Linda Ensor
25 November 2008
Cape Town — Government officials tended to be easily bribed by industry to get favourable rulings on environmental impact assessments, environmental affairs and tourism department director-general Nosipho Ngcobo admitted yesterday.
She was addressing a conference arranged by the department to reflect on 10 years' experience of environmental impact assessments (EIA) and to begin charting a new EIA strategy and action plan with industry stakeholders.
An independent review commissioned by the department into the effectiveness of the EIA system noted "serious concerns" about corruption and the too frequent and "undue influence" on politicians by applicants or proponents.
Nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) also influenced officials too much.
In dealing with problems in the EIA system, Ngcobo also highlighted the lack of capacity in the EIA units of national and provincial governments.
At end-September, 44% of the 469 posts were vacant, most at provincial level with the national vacancy rate about 10%.
In his opening address, Environmental Affairs and Tourism Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk said "decisive intervention" was needed at provincial level.
Ngcobo said that of the 8943 EIA applications received since 2006 under the new regulations of the National Environmental Management Act, 3963 were still pending at the end of September -- "not a very rosy picture".
One of the reasons for the slow processing of applications was "poor performance" by the private sector in supplying the required information.
The survey also highlighted the need for SA to move away from total reliance on site-specific and activity-based EIAs to a more holistic, integrated and strategic approach that took into account the overall consequences of a development beyond its geographic location.
Van Schalkwyk agreed with this approach, saying EIAs should be supplemented by the use of tools such as strategic spatial instruments, bio-regional plans and spatial development and environmental management frameworks.
Business Unity SA representative Laurraine Lotter complained about the long delays in the EIA process despite numerous legislative amendments intended too improve the situation. The costs for business were increasingly onerous and could act as a deterrent to investment.
These costs related to "unrealistic demands being made by NGOs", the increase in project costs due to delays in processing applications, and high consultancy fees.
University of Cape Town emeritus professor of environmental studies Richard Fuggle described the environmental management system as overly bureaucratic, having steadily eroded the participation of professionals and civil society as well as consultation with the public. The system was "unduly complex and convoluted".
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