Mpumalanga residents' complaints about Sasol will be investigated by the portfolio committee on forestry, fisheries and the environment, says acting chair Nqabisa Gantsho.Residents of Mpumalanga's Gert Sibande district municipality are concerned about greenhouse gas emissions from a local petrochemical plant and a number of coal-fired power stations.
This is according to the parliamentary portfolio committee on forestry, fisheries and the environment which on Friday held the first leg of three-day public hearings on the Climate Change Bill there. The power stations and the Sasol plant in Secunda are reportedly among the biggest contributors to air pollution in the province and country, the committee said.
“The aim of the hearings is to solicit citizens' views on draft legislation which seeks to enable the development of an effective climate change response and a long-term, just transition to a low-carbon and climate-resilient economy and society for South Africa in the context of sustainable development,” said spokesperson Sakhile Mokoena.
“Those who support the bill hope that, when passed into law, it will help enforce carbon tax on the big polluters of the environment and impose fines on mining companies that fail to close the holes and rehabilitate the land after extracting minerals.
Stop the nonsense