Last year, at the highly successful World Summit on Sustainable Development (W.S.S.D.), the torch of responsibility for sustainable development was passed to South Africa, for the next decade.
The Western Cape Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning team contributed substantially to the programmes of the World Summit, and gained valuable insights into the environmental world picture.
The creation in August last year of the new Department, by bringing together Environmental Affairs and Development Planning , brought about exciting new opportunities to improve service delivery, and to integrate the actions of the Environmental and Development Planning sectors.
We cannot really compare the total budget figures for 2003/2004 on a year-on-year basis, because of the above changes.
·The Department's budget for this financial year is divided under three programmes,
- Administration - R17,922 million
- Environmental Affairs - R85,311 million
- Development Planning - R19,449 million.
Total - R122,682 million
As part of the allocations before you, funds will be set aside to help train, and build the capacity of Municipalities, consultants and NGO's.
Since the 95 former municipal authorities were disbanded in 2000, to create 30 new Municipal councils, many have struggled. The Department's efforts to engage with them have met with varying degrees of success. Unfortunately, there is still a perception that Province is a "Big Brother" with final control over the actions of Municipalities.
I have written to the chairperson of the Standing Committee and I now appeal to all members to help expedite the enactment of the Western Cape Planning and Development Amendment Bill.
Dit sal die persepsie help aanspreek dat die Provinsie nuwe funksies, die sogenaamde "unfunded mandates", sonder die nodige befondsing, na die munisipaliteite wil afwentel.
Ek wil daarop wys dat in terme van die grondwet, Munisipale beplanning vierkantig op die terrein van die Munisipaliteite tuishoort.
Die feit dat bg. Wetsontwerp op Ontwikkelingsbeplanning nog nie geďmplemeteer is nie, het ook implikasies ten opsigte van sekere artikels van die huidige Ordonnansie op Grondgebruikbeplanning, 1985. Wysigings aan sekere artikels in die Ordonnansie word tans geprosesseer.
Wanneer die gewysigde Wet in werking tree, sal funksies soos die opheffing van beperkende titelvoorwaardes e.a., by die munisipaliteite geplaas word, waar die grondwet dit plaas.
Dit sal verdere druk op die kapasiteit van die Munisipaliteite plaas, en die Departement is gereed om so gou moontlik, gedetaileerde opleiding vir hulle aan te bied:
· Die gesamentlike begroting van Ontwikkelingsbeplanning en Omgewingsake vir Opleiding is R1,933 miljoen.
Die aantal aansoeke vir projekte wat deur die Department vir goedkeuring en/of kommentaar ontvang word, beloop tans ongeveer 4,000 per jaar:
3000 deur Omgewingsake en 1,000 deur Ontwikkelingsbeplanning.
A large proportion of the environmental applications fall under the "big 5" categories, namely:
To change land use from agriculture or undetermined, to any other use
For the construction or upgrading, and infrastructure associated with
Communications networks (other than telecommunications),
Public and private resorts , which includes hotels and resorts
Dams, levies or weirs which affect the flow of a river, and the
Transportation routes and structures, as well as the manufacturing, storage and handling of
Dangerous or hazardous substances , or those controlled by national legislation
There is a significant administrative burden attached to the current Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Regulations, with the result that we have experienced a backlog in the processing of applications.
Firstly, one of the causes of this burden is the lack of clarity concerning the interpretation of "listed" activities (such as resorts, dams, weirs and change of land use) and whether or not development projects require authorisation.
Secondly, this has resulted in frustrations amongst developers, given the long delays in processing applications.
Thirdly, a consequence of this has been that some developers have taken the risk of progressing with their development in the absence of an EIA authorisation.
To resolve the lack of clarity, and address the constraints on development and environmental issues, the Department is to embark, inter alia, on a law reform process. This it must do, to fulfill its mandate, and perform the functions assigned to it in terms of national environmental legislation.
Various problems and limitations in applying the current EIA Regulations have been identified, and revisions are planned that will meet the unique requirements of the Western Cape Province, while taking cognisance of national guidelines and the changes planned at national level.
The law reform process is also to be supplemented by the restructuring of departmental functions, which is aimed at integrating the environmental and development planning, decision making and policy.
