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PANEL OF EXPERTS TO PROVIDE STRATEGIC AND TECHNICAL GUIDANCE TOWARDS MANAGEMENT OF SULPHUR DIOXIDE EMISSIONS FROM EXISTING PLANTS. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/CER-Letter-to-Minister-Mokonyane_Opposition-to-SO2-Expert-Panel_13-Decem....pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. OPPOSITION TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PANEL OF EXPERTS TO PROVIDE STRATEGIC AND TECHNICAL GUIDANCE TOWARDS MANAGEMENT OF SULPHUR DIOXIDE EMISSIONS FROM EXISTING PLANTS. 2018. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/CER-Letter-to-Minister-Mokonyane_Opposition-to-SO2-Expert-Panel_13-Decem....pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=OPPOSITION TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PANEL OF EXPERTS TO PROVIDE STRATEGIC AND TECHNICAL GUIDANCE TOWARDS MANAGEMENT OF SULPHUR DIOXIDE EMISSIONS FROM EXISTING PLANTS |date=13 December 2018 |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/CER-Letter-to-Minister-Mokonyane_Opposition-to-SO2-Expert-Panel_13-Decem....pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centreforenvironmentalrights2018opposition, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{OPPOSITION TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PANEL OF EXPERTS TO PROVIDE STRATEGIC AND TECHNICAL GUIDANCE TOWARDS MANAGEMENT OF SULPHUR DIOXIDE EMISSIONS FROM EXISTING PLANTS}}, publisher = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, year = {2018}, month = dec, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/CER-Letter-to-Minister-Mokonyane_Opposition-to-SO2-Expert-Panel_13-Decem....pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }