Chairperson, Deputy Minister, hon members, the National Environmental Management Act is now being amended to refine the integrated environmental management system in order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the system. The Bill proposes new enabling provisions that make it possible for environmental management instruments, other than environmental impact assessments, to be introduced.
The Bill also seeks to provide for agreement between organs of state in order to enable them to align regulatory processes. The Bill provides enabling provisions in order to allow a process, conducted in terms of another regulatory system, to be used as a basis for granting environmental authorisations in terms of the Act. The Bill again proposes that the integrated environmental authorisation may be issued where different Acts regulate the same activity or where multiple authorisations require a similar process.
In order to give effect to the general objectives of integrated environmental management, as laid down in this Act, the potential consequences for or impact on the environment of listed activities or specified activities must be considered, investigated, assessed and reported on to the competent authority.
Consultation between competent authorities and consideration of legislative compliance is important. The Minister or MEC may consult with any organ of state administering the legislation relating to any aspect of any activity that also requires environmental authorisation under this Act in order to co-ordinate the respective requirements of such legislation and to avoid duplication. The Minister or MEC, in giving effect to Chapter 3 of the Constitution and section 24(4)(a)(i) of this Act, may after consultation with the organ of state contemplated in subsection (1) enter into a written agreement with the organ of state in order to avoid duplication in the submission of information, or the carrying out of a process relating to any aspect of any activity that also requires environmental authorisation under this Act.
We are happy that there is an alignment of environmental authorisation in this Bill. If the carrying out of a listed activity or specific activity contemplated in section 24 is also regulated in terms of another law or a specific environmental management Act, the authority empowered under that other law or specific environmental management Act to authorise that an activity and the competent authority empowered under Chapter 5 to issue an environmental authorisation in respect of that activity, may exercise their respective powers jointly by issuing separate authorisation or an integrated environmental authorisation.
South Africa needs an effective environmental management programme that will speed up development in all sectors. The Minister of Minerals and Energy, MEC or identified competent authority may require the submission of an environmental management development programme before considering an application for an environmental authorisation. The environmental management development programme must contain information on any proposed management, mitigation, protection or measures that will be undertaken to address the environmental impact that has been identified in a report contemplated in subsection 24(1A), including environmental impacts in respect of planning and design, preconstruction and construction activities. The rehabilitation of the environment is extremely important.
The environmental management programme must set out time periods in which the measures contemplated in the environmental management programme must be implemented. It must also contain measures regulating responsibilities for any environmental damage, pollution, pumping and treatment of extraneous water or ecological degradation as a result of prospecting or mining operations. The applicant must inform his or her employees of any environmental risk which may result from their work and risks must be dealt with in order to avoid pollution or the degradation of the environment. We support the amending Bill. Thank you. [Applause.]