At the beginning of the weekend, a South African court accepted campaigners’ claim that poor air quality in the coal belt violates constitutional rights, giving the environment minister a year to implement a ten-year-old clean air plan.
The coal belt of South Africa, located east of Pretoria and Johannesburg, is home to an estimated 3.6 million people as well as a dozen Eskom coal-fired power units and several Sasol petrochemical factories.
Environment Minister Barbara Creecy’s spokeswoman said she is aware of the court’s decision and will research it before making a response.
Activists, scientists, and physicians have contended that excessive levels of air pollution in the area are directly causing an outbreak of respiratory ailments. David Boyd, the United Nations’ special rapporteur on human rights and the environment, submitted a statement in support of the case.
According to a study conducted for the state-owned Council for Scientific and Industrial Research in 2019, more than 5,000 South Africans die each year in the coal belt as a result of the government’s failure to fully enforce its own air quality standards, and a quarter of households have children with asthma. find out more
Creecy has a legal obligation to develop laws that enforce the government plan for cleaner air, which was put up in 2012 but has yet to be implemented, according to the High Court in Pretoria.
“The Minister has unreasonably delayed in developing and implementing rules to give effect to the… plan,” the ruling stated, adding that “the Minister is instructed, within 12 months of this order, to… prescribe regulations… and enforce (them).”
The minister stated in her court filing that, while air pollution in the coal area was a concern, using the constitution to attempt to compel the minister’s hand violated the separation of powers, which the court rejected.
The government would be forced to take harder measures against large polluters like liquid fuel manufacturer Sasol (SOLJ.J) and state power firm Eskom, which is already drowning in debt and trying to keep the lights on.
Eskom and Sasol representatives did not immediately reply to demands for comment.
South Africa’s coal industry, the world’s fifth largest, employs 90,000 miners, generates 80% of the country’s power, and provides feedstock for nearly a quarter of the country’s liquid fuel for cars, all at a time when unemployment is at an all-time high and blackouts are common.
