SUBMISSIONS REGARDING THE REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), representing groundWork, the South Durban Community Environmental Alliance (SDCEA), and the Vaal Environmental Justice Alliance (VEJA), submitted comments on August 22, 2012, regarding the review of the National Framework for Air Quality Management. The submission criticizes the lack of a systematic review of the 2007 Framework, the absence of a current State of the Air Report, and significant gaps in air quality monitoring and public access to information. The CER advocates for more stringent emission standards, mandatory reporting for data holders, and a more inclusive, transparent review process.

• The 2012 Draft National Framework Amendment was published without a systematic review or audit of the 2007 Framework's objectives, and the promised 'State of the Air Report' from December 2007 has not been produced.
• There is a significant lack of available air quality information, and national standards for the collection and management of data to assess compliance with emission standards and the performance of organs of state have not been established.
• The South African Air Quality Information System (SAAQIS) has failed to meet its targets, and the CER expresses concern that the South African Weather Service (SAWS) is assuming a central role in air quality management without a clearly defined or resourced mandate.
• The CER argues that current ambient air quality standards for fine particles (PM2.5) are inadequate because they follow outdated WHO 2000 guidelines rather than the 2005 guidelines, potentially leading to 20 years of adverse health impacts.
• The submission highlights a failure to establish National and Municipal Emission Inventories, noting that the 2012 draft Framework still does not allocate responsibility or a timeframe for a National Emission Inventory.
• The CER recommends that the allowable frequency of exceedances for the 24-hour average air quality standard be reduced to zero to prevent public exposure to harmful pollution.
• The document identifies a lack of capacity in several municipalities within the Highveld Priority Area and Vaal Triangle Air-shed to implement the Air Quality Act (AQA) and its standards.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (2012). SUBMISSIONS REGARDING THE REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Comments-on-the-draft-review-of-the-Framework-for-AQM_22-Aug-2012.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. SUBMISSIONS REGARDING THE REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT. 2012. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Comments-on-the-draft-review-of-the-Framework-for-AQM_22-Aug-2012.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=SUBMISSIONS REGARDING THE REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT |date=22 August 2012 |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Comments-on-the-draft-review-of-the-Framework-for-AQM_22-Aug-2012.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centreforenvironmentalrights2012submissions, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{SUBMISSIONS REGARDING THE REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT}}, publisher = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, year = {2012}, month = aug, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Comments-on-the-draft-review-of-the-Framework-for-AQM_22-Aug-2012.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }