Search Climate Insights Directory

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), acting as part of the Life After Coal campaign and other environmental justice networks, submitted written objections on July 30, 2020, against Eskom's application for a once-off suspension of compliance with New Plant Minimum Emission Standards (MES) and a variation request for the Grootvlei Power Station. The CER argues that the application is procedurally invalid, lacks a detailed decommissioning schedule, and unlawfully seeks to extend polluting activities beyond the station's end-of-life, thereby violating constitutional rights to a healthy environment.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), acting for the Vaal Environmental Justice Alliance and groundWork, has issued a formal request to the National Air Quality Officer and other authorities for the reasons and supporting documentation behind a decision to partly grant an application by ArcelorMittal South Africa (Vanderbijlpark) (AMSA). The decision relates to the suspension, alternative limits, or postponement of compliance with Minimum Emission Standards (MES) under the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act, 2004.

This conference proceeding summarizes a September 2021 capstone event for the '100 Questions for Air Quality' initiative, led by GovLab and the World Resources Institute. The initiative engaged 100 global experts to prioritize data and data science investments for air quality, ultimately finding that the primary challenge is not a lack of data, but the need to translate existing knowledge into political will and investment.

A letter from the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) to Tokiso Dispute Settlement (Pty) Ltd regarding the management of Multi-Stakeholder Reference Group (MSRG) and Implementation Task Team (ITT) meetings for air quality priority areas in South Africa.

This briefing by RMI examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on public transit, arguing that the crisis provides a unique opportunity to modernize transit systems through data-driven redesign, the prioritization of bus lanes over single-occupancy vehicles, and the continued pursuit of bus electrification to improve health and climate outcomes.

A technical review by Dr. Ranajit Sahu for the Centre for Environmental Rights analyzing particulate matter (PM) emissions at Eskom’s Kendal Power Station from April 2016 to March 2020. The report finds thousands of exceedances of the Atmospheric Emission License (AEL) limit, noting a significant increase in frequency starting in April 2018 and criticizing the failure of electrostatic precipitators and the quality of Eskom's emissions reporting.

The Centre for Environmental Rights, acting for groundWork and Earthlife Africa NPC, sent a letter to the Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries on 12 May 2020, extending the deadline for the government to provide written reasons for amending the Minimum Emission Standards (MES) for sulphur dioxide (SO2) regarding existing solid-fuel combustion installations.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) submitted a statement to the Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries on 28 April 2020, providing expert analysis of air quality and health impacts resulting from emissions at Eskom's Kendal power station. The document presents findings from two expert reports by Dr Ron Sahu and Dr Andrew Gray, highlighting significant exceedances of particulate matter (PM) limits and associated premature deaths and health risks in the Highveld Priority Area.

A technical report by Dr. Ranajit Sahu for the Centre for Environmental Rights analyzing particulate matter (PM) emissions at Eskom’s Kendal Power Station from April 2016 to March 2020. The analysis finds thousands of exceedances of the Atmospheric Emission License (AEL) limit, suggesting that the plant's electrostatic precipitators are failing and recommending the installation of fabric filters or the shutdown of the facility.

This executive summary reports on the 2019 air quality monitoring in the state of Acre, Brazil, utilizing a network of 30 low-cost PurpleAir sensors across 22 municipalities. The study focused on particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations between June and December 2019, identifying significant violations of World Health Organization (WHO) air quality standards primarily driven by biomass burning from deforestation and pasture management.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) provides a detailed table of comments and proposed amendments to the National Environmental Management Laws Amendment Bill, 2017. The document focuses on strengthening the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act, 2004 (NEMAQA) and the National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 (NEMWA), specifically regarding air quality governance, atmospheric emission licences (AELs), and the management of contaminated land.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) submitted preliminary comments on the National Environmental Management Laws Amendment Bill [B 14D-2017], specifically focusing on the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act, 2004 (NEMAQA) and the National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008. The CER requested an extension until 13 February 2020 to provide further submissions on the National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (NEMA) and mining matters, citing the festive season closure of their offices.

A statement by the Climate and Health Alliance (CAHA) and Global Health and Climate Alliance (GCHA) addressed to the World Economic Forum in Davos, calling for urgent Australian government action on climate change following the devastating bushfires in South East Australia.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), acting on behalf of groundWork and Earthlife Africa NPC, submitted a formal request to Minister Gwede Mantashe for written reasons regarding the promulgation of the updated Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) for Electricity published on 18 October 2019.

This document is a cover letter from the Centre for Environmental Rights, sent on 30 October 2019 to the Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, submitting an appeal on behalf of Earthlife Africa and groundWork. The appeal seeks to set aside a provisional atmospheric emission licence (PAEL) issued to Thabametsi Power Company (Pty) Ltd.

This fact sheet from the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment outlines the various ways climate change negatively impacts human health, specifically focusing on the Canadian context. It details risks ranging from extreme heat and air pollution to mental health struggles, vector-borne diseases, and threats to food and water security.

A statement from the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) to the South African Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries arguing against the weakening of Minimum Emission Standards (MES) for sulphur dioxide (SO2) and challenging the cost claims made by Eskom and Sasol regarding pollution abatement technologies.

This report by the Greenpeace Global Air Pollution Unit assesses the public health and environmental consequences of a proposal by South Africa’s Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries to double the Minimum Emissions Standards (MES) for SO2 from 500mg/Nm3 to 1000mg/Nm3 for power plants and industrial sources.

This report provides an air-pollution dispersion model and health risk assessment for 14 industrial facilities in and around South Africa's Mpumalanga Highveld Priority Area (HPA). The analysis compares actual 2016 emissions against a scenario where facilities comply with the 2020 Minimum Emissions Standards (MES), finding that current emissions cause significant early deaths and exceed multiple international air quality guidelines.

This document is a Rule 16A notice filed in the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria, in June 2019. It outlines the constitutional issues raised by applicants—including GroundWork and the Vukani Environmental Justice Alliance—regarding air pollution in the Highveld Priority Area and the failure of the Minister of Environmental Affairs to establish regulations to implement the Highveld Priority Area Air Quality Management Plan.