Question NW2142 to the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment
25 September 2020 - NW2142
Winkler, Ms HS to ask the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment
What (a) are the reasons that KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) has not submitted an Air Quality Management Plan (AQMP), (b) is the deadline for submission of KZN’s AQMP, (c) is de air quality management plan being used in KZN in the absence of an AQMP and (d) are the reasons that (i) many of the air quality monitoring stations are in KZN and (ii) then is no monitoring for PM2.5 and PM10 in other province, as per regulations in accordance with the National Environment Management: Air Quality Act, 2004 (Act No. 39 of 2004)?
Reply:
a). To address capacity challenges in the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province, the Air Quality Management Office was re-established in July 2020, with the appointment of a Director who will be responsible for Air Quality Management. In addition, an official was transferred horn the national Department B work in the Province. The process to develop the Air Quality Management Plan (AQMP) has been initiated by the Province.
(b). The Act does not explicitly state a deadline for the submis9ion of an AQMP. However, it was expected that when the Act was promulgated, all spheres of government would develop or initiate the process B draft their AQMPs.
©. In the absence of an AQMP, KZN is implementing the current air quality national legislation, i.e. Air Quality Act and the associated regulations.
(d)(i) Ambient monitoring is conducted by all sphere of government and there are a fair number of monitoring stations that are located in KZN. Of the 136 government-owned ambient air quality monitoring stations across the country, 25 of these are located in KZN province (the province has 5 stations under its control, eThekwini Metropolitan has 14 stations, the City of uMhlathuze has 3 stations and Msunduzi local municipality has 3 stations).
(ii). All spheres of government have comprehensive air quality monitoring of PM10 and PM2.5 across the country, as per regulations in accordance with the National Environment Management: Air Quality Act, 2004 (Act No. 39 of 2004). Of the 136 government-owned monitoring stations, nearly all of them monitor PM10. The monitoring of PM2.5 is still confined to the national priority areas and metropolitan municipalities, as the ambient monitoring standard for the pollutant was promulgated years after stations had been commissioned. However, the number of stations monitoring PM2.5 was significantly increased in 2016 through a national project initiated by the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries. As part of this initiative, 20 dual PM10PM2.5 monitors were rolled out into the national monitoring network to support municipal stations that were missing such Pm10/PM2.5 monitors, or had old monitors that needed to be replaced.