Chairperson of the NCOP, the natural systems that support economies, lives and livelihoods across the planet are at risk of rapid degradation and collapse unless there is swift, radical and creative action to conserve and sustainably use the variety of life on earth.
That is the principal conclusion of a major new assessment of the current state of biodiversity and the implications of its continued loss for human wellbeing. This statement was taken from the United Nations Global Biodiversity Outlook, UNGBO, which was released on 10 May 2010.
Hon comrades and Minister, the news is clear: Our environment is in serious trouble, and we need to act now if we are to secure a safe and healthy environment for our children.
Minister, your department, the Department of Environmental Affairs, is at the forefront of service supervision. The constitutional right to a healthy environment and to safe drinking water is your mandate, and ensuring that our communities have access to these rights is vital in ensuring that this administration provides what we promised the people.
South Africa's environment is fast deteriorating. Currently, we are ranked among the world's 20 biggest greenhouse gas emitters. The Minister's drive for a new climate change programme within the Budget Vote of Environmental Affairs is supported. This is indeed necessary, considering the ongoing and anticipated negative consequences of climate change for South Africa, especially for the agricultural, environmental and water sectors.
This will ensure South Africa has an effective national mitigation and adaptation response to climate change. Food security and access to water are policy priorities of our administration, and the mandate of the department to facilitate this is paramount. The select committee will be monitoring this programme carefully, as there's a large budget allocation provided in this area, but no clear road map on implementation.
The other key strategic priorities of the Budget Vote are in line with the department's vision of creating a prosperous and equitable society living in harmony with the natural environment. This policy's priorities imply that a budget and efforts are dedicated to the protection, conservation and enhancement of environmental assets and natural and heritage resource to ensure a sustainable, healthy environment.
It contributes to sustainable economic growth, livelihoods and social cohesion by providing leadership on climate change action and promoting skills development and employment creation by facilitating green and inclusive economic growth to create a better Africa and a better world by enhancing national environmental interests through a global sustainable development agenda.
Although there has been a slight increase in the budget allocation for this financial year, this allocation is minimal when it comes to implementing the environment mandate, especially when it comes to the implementation of the new legislation that this Parliament has passed recently. Minister, we are really concerned about the inadequate budget in this regard.
Other areas of concern that the department needs to focus its attention on include water and air pollution; waste management; management of natural resources; water quality and availability; health of the aquatic ecosystem; destruction of wetlands; water to sustain the national environment; and provision of services such as purification.
Coastal development and overexploitation of natural resources from the ocean and coastal zone threaten the environment, as do mining activities.
Minister, I would like acknowledge the role you played during the Climate Change Summit 2009 in driving the negotiations and the progress made in drafting the Copenhagen Accord. The Minister and her team were excellent in keeping the South African delegation informed on the status of the negotiations and the challenges they were experiencing in the negotiations.
As part of the oversight on international agreements, the Select Committee on Land and Environmental Affairs was satisfied with the process the department followed as well as the wide consultation.
Minister, we are pleased that the department is in good hands under your leadership, and it is well managed by the director-general. You have illustrated this by receiving an unqualified report for the past year. The Select Committee on Land and Environmental Affairs fully supports Budget Vote 29 - Environmental Affairs.
I will now come to water affairs. Our President emphasised in his 2010 state of the nation address that South Africa is a water-scarce country and, as a result, our government intends to put in place measures to reduce by half unacceptably high water losses through leaking pipes and inadequate infrastructure by 2014.
Water is a unique commodity. It is not only a physical resource, but also a cultural and social resource, with great economic and political significance. Water is a crosscutting resource that poses critical risks to economic growth and the environment.
It is also becoming one of the most significant international issues, considering the fact that some rivers cross international political boundaries. The water sector in South Africa, as elsewhere, is grappling with the challenges of access and quality, combined with concerns about resource availability.
The concern about water conservation and protection, as articulated in the 2010 state of the nation address, is certainly not matched by the current Budget Vote commitment to the department. To have access to water is a basic human right, and the department has almost achieved most of the targets in this area. However, Minister, far too many of our rural communities are without water. Access to water, which is a basic human right, is not provided to all, and this, in turn, impacts on the country's productivity, since agriculture is affected when land lies fallow.
Within the context of budgetary constraints, the Select Committee on Land and Environmental Affairs supports your department's key policy priorities for the 2010-11 financial year.
The emphasis placed on contributing to effective economic and social development to ensure sustainable and equitable water resources management by promoting rural development; providing effective support to local government; ensuring meaningful contribution to global or international relations; and improving the department's capacity in delivering quality services, is vital in order to achieve your mandate.
The provision of effective support to all municipalities is critical in ensuring access to water and sanitation by all throughout the country, beginning with prioritised or poorly resourced municipalities. High- performing municipalities should share their success stories with underperforming municipalities, and build capacity in the process.
Furthermore, improving the department's capacity to deliver quality services involves improving the public understanding and evaluation of water by all, as well as the development of sustainable skills for the water sector. Suffice it to state that realising these preceding priorities of the department and the associated activities influenced the current budget allocation to the Departments of Water Affairs and Environmental Affairs.
Minister, your mandate of ensuring a sustainable environment and good water quality is a big task that requires a large budget; but constantly your department tries to do more with very little within this context and the priorities that you have identified. The Select Committee on Land and Environmental Affairs supports your budget. Thank you. [Applause.]