A short while back you helped us deliver a massive petition to block Eskom’s attempts at dodging pollution legislation in South Africa. While waiting to hear news on that we’ve come across something very interesting. I think its pretty big news. Late last year Eskom requested permission to relax its pollution limits at the Kriel coal power station – basically they wanted the green light to pollute more. We made a submission to challenge this (along with the Centre for Environmental Rights). We argued that Eskom had overlooked the full impacts the pollution would cause, and that changing the emission license would have significant impacts on people’s health and the environment. We’ve just heard the very good news that the Nkangala District Municipality has rejected almost all of Eskom’s application. Hats off to the municipality – their decision will have a very positive impact on local residents and the environment in the area. The bottom line is that nobody should have a free ticket to pollute in South Africa. Hopefully the National Air Quality Officer shows a similar commitment to protecting people’s health and the environment when she makes the decision on Eskom’s broader application that you participated in. Also in the news this week: the World Health Organisation has found that every year air pollution is responsible for one in eight deaths globally. That’s massive – and just one more reason why Eskom can’t be let off the hook for their unbelievably high pollution levels.
Posted on: Wed, 26 Mar 2014 14:18:50 +0000