Consideration of Negotiating Mandates on National Environmental Management: Air Quality Bill & Environment Conservation Amendmen

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SELECT COMMITTEE ON LAND AND ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS

SELECT COMMITTEE ON LAND AND ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS
18 November 2003
CONSIDERATION OF NEGOTIATING MANDATES ON NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT: AIR QUALITY BILL AND ENVIRONMENT CONSERVATION AMENDMENT BILL

Chairperson:
Rev P Moatse

Documents handed out:
National Environmental Management: Air Quality Bill [B62-3003]
Negotiating Mandates on National Environmental Management: Air Quality Bill(document awaited)
Environment Conservation Management Bill [B45B-3003]
Negotiating Mandates on Environment Conservation Management Bill (Hard copies available on request)

SUMMARY
The Committee considered Negotiating Mandates from provinces on the National Environmental Management Air Quality Bill and the Environment Conservation Management Bill. The former Bill elicited greater comment. The fact that the Gauteng province presented contradictory mandates on the National Environmental Management Air caused concern to the Committee. The Northern Cape was also unable to submit mandates on either of the Bills timeously due to logistical problems. The Chair however generally impressed by the inputs that were made on both the Bills.

MINUTES

National Environmental Management: Air Quality Bill

Eastern Cape Legislature
The principal and material substance of the Bill was accepted with no proposed amendments.

Ms N Dlulane (ANC, EC) noted that concerns were raised over the funding of the implementation of the Bill. The Committee noted this concern.

Free State Legislature
It was proposed that the Bill be accepted as amended.

Clause 1
Rev M Chabaku (ANC, FS) proposed the the deletion of paragraph 2 from line 47 on page 5.

Mr B Mabulane, Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT), reacted that the provision had been included in the Bill as a safety net.

The Committee agreed that the provision should remain as it appeared in the Bill.

The Department and the Committee also accepted proposed amendments to Clauses 12 and 19.

Gauteng Legislature
Dr E Conroy (NNP,Gauteng) informed the Committee that his Legislature supported the principle and detail of the Bill. He had however received telephonic instructions from the MEC of Gauteng to abstain from supporting or rejecting the Bill.

The Chair noted that there seemed to be a contradiction in the stance of Gauteng. The Chair emphasised that negotiating mandates should be written and that a verbal mandate was unacceptable. Mr M Sulliman (ANC, NC) agreed.

The Chair said that he would have to refer the matter to the Presiding Officer of the NCOP. He asked Dr Conroy to take a stance as to which mandate he wished to submit, the written one of the standing Committee of the provincial legislature or the verbal alternative communicated to him by the MEC of Gauteng.

Dr Conroy submitted the written mandate.

The Chair said that he was overjoyed that Gauteng supported the Bill.

Kwazulu-Natal Legislature
Mr Bhengu (ANC, KZN) said that the Bill was supported with proposed amendments.

Amendments were proposed to Clauses 18, 19 and 20 as a whole.Their problem was that in many instances, pollution occurred over two or more provinces. MEC's would then have to work jointly to approve an air quality management plan for that area. The concern was that no mechanism was in place to facilitate such co-operation.
Mr Bhengu raised a further concern that air quality management plans would not be uniformly applied across the Republic, given that each province could formulate their own regulations.

Professor Klazevsky (DEAT) pointed out that pollution knew no boundaries. The relevant provisions did in fact deal with co-operation across provinces.

Rev Chabaku emphasised that the aim of the provisions was co-operative governance.

The Committee agreed that the clauses should remain unchanged.

A grammatical change was proposed to Clause 22, to which the Committee agreed.

Limpopo Legislature
The Bill was supported in its entirety.

Mpumalanga Legislature
The Chair presented the mandate to the Committee as no representative was able to attend the meeting.
The Bill was supported with proposed amendments.

The Chair said that concerns had been raised over Clause 33 in that it excluded municipalities.
He asked the Department to comment.

Mr Mabulane replied that Clause 33 in no way excluded municipalities.

The Committee agreed to leave the clause unaltered.

North- West Province Legislature
The essence and principle of the Bill was supported.

Western Cape Legislature
The Bill was supported with a proposed amendment.

Clause 9
It was proposed that the word, "must" should replace "may" in line 52 on page 7.

The Department and the Committee accepted the amendment.

Northern Cape Legislature
Mr Sulliman apologised to the Committee for not having a mandate. He explained that he had in vain tried to contact members of the Legislature's Standing Committee to elicit a mandate from them.

Environment Conservation Amendment Bill

Eastern Cape Legislature
The Bill was supported in its entirety without any amendments.

Free State Legislature
Clause 1
Rev Chabaku proposed that the words "ask for" in line 20, page 2 be replaced with "require". A representative from the State Law Advisers office pointed out that "ask for" and " require" had the same meaning in an English dictionary. Prof Klazevsky supported Mr Chabaku's proposal, as did Dr Conroy and Mr Sulliman. The proposal was accepted.

Rev Chabaku asked what constituted a "reasonable period" in line 4 on page 3.

Mr R Nyakane (NNP, NP) proposed that the term "reasonable time" be used as an alternative. The Department and the Committee agreed.

Other than the proposed amendments, the Bill was supported in its entirety.

Gauteng Legislature
Dr Conroy noted that the Bill was accepted in its entirety.

Kwazulu-Natal Legislature
The Bill was supported without any amendments.

Limpopo Legislature
Mr Nyakane said that the Bill was supported without any amendments.

Mpumalanga Legislature
The proposal was made that Clause 3 be redrafted so that it would not be required of the Minister to table regulations in the NA or the NCOP for consideration and approval. The Department responded that the proposal had merit. The Bill was supported subject to the acceptance of the previously mentioned proposal.

North West Legislature
This province reiterated the proposal made by Mpumalanga relating to Clause3, but with different wording.
Prof Klazevsky once again noted the merit of the proposal and accepted it. The State Law Advisers also supported the proposal subject to a minor wording change. The Committee agreed.

Western Cape Legislature
The Bill was supported without any amendments.

Northern Cape Legislature
Mr Sulliman once again apologised for not having a mandate.

The Chair was impressed by the proposals that had been made on both of the Bills and said he hoped the process to be as meaningful during the final voting on the Bill.

The Chair adjourned the meeting.

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