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This working paper by Joel Pearson surveys South African literature on the role of traditional authorities in land governance, analyzing the institution through the lenses of democracy, bureaucracy, and capitalism. It argues against a monolithic view of the chieftaincy, highlighting the diversity of local practices and the ongoing tensions between traditional leaders, rural residents, and the state in the post-apartheid era.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), on behalf of Earthlife Africa and groundWork, submitted formal objections on 14 June 2022 to the Integrated Water Use Licence Application (IWULA) for Phase 2A of the Mokolo Crocodile River (West) Water Augmentation Project (MCWAP-2A). The CER argues that the project is an unnecessary inter-basin transfer designed to support coal expansion, which contradicts South Africa's climate commitments and poses severe risks to aquatic ecosystems and local communities.

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 document is a formal appeal submitted by the Centre for Environmental Rights on behalf of Earthlife Africa and groundWork to the Minister of Environmental Affairs. The appeal seeks to set aside an Environmental Authorisation granted on 15 March 2019 to the Department of Water and Sanitation for Phase 2A of the Mokolo and Crocodile River (West) Augmentation Project (MCWAP-2A). The appellants argue that the project is unnecessary, environmentally damaging, and based on outdated energy demand assumptions.

The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), representing Earthlife Africa Johannesburg and groundWork, sent a letter to the South African Department of Energy's IPP Office on 6 April 2017. The letter alerts the Department that two preferred bidders under the Coal Baseload Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (CBIPPPP)—Thabametsi Power Company and ACWA Power Khanyisa—appear unable to meet the legal qualification criteria for financial and commercial close due to missing or contested environmental and generation licenses.

The Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment of South Africa dismissed eight appeals against the decision to grant an Environmental Authorisation (EA) to the Department of Water and Sanitation for Phase 2 of the Mokolo and Crocodile River (West) Water Augmentation Project (MCWAP-2A Project). The decision confirms the project's need to provide water infrastructure for power stations and urban use in the Waterberg region.

The Department of Environmental Affairs of the Republic of South Africa has granted an integrated environmental authorisation to Newshelf 1282 (Pty) Ltd for the establishment of the 1200MW coal-fired IPP Thabametsi Power Station and associated infrastructure near Lephalale in the Limpopo Province.

The Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment of South Africa has set aside a Provisional Atmospheric Emission Licence (PAEL) issued to Thabametsi Power Company (Pty) Ltd on 14 February 2019. The decision was based on the fact that the PAEL was linked to an Environmental Authorisation (EA) for the Thabametsi Coal-Fired Power Plant, which had been set aside and declared null and void by a court agreement on 19 November 2020.

A Provisional Atmospheric Emission License issued on 31 March 2015 by the Limpopo Provincial Government to Eskom for the Matimba Power Station, authorizing electricity generation via solid fuel combustion and associated storage activities until 01 April 2020.

This report details the methodology and emissions inventory used for an air pollution health risk analysis concerning the existing Matimba Power Station and the proposed Project Alpha Power Station in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. It describes the use of CALMET and CALPUFF dispersion models to simulate pollutant concentrations and the subsequent application of dose-response relationships to estimate health risks, specifically total non-accidental mortality and respiratory hospital admissions.

This report by the Public Affairs Research Institute examines the Lephalale Local Municipality's efforts to transition into a post-apartheid city while grappling with a legacy of private land and infrastructure ownership. It details how the construction of the Medupi power station triggered a population boom that overwhelmed the municipality's limited capacity, leading to infrastructure failure and the growth of informal settlements. The document highlights the municipality's dependence on corporate entities like Exxaro and Eskom for basic services and the role of the Lephalale Development Forum (LDF) as a parallel, business-funded governance structure.

This report examines land-use management in the Lephalale Local Municipality, focusing on the challenges of a municipality that owns almost no land within its urban edge. It details the municipality's strategies for land acquisition, the provision of integrated human settlements, and the incremental introduction of land-use schemes in rural areas under traditional authorities, specifically the Seleka Traditional Authority. The document highlights the influence of major mining and energy companies, the impact of the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act (SPLUMA), and the complexities of intergovernmental relations.

This brochure describes the Public Affairs Research Institute (PARI), a Johannesburg-based African research institute founded in May 2010. PARI focuses on research into constraints to effective governance, institutional design, and state-society relations to promote equitable policies and reduce poverty and inequality in South Africa and the global South.