In order to resolve the frustrations, give practical effect to the principles of the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA), and help to build capacity, several documents are in the pipeline.
They include:
Guidelines on developments below the floodline,
Manuals on the drafting of Spatial Development Frameworks, resorts, conservancies, agri-tourism accommodation, sense of place, -art, -history, and model zoning scheme by-laws, and
A "Pollutant Release and Transfer" Register.
During the latter half of the year workshops will be conducted at District Municipal level.
By placing more emphasis on the execution of Compliance Monitoring, we are preparing to take action in this regard, and we must also caution people not to allow the frustrations caused by delays, to become an excuse to "take the law into their own hands".
All the components of the Department have identified Integrated Development Planning as a leading area, and in this regard, workshops will also be held with municipalities, consultants and NGO's.
The Municipalities already have access to our guidelines on EIA and NEMA requirements.
I will be involved in running a plenary session for politicians at the Municipal level, to expose them to environmental legislation .
Speaker, a number of guidelines and projects have reached maturity, including a guideline on Bioregional planning, i.e. planning based on biosphere principles.
Ten opsigte van biostreekbeplanning word die Wes Kaap internasionaal baie hoog aangeslaan.
Die provinsiale Kabinet het reeds in 1996 sy goedkeuring aan die toepassing van biostreekbeplanning as basis vir grondontwikkelingsbestuur verleen.
Na 'n besoek aan UNESCO in Parys, waar 'n voorganger van my en destydse provinsiale Minister van Ontwikkelingsbeplanning, toeligting oor die toepassing van biostreekbeplanning gegee het, is daar versoek dat biostreekbeplanning wyer bekendgestel moet word. 'n Brosjure waarin biostreek beplanning toegelig is, is deur ander biostreekbeplanning literatuur dokumentasie gevolg, o.a.'n handleiding vir munisipaliteite.
Die terugvoer was so bemoedigend dat daar besluit is om 'n behoorlike provinsiale biostreekbeplanningsbeleid te formuleer. Hierdie proses vorder goed en behoort teen die einde van 2003 in die Biostreekbeplanningsbeleid van die Wes-Kaap te kulmineer.
Die dimensie wat die toepassing van biostreekbeplanning en die vestiging van biosfeerreservate in die Wes-Kaap aangeneem het is uniek, en het op 'n ware model van grondontwikkelingsbestuur en die bevordering van volhoubare ontwikkeling, uitgeloop.
Die Wes-Kaap word deur UNESCO as 'n węreldleier op die gebied van die toepassing van biostreekbeplanning en die vestiging van biosfeereservate beskou. Soveelso, dat die Stad Kaapstad en die Provinsiale Regering uitgenooi is om 'n gevallestudie in Oktober 2003 in New York aan te bied, oor die tema "Stedelike volhoubaarheid geskoei op die biosfeerreservaat model".
In addition,
The Western Cape Coastal Zone Policy, which was recently completed, aims to provide all coastal municipalities with a management tool to prevent uncoordinated, linear development along the coastline in sensitive areas. The policy has been submitted to the Governance and Administration Cluster (Cabinet Committee) and will be submitted to Cabinet soon, for final approval.
In terms of the Coastcare Programme and the Coastal Management Programme, a Coastal Co-ordinator, whose position is funded in terms of an agreement between the British Department For International Development (DFID) and the national Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, has been contracted until May 2004.
The Coastal Co-ordinator is responsible for assisting the Department, in terms of an agreement with National, to implement the Coastcare Programme and compile a Provincial Coastal Management Programme. Two multi-purpose Resource Centres have been implemented with British funding at Doringbaai and Papendorp, both on the West Coast.
Draft proposals will be ready towards the end of the current financial year on the province's Spatial Development Framework. The Base maps will make use of satellite images and aerial photographs. Satellite images have been procured and the project, which runs through to the 2004/05 financial year, has commenced.
The Department plans to hold a public participation exercise this year, on the necessary settlement framework for the Province and the municipalities.
The Department also promotes, develops and implements policy, legislative and cooperative management mechanisms to achieve integrated pollution and waste management in the Western Cape.
