When the National Environmental Management: Waste Act No. 59 (NEMWA) was first published in 2008, the Act included the provision that the Minister could call for facilities which operated prior to the coming into force of the NEMWA, to apply for a NEMWA Waste Management Licence (WML).
The purpose of the provision was so that at some stage subsequent to 1989, the Minister could utilize this call for licensing of older facilities as a means of verifying whether the facilities are operating according to more recent best practice and design requirements for adverse environmental impact avoidance.
The call for licensing also enables the Minister to obtain current and correct details of the facilities – their operators, their location, their activities; and to include these older facilities in the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE)’s various databases created after promulgation of the NEMWA: lists of licensed facilities; facilities needing to register in terms of certain Norms and Standards; facilities that need to report their quantities of waste managed per period and so on.
The Minister has now called by publication of a Notice, for these older facilities to apply for a WML; and has also published Regulations governing the procedure to be followed for such applications. The Notice and the Regulation will be available on our website from 13th January onwards: https://enviroprac.co.za/documents/
The application process entails the completion of forms published by the DFFE; and the compilation by an independent environmental specialist of:
- A Pollution Assessment Report (PAR), detailing the pollution and degradation caused by the applicant’s activities; and
- An Environmental Management Programme (EMPr) containing measures aimed at minimizing, controlling and remediating as needed, all identified impacts.
The application should also be subjected to public participation for at least 30 days. Public participation should entail the publication of details of the WML application and of the facility and the waste management activities being undertaken, in two newspapers covering the area. In addition, site notices should also be erected at the facility entrance, and relevant Organs of State directly notified, with details of the application and facility and activities.
Should the facility have any history of neighbour complaints, we strongly recommend that additional, best-practice public participation activities are also followed, e.g. notices on boards at local municipal venues, letters or emails to neighbours, local community focus group or public meetings, etc.
The DFFE will review the PAR, EMPr, Public Participation Record and application forms, and decide whether to issue the facility with a WML. The DFFE’s decision is appealable.
With our excellent track record of independent, thorough management of environmental applications, including with activities relating to waste management and with contamination potential, we are well positioned to assist those who are required to undertake the WML application process. Feel free to contact us for further information and assistance.
Contact Us Today!
Colleen McCreadie | 021 788 9323 | 083 695 1664 colleen@enviroprac.co.za
Lauren Elston | 021 788 9323 | 071 992 2341 lauren@enviroprac.co.za
