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annexure-a-daad896e9aecda78.pdf
The Legal Resources Centre (LRC), representing a coalition of civil society, labour, and community organisations, submitted a series of formal requests to the South African Parliament and Presidency between March 2014 and February 2015. The LRC challenged the constitutionality of the Mining and Petroleum Resources Development Amendment Bill (MPRDAB) and the Restitution of Land Rights Amendment Bill, arguing that the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) and provincial legislatures failed to facilitate reasonable public participation. The documents detail specific concerns regarding the removal of community participation rights in mining, the discretionary nature of water use licenses, and the influence of industry lobbying over legislative changes.
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Document type: Statement
annexure-b-1-ae05ca5f3c13a16f.pdf
A letter from the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) to the South African Minister of Health, requesting the Department of Health's participation in the Highveld Priority Area (HPA) Multi-Stakeholder Reference Group meetings to address the severe health impacts of air pollution.
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Document type: Statement
KM_C554e-20190117115611
This report provides a risk and vulnerability assessment of water resources in the Limpopo Water Management Area (WMA) of South Africa. It analyzes current water resource stresses, observed and projected climate trends, and the resulting vulnerabilities to ensure sustainable water management.
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Document type: Report
annexure-ra7-part-1-of-2-695326620eb9351d.pdf
The 'Mining and Biodiversity Guideline: Mainstreaming biodiversity into the mining sector' (2013) is a practical manual designed to help the South African mining industry, regulators, and practitioners integrate biodiversity considerations into the entire mining life cycle, from reconnaissance to closure. It aims to balance economic growth from mineral wealth with the conservation of South Africa's megadiverse ecosystems by providing a risk-based approach to land-use planning and impact management.
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Document type: Guide
annexure-ra7-part-2-of-d30f1165fbad3b3e.pdf
This guide provides a framework for integrating biodiversity and ecosystem services into the mining life cycle in South Africa. It details the application of the mitigation hierarchy—avoidance, minimisation, rehabilitation, and offsetting—across various stages of mining, from reconnaissance to decommissioning and closure. The document emphasizes the role of Environmental Management Programmes (EMPs) and the necessity of robust financial provision for environmental remediation, particularly when operating in biodiversity priority areas.
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Document type: Guide
annexure-ww1-a0adf528d3d0551f.pdf
This document consists of a series of letters and annexures sent between April and August 2020 by the South African Water Caucus (SAWC), represented by the Centre for Environmental Rights, to various South African government officials. The correspondence urgently requests the provision of water tanks, reliable water supply, and sanitation packs for numerous communities across South Africa that lack basic water access, highlighting the increased health risks during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Document type: Statement
00206BBA608D200323172733
A statement from the South African Department of Environmental Affairs granting ArcelorMittal South Africa Limited (Pretoria Steel Works) a suspension of compliance time-frames for certain minimum emission standards under the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act 39 of 2004 for the period from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2030.
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Document type: Statement
00206BBA608D200323175100
A decision letter from the South African Department of Environmental Affairs to the Sedibeng District Municipality regarding the application by ArcelorMittal South Africa Limited (Vanderbijlpark Steel Works) for alternative emission limits or postponed compliance time-frames under the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act 39 of 2004.
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Document type: Statement
b-confirmatory-affidavit-thomas-mnguni-complete-1f7d4f6a6cca4356.pdf
This document is a confirmatory affidavit signed by Thomas Mnguni, a Community Campaigner for the non-profit organisation groundWork, in support of a legal matter involving environmental justice movements and various South African government ministers and officials.
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Document type: Statement
Mining and your Community: Know your Environmental Rights
This guide, produced by the Centre for Environmental Rights and Lawyers for Human Rights, provides information for communities and individuals in South Africa on their environmental and legal rights when facing proposed mining activities. It details the mandatory government permissions, consultation processes, and legal avenues available to affected parties to protect their land, water, and health.
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Document type: Guide
DEVELOPMENT, HEALTH AND WELL-BEING DEPEND ON WATER
This guide by the Centre for Environmental Rights outlines the critical importance of South Africa's 22 water source areas (WSAs), which provide 50% of the country's surface run-off despite covering only 8% of the land. The document details the threats facing these areas—including mining, agriculture, and climate change—and proposes a 'legal toolbox' of statutory mechanisms to protect these essential ecological infrastructures.