It has been allocated a budget of R13,381 million for this function.
In championing the so-called "brown issues", the negative side of resource development, the Department has over the past two years shifted the focus from "end-of-pipe" solutions to preventative and minimisation strategies.
Waste Minimisation Clubs are one way of bringing about the paradigm shift from "end-of-pipe" solutions to that of avoidance and prevention, in a voluntary manner.
Three waste minimisation clubs, in the wine industry (Breede River-Winelands), industrial estate (Sacks Circle) and public health sector (Eben Donges Hospital), are being used to spearhead the Cleaner Production programme.
The latter programme seeks to promote cleaner production and minimisation of our natural resources and waste amongst industry and the public sector, and it strongly echoes the objectives of iKapa elihlumayo.
The responsible and safe management of health-care waste, will be strongly underpinned by the Health-care waste management Bill, which is at an advanced stage and will be submitted to Cabinet this year.
Its key aspects are to prevent illegal dumping of health-care waste, through compliance monitoring and enforcement, to establish a health-care waste manifest system; and to segregate and minimise health-care waste.
Through our baseline information on general waste we have established that approximately 1,5 million tonnes of general waste are disposed of annually in the province. This information will enable us to predict impacts and take proactive steps.
As the Western Cape Clean-up Operation enters its third year, we will focus on recycling initiatives, extending waste collection services to poorly serviced areas and "greening" public open spaces.
In the past year, 1484 temporary jobs were created with Western Cape Clean Up Operation funding, helping to put food on the table. I would dearly love to see this expanded.
The Department strongly supports the creation of sustainable jobs in the environmental sector, although in the first instance, this is the task of private enterprise.
The private sector has responded well to the first comprehensive Migration Study in the Western Cape, which was undertaken in 2002 by an inter-university representative research team.
The recently-released report will help to establish a reliable profile of migration into, out of and within the Province and to develop a model that can be used by municipal officials to monitor future migration streams, in order to inform their planning decisions.
In this respect, development planning is currently underway to conduct two pilot studies in two predetermined municipalities, to assess the feasibility and cost effectiveness of the proposed monitoring model.
The Department will help advise the National Minister of Finance on the credibility of the Census 2001 results, which are expected shortly.
We are also working towards an integrated Geographic Information System and a transversal database, to support development planning, environmental, and pollution and waste management decisions.
The Western Cape Nature Conservation Board, the public entity that is tasked with the management of biodiversity in the Province, will during the financial year receive R57,765 million from the Department.
Allow me to highlight some of the programmes under its jurisdiction, which covers some 80 conservation areas (comprising more than 1,5 million hectares) and includes some very important marine reserves and islands.
The Board is the only conservation authority in the world responsible for the management of nearly a total Floral Kingdom, even if it is the smallest of the world's six Floral Kingdoms. In the Cape Floral Kingdom we find 10 000 plant species of which 6 000 occur nowhere else.
As important, I think, is its strong drive towards community-based natural resource management, to ensure that local communities take ownership of their "own" environments.
Empowering communities to use natural resources in a sustainable way, helps fight short-term poverty, and contributes towards longer-term socio-economic development.
More than 100 small contractors are also being helped to develop independently, through alien vegetation clearing projects.
Strong partnerships are also being established with international partners and funders (e.g.
Global Environmental Facility, Conservation International etc.) to facilitate such projects.
A new Fire Management Policy is on the cards to ensure a structured and integrated, ecological fire management. The Board has a progressive policy on contingency arrangements, with all relevant role players in the Western Cape, as well as the use of volunteers.
A detailed and internationally accredited environmental auditing
strategy for all our protected areas is being launched, to ensure that
threats to our natural assets can be addressed, through best practice conservation management. Independent experts and NGO's will help to ensure transparency.
A Conservation Incentives Programme has been launched to facilitate the process of providing incentives to private landowners, in exchange for a responsible approach to the management of conservation worthy and sensitive land under their control.
This will be accompanied by a comprehensive extension service to landowners. Substantial international funding has also been secured in partnership with other role-players to supplement own funding for this very important initiative.
