Note to Editors: Attached please find a soundbite in English by Jade Miller here.
The Gauteng Legislature’s Pollution Summit highlighted a concerning reality: the systems intended to monitor, manage and reduce air pollution are struggling with inadequate funding, staff shortages, failing infrastructure and weak enforcement.
The Gauteng Department of Health told the summit that poor air quality can contribute to respiratory infections, asthma, chronic respiratory disease, cardiovascular conditions, reduced lung function and premature mortality. Children, pregnant women, older people and communities living close to industrial, mining and high-traffic areas are particularly vulnerable.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) Gauteng calls for a more collaborative approach to environmental governance. Provincial and local government must work together while actively involving civil society, NGOs, environmental experts and communities in developing and implementing solutions.
Tshwane’s Air Quality Management Section has only three of its 13 approved posts filled, and reported monitoring stations are not operational. Johannesburg identified ageing monitoring infrastructure, budget constraints and staff-capacity problems, while Ekurhuleni reported equipment faults, power problems and maintenance constraints affecting its monitoring network.
Many of the problems identified at the summit relate to declining basic service delivery. Poor refuse collection contributes to illegal dumping and waste burning. Poorly managed landfill sites create further pollution risks. Environmental departments without sufficient funding and appropriately trained officials struggle to monitor pollution and enforce legislation.
NGOs, environmental organisations, experts and other stakeholders brought considerable knowledge, experience and practical ideas to the discussion. It was therefore particularly disappointing that the Gauteng Department of Environment, despite being on the programme and having committed to present, did not attend on Saturday. All Gauteng municipalities were invited to participate, yet only the three metropolitan municipalities and Emfuleni attended.
Attendance at a summit alone will not solve Gauteng’s pollution problems. However, failing to participate in a forum specifically intended to identify problems, share solutions and coordinate action raises serious questions about the commitment to finding solutions.
Government cannot solve Gauteng’s environmental problems alone, and expertise should not be lost when the summit ends.
Proposals included strengthening the training and capacity of Environmental Management Inspectors (EMIs), improving environmental enforcement and considering dedicated environmental courts or similar mechanisms to deal more effectively with environmental offences.
In Gauteng, there is no shortage of expertise, ideas, or people willing to contribute. What is needed now is the collaboration, resources, and implementation required to turn those ideas into cleaner communities and cleaner air for Gauteng residents.
A DA-led Gauteng provincial government will prioritise the budget to fill vacant posts and the infrastructure needed to fight pollution. We will also urgently implement measures to prevent pollution and work with different stakeholders in the sector.