The Environmental Management Inspectorate (EMI), popularly referred to as the Green Scorpions, will this week conduct National Environmental Law Compliance inspections in Mpumalanga province from 17 to 21 January 2011.
The inspections will take place in Eskom Komati Asbestos site, N4 Ring road, Eskom-Camden Substation and the transmission line between Duvha power station and Janus substation. They will also be covering the following facilities outside the Mpumalanga Province, i.e Vissershok- EnviroServ facility (Western Cape) and Polokwane Smelter in Limpopo.
The main objectives of the campaign are:to monitor adherence to conditions stipulated in Environmental Authorisations; Environmental Management Plans and Waste Management Licenses as well as to improve the general status of compliance within the regulated community through taking appropriate enforcement actions in the event of non-compliance.
The Green Scorpions inspected five Eskom projects in Limpopo and they made the following preliminary findings: In Lephalale wherein Eskom is authorised to carry out the construction of the Medupi Coal Power Station and associated structures as well as the construction of raw water reservoirs and the associated pipelines for the power station, the projects are progressing quite well and the compliance status is generally satisfactory. The alignment and the construction of a portion of the Afguns roads as well as the construction of the telecommunication mast in the vicinity of Medupi power station, the two projects have been completed and the compliance status is also satisfactory. In the construction of Medupi-Marang 400kv powerline, the inspection team found that Eskom is not complying with certain conditions of the Environmental Management Plan.
The Green Scorpions inspected other facilities outside Limpopo and in the construction of an optical fibre network project by Neotel from Germiston to Cato Ridge in the Gauteng through Free State to Kwazulu-Natal Province, the project is underway and the EMI’s found that in river crossing and abstraction of water from the water course are carried out without the required permits. Furthermore, the rehabilitation plan for the project has not been developed and Neotel is also not complying with certain conditions of the Environmental Management Plan.
All non-compliances detected during the inspections are currently being reviewed and will be met with appropriate enforcement action where necessary.
Members of the public are urged to report environmental transgressions to 0800 205 005.
Enquiries:
Roopa Singh
Cell:082 225 3076
Moses Randitsheni
Cell: 082 448 2450