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Document type: Guide
Health impacts of Eskomʼs non-compliance with minimum emissions standards
This report analyzes the public health and economic consequences of Eskom's failure to comply with South Africa's Minimum Emissions Standards (MES). It compares various compliance scenarios, concluding that Eskom's current retrofit plan provides minimal health benefits due to a failure to address sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions, and that full compliance or the adoption of Best Available Technology (BAT) would significantly reduce premature deaths and economic losses.
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Document type: Report
ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE MONITORING AND ENFORCEMENT AT MINES: THE DEPARTMENT OF MINERAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY’S PERFORMANCE DURING THE FINANCIAL YEARS 2017 TO 31 MARCH 2019
This report by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) evaluates the environmental compliance monitoring and enforcement (CME) performance of the South African Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) between the 2017/18 and 2018/19 financial years. Based on information obtained via the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA), the CER concludes that the DMRE's capacity to monitor and enforce environmental laws at mines remains "woefully inadequate," citing a severe shortage of qualified inspectors and a general decline in inspection activity across most provinces.
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Document type: Report
MANUAL ISSUED IN TERMS OF SECTION 14 OF THE PROMOTION OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION ACT, 2000 (ACT NO 2 OF 2000)
This document is a PAIA Manual issued by the South African Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE). It provides a comprehensive guide for the public on how to exercise their constitutional right of access to information held by the Department, in accordance with the Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000 (PAIA) and the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA).
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Document type: Guide
MANUAL ISSUED IN TERMS OF SECTION 14 OF THE PROMOTION OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION ACT, 2000 (ACT NO 2 OF 2000)
This document is a PAIA Manual issued by the South African Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE). It serves as a guide for the public to exercise their constitutional right of access to information held by the Department, detailing the types of records available, the process for requesting them, and the protections afforded to personal information under the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA).
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Document type: Guide
fa72-report-prepared-by-sasol-infrachem-dated-april-2014-96a1d5f3cba39bb0.pdf
This April 2014 report is a draft motivation by Sasol Infrachem for exemption from the default application of certain Minimum Emissions Standards (MES) published in Government Notice No. 893 (GN 893) under the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act (NEMAQA). Sasol Infrachem argues that strict compliance with certain existing and new plant standards is technically or financially unachievable for specific point sources at its Sasolburg complex. The document proposes alternative emissions limits as license conditions and provides an Atmospheric Impact Report (AIR) to demonstrate that these alternatives maintain ambient air quality within National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS).
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Document type: Report
KMBT_754-20201120142850
The Equal Education Law Centre (EELC) submitted this supporting affidavit to the High Court of South Africa to be admitted as an amicus curiae in a case involving a water use licence for a proposed coal mine. The EELC argues that the second respondent's attempt to seek punitive costs against public interest lawyers creates a "chilling effect" that discourages the representation of marginalised actors and threatens access to justice.
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Document type: Statement
impact-assessment-implementation-regulations-794d4b2c1ded80a0.pdf
This 2019 Phase 1 Initial Impact Assessment, produced by the Department of Environment Forestry and Fisheries (DEFF) for the South African Presidency's Socio-Economic Impact Assessment System (SEIAS), evaluates the need for regulations to enforce Air Quality Management Plans (AQMPs) in three priority areas. The document identifies a failure to meet National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) due to ineffective AQMP implementation and a lack of accountability for non-industrial stakeholders.
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Document type: Report
MASHALA – FERREIRA MINE, ERMELO
This case study examines the legal and environmental disputes surrounding the Ferreira mine (also known as the Penumbra mine), operated by Mashala Resources (Pty) Ltd in Ermelo, Mpumalanga. The document details allegations of illegal mining, failure to obtain necessary water and environmental licenses, and the provision of misleading information in regulatory applications, alongside conflicts over land access and compensation for adjacent landowners.
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Document type: Case study
matimba-health-risk-assessment_8-64d754a8a3e40115.pdf
This report, prepared by INFOTOX (Pty) Ltd for Eskom Holdings, evaluates the confidence levels and uncertainties associated with the health risk assessment of particulate matter (PM10), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions from Eskom operations. It concludes that risk quantifications based on mortality and particulate matter are more reliable than those based on hospitalisation and gaseous pollutants.
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Document type: Report