K Mosunkutu: Sustainable Use of Environment open day

14 June 2007

Programme director
Executive Mayor of the host Metropolitan Council: Councillor Duma Nkosi (in
absentia)
Councillors present
Head of Department: Dr Steven Cornelius
Officials from the department and other spheres of government
Representatives of the business community, non-governmental and community-based
organisations
Representatives of various communities
Invited guests
Ladies and gentlemen

I am truly delighted to be in this gathering with you all and to partake in
the exchange of ideas and perceptions on what has necessitated our coming
together.

It is my hope that the business community has found it important to be here
not necessarily because of legislated punitive measures that may be a
consequence of certain actions.

Similarly, I hope that environmental activists present here have found it
important to join us not because of ideological persuasion alone. It certainly
will be most encouraging to also hear that, together with representatives of
the disadvantaged communities, we all are here out of realisation that
continued mismanagement of the environment is a threat to all our sectoral
interests and to our wellbeing.

Certainly, continued degradation of the environment out of convenience and
because of wanting to cut corners to save a few thousand rands, thereby
increasing the bottom-line will, in the long run, threaten the very basic
ingredients that make the enterprise flourish. Likewise, communities who dump
rubbish on our rivers and contribute to deforestation and destruction of flora
are effectively exhausting the very natural resources that regulate the climate
and provide wood for energy and parks for recreation, as another example.

Friends and colleagues, it is not a myth that the environment is a natural
provider of services that allows life itself and contributes to social and
economic development � to civilization as we know it. It may, to many people,
seem that the business of protection and sustainable use of our natural
resource is a distant issue far removed from the reality of the poverty and
stress of daily living. The reality, however, is that the business of
protecting and promoting sustainable use of our natural resource base, has
everything to do with conditions of poverty and social deprivation. It has
everything to do with sustainable economic development.

We will not achieve environmental sustainability without eradicating
poverty, and we will not eradicate poverty without striving for environmental
sustainability. If we are to "meet the needs of present generations without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs", then
we must focus on not only the conservation and management of our natural
resources, but also the social and economic dimensions of development.

Similarly, the economic activities that are the basis of the 'better life'
that we are pursuing for ourselves and which we wish to bequeath to our
children can only be sustainable if they are environmentally sustainable.
Economic growth is essential in Gauteng, as is the development of
infrastructure.

If we allow our factories and our vehicles to pollute air, our children will
not be able to breathe. If we build houses so that we lose our wetlands and
also lose our natural capacity to manage flooding, and clean our water, we are
compromising the very substance of life. If we build roads in places where the
last surviving members of a plant or animal species exist, we lose the richness
of our biodiversity and irreplaceable genetic material.

If we wastefully consume non-renewable resources of the earth � those that
cannot be replenished but can be used until they are completely depleted � what
are we leaving to sustain a better life in the future? If we consume energy and
water carelessly with no thought for the future, what do we leave for our
children? So, environmental concerns are inseparable from social and economic
concerns, and must be integrated into sustainable development practices that
make a better life for our people, particularly the poor.

We all perhaps are aware that Gauteng is South Africa�s economic powerhouse,
with its economic growth and output outstripping the rest of the country. This
however comes at cost to the environment. Our last State of Environment Report
(SOER) showed that rapid growth and urbanisation, places a strain on our
natural environment resulting in negative impacts such as:

* an increase in the housing backlog
* degradation of environment.

The report further noted that:

* The long-term effects of pollutants, and rapid land transformation
potentially pose a threat to optimal agricultural production, and potentially a
decline in the contribution of agriculture to the Gross Geographic
Product.
* Although surface water quality was generally good, there was a notable
decrease in quality, in terms of salinity and faecal coliform from 1999 to
2003.
* Land use continued to be unsustainably structured. Density was inversely
related to adequate service provision. That the urban poor were isolated from
urban opportunities and had to spend large amounts of their income and time
commuting to the areas of employment.
* Due to the high population density, high concentration of industries, large
vehicle population, air quality in specific areas was poor and that there was a
very stable and well-defined level inversion layer during winter, which in
combination, resulted in very high levels of pollution during the winter
months, and that there was a deterioration in visibility and aesthetic
landscape quality of the Province, particularly in winter due to the inversion
conditions.
* Habitat destruction/transformation and fragmentation through urbanisation was
the most serious threat posed to the survival of threatened plants of Gauteng.
Habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation also represent the greatest threats
to threatened bird, mammal, reptile, amphibian and invertebrate species in
Gauteng.
* Efficient and adequate waste management was a serious problem in the
province.

All of this occurs within a particular background. As a Provincial
Government, we have identified guiding objectives to help attain our goal of a
better life for all. These focus on sustainable economic growth and job
creation. They focus also on poverty alleviation and building sustainable
communities. We also are committed to the realisation of the constitutional
rights of our people, including ensuring that the environment is managed in a
manner that does not pose a threat to the health and well-being of all our
people and the future generation.

At the beginning of my brief input, I suggested that we all are brought to
this meeting by various needs. I also painted a scenario that suggests that
there exists a golden thread that connects our various needs. Please, let us
bear this as we continue with our deliberations. Let us examine how best can we
co-operate and allow our various interests to also co-exist
non-antagonistically.

I thank you.

Issued by: Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Environment, Gauteng
Provincial Government
14 June 2007