A comprehensive capacity building programme for all Field Rangers is making excellent progress. The Board's objective is to grow the potential opportunities for promotion to the rank of Nature Conservator to a state of full equity.
The world-class Whale Trail is already booked two years in advance, and last year's aggressive marketing strategy will be enhanced this year to cater for a growing clientele, in pursuit of income from enviro-tourism.
I must stress that the decision to create independence for the Board was the right one, if only because it has enabled the Board to access at least R200 million in foreign funding for its own and other environmental projects.
Speaker, voordat ek afsluit met 'n paar woorde oor ons breë filosofie, wil ek kyk na die regulasies wat verlede Kersfees t.o.v. vierwielaangedrewe voertuie en hul sleepwaens ingestel is, en wat ons moet toepas.
Sedert die 21ste Desember 2002 mag niemand sonder 'n permit of vrystelling, vierwiel-aangedrewe voertuie langs die see gebruik nie. Na die 19de Julie 2003 mag vierwielvoertuie ook nie sonder 'n aparte lisensie vir die terwaterlating van bote gebruik word nie.
Die verbruiker sal die lisensie ook net by persele wat vir die doeleinde van te waterlating goedgekeur is, kan gebruik.
Om die permitte en lisensies te kan uitreik, moet ons weet wat die tariewe is.
Daar vind vandag 'n dringende vergadering plaas, waar die provinsies en die nasionale owerheid probeer om die tariewe vir die permitte en die lisensies, vas te stel. Die tariewe moet op sy beurt eers deur die nasionale Departement en daarna deur die Provinsies goedgekeur word.
Ek hoop om binnekort in die verband 'n aankondiging te maak.
Die Departement het wydverspreide vergaderings gehou met die betrokke partye soos Munisipaliteite, die Polisie, Bootklubs en Waterski klubs, en die eienaars van privaat persele, waar 'n voertuig en/of sleepwa vir die te waterlating van vaartuie gebruik word, om die maatreëls, beperkings en verpligtinge te verduidelik.
Ons moet aanvaar dat die verligting van armoede, en die skep van werk, inherent in Suid-Afrika met omgewingsuitdagings verband hou. Hierdie begroting is juis daarop ingestel om ons land se taak van volhoubare ontwikkeling, wat by die Węreldberaad in Johannesburg verlede jaar aan ons opgedra is, te onderskraag
I want to take as an example a case that was dealt with expeditiously, as an
empowerment initiative.
It could be done in this case, because the application was relatively simple, and some applications can be very complicated.
The application in question was for a Mari culture project comprising the construction of an abalone farm in the Gansbaai Harbour, to create jobs for members of the largely jobless local community of Gansbaai.
Provided that it is sustainable and does not lead to significant ecological damage, the National White Paper on Sustainable Coastal Development considers Mari culture to be an important economic activity for coastal areas, with ecological spin-offs and job-creation as a bonus.
· The application was submitted to the Department on 19 June 2002 and was authorised less than a month later on the 18 July 2002.
In closing, to all our clients, please ensure that applications contain all relevant, correct information, comply with legal requirements, follow due process, and include sufficient provision for proper public participation.
We will in turn strive to establish ourselves as a center of excellence to promote human well-being, economic efficiency and environmental integrity, dedicated to sustainable development in the Western Cape.
THE WESTERN CAPE'S ROLE AT THE WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Workshops were held in Oudtshoorn, Central Karoo district in Beafort West, in the West Coast. In these workshops the Department explained the six themes of WSSD- which are Poverty eradication and alleviation, water and sanitation, access to cleaner energy, agriculture and food security, technology, health and education.
These initiatives culminated in a major Roadshow which was held at the Goodhope Centre on the 14 June 2002 where a Provincial Declaration to WSSD was developed and read by then minister of Environmental, Cultural Affairs and Sport.
But this was not all, our Department was represented at the WSSD by then minister and our HOD and staff who manned our stall where we exhibited one of the projects which this Department initiated - Driftsands Initiation Village.
Last but not least, the Chief Director: Environmental Affairs has been and is still involved in provincial and National committees that seek to devise strategies to sustainable Development a true reality. The Chief Director was also involved in National committees that prepared and edited position papers to WSSD.
