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This briefing details a judgment by the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) delivered on 11 April 2025, which affirmed that poor air quality in South Africa's Highveld Priority Area breaches constitutional rights. The court ruled that the Minister of Environmental Affairs has a legal duty to prescribe regulations under section 20 of the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act 39 of 2004 (NEM:AQA) to implement and enforce the Highveld Priority Area Air Quality Management Plan, finding that the Minister had unreasonably delayed in doing so.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), on behalf of groundWork and Earthlife Africa, submits a formal objection to Eskom's application for exemptions from Minimum Emission Standards (MES) for eight coal-fired power stations under section 59 of the Air Quality Act (AQA). The submission argues that these exemptions violate the constitutional right to a healthy environment, particularly for residents in Priority Areas, and that Eskom has failed to justify its 14-year delay in achieving compliance.

This briefing by the Centre for Environmental Rights evaluates Eskom's November 2024 request for Minimum Emission Standards (MES) exemptions for eight power stations. The authors argue that Eskom's cost-benefit analysis is fundamentally flawed, systematically underestimating the health benefits of compliance while prioritizing financial savings over public health and international air quality standards.

This document contains the heads of argument submitted by the First and Second Respondents (Groundwork Trust and Vukani Environmental Justice Alliance Movement in Action) to the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa. The respondents argue that the Minister of Environmental Affairs has a legal duty under section 20 of the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act and section 7(2) of the Constitution to promulgate regulations to implement and enforce the Highveld Plan. They seek to uphold a High Court judgment that declared the air quality in the Highveld Priority Area a breach of constitutional rights and ordered the Minister to produce enforcement regulations within 12 months.

This document is an appeal submitted by groundWork and the Vukani Environmental Justice Movement in Action against a decision by the National Air Quality Officer (NAQO) to grant Eskom a postponement of compliance with Minimum Emission Standards (MES) for the Kusile Power Station. The Appellants argue that the decision is unlawful, violates constitutional rights to a healthy environment, and was based on flawed health and atmospheric impact assessments and unfounded claims regarding the reduction of load shedding.

This submission by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), on behalf of groundWork and Earthlife Africa, opposes Eskom's applications for the postponement and suspension of Minimum Emission Standards (MES) compliance. The document argues that Eskom's failure to comply with air quality laws violates constitutional rights to health and a safe environment, particularly in the Highveld Priority Area. It provides evidence of extensive emission exceedances, high emission intensity compared to international standards, and severe public health impacts, while asserting that abatement technologies are technically and economically feasible.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) submitted recommendations to the South African government to strengthen draft regulations for air quality management plans. Following a High Court ruling that poor air quality in the Highveld Priority Area (HPA) violates constitutional rights, the CER advocates for stricter enforcement, including a moratorium on new coal infrastructure, biennial plan reviews, bi-annual public reporting, and the mandatory adoption of 2020 minimum emission standards by 2025.

This document is an appeal response report filed by groundWork and Earthlife Africa, represented by the Centre for Environmental Rights, challenging decisions made by the National Air Quality Officer (NAQO) regarding Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. The appellants argue that granting postponements and suspensions of compliance with Minimum Emission Standards (MES) for several coal-fired power stations in the Highveld Priority Area is unlawful and violates environmental laws and constitutional rights to health.

This final synthesis report by the Centre for Environmental Rights provides strategic and technical guidance on managing sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions from old solid fuel combustion plants in South Africa, specifically focusing on Eskom and Sasol facilities. The report utilizes a cost-benefit analysis (CBA) to recommend minimum emission standards (MES) based on plant lifetime and economic viability, concluding that reducing SO2 emissions is technologically feasible and provides significant net societal benefits through improved public health and macroeconomic growth.

A statement from the Life After Coal campaign (LAC) to the South African Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, objecting to Eskom's attempts to seek exemptions from the Minimum Emission Standards (MES) under the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act 39 of 2004.

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) 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 statement from the Centre for Environmental Rights, on behalf of the Life After Coal Campaign, urging the Portfolio Committee on Environment, Forestry and Fisheries to prioritise the Climate Change Bill and accelerate South Africa's transition away from fossil fuels to mitigate severe climate risks.

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), representing groundWork, Earthlife Africa Johannesburg, and the Vukani Environmental Justice Movement in Action, issued a formal request to the Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries for immediate enforcement action against Eskom's Kendal power station. The letter alleges flagrant and chronic non-compliance with Atmospheric Emission Licence (AEL) conditions, specifically regarding particulate matter (PM) limits, and argues that previous government interventions have failed to compel compliance.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), representing the Life After Coal campaign and several environmental justice alliances, formally objects to a proposed amendment by the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries to double the Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) Minimum Emission Standard (MES) for new plants in sub-category 1.1 from 500 mg/Nm3 to 1000 mg/Nm3. The CER argues that this weakening of standards is unlawful, violates the South African Constitution's right to a healthy environment, and would lead to significant premature deaths and exacerbated air pollution in priority areas.

The Life After Coal campaign, led by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), formally objects to Eskom's application for the suspension, postponement, or alternative limits of Minimum Emission Standards (MES) for 10 coal-fired power stations. The submission argues that Eskom fails to meet the legal prerequisites of the 2017 National Framework for Air Quality Management, specifically regarding National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) compliance and the prevention of direct adverse health impacts.

This document consists of a series of letters and a report summary from the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) addressed to the South African Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA). The CER, representing various environmental groups, argues that the Highveld Priority Area (HPA) has failed to improve air quality since its 2007 declaration. The CER demands the urgent implementation of regulations to enforce the 2012 Air Quality Management Plan (AQMP), the elimination of 'rolling postponements' for emission standards granted to major polluters like Eskom and Sasol, and a formal response to the 'Broken Promises' report regarding the ongoing violation of constitutional rights to a healthy environment.

A statement from the Life After Coal Campaign to the South African Minister of Finance outlining financial, legal, and environmental risks associated with two proposed coal-fired power stations under the Coal Baseload Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (CBIPPP).

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), writing on behalf of the Life After Coal Campaign, urges ABSA Group Limited to withdraw financial support for the proposed Thabametsi and Khanyisa coal-fired power stations. The CER argues that these projects are not 'procured', face significant legal challenges, and contradict the 'least cost' options identified in the 2018 draft Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). The document highlights severe health risks for residents in the Waterberg-Bojanala and Highveld Priority Areas, high greenhouse gas emission intensities, and the potential for these projects to cost South Africa nearly R20 billion more than necessary.