GROUNDWORK's QUARTERLY
NEWSLETTER
Volume 3, No 2
September 2001
IN THIS ISSUE:
Dear friends of groundWork
We are delighted to announce the arrival of three new full-time
“groundWorkers” - Ardiel Soeker, Llewellyn Leonard
and Bathoko Sibisi. Ardiel is the coordinator of our
Air quality project, Llewellyn is the coordinator of our Medical
waste and incineration project, and Bathoko is our new assistant
administrator. Meet them all on page 17 of this newsletter.
We have been kept very busy (as always) these past three
months. Highlights have been co-hosting the Environmental
Justice Forum Speakout at the World Conference Against Racism
in Durban (see pages 4 - 6) and a greening hospitals pilot
project (see pages 8 - 11). There have also been several
exciting civil society victories over polluting industries
- read about them on pages 18.
This is a jam-packed, exciting newsletter and we hope it
inspires you to keep on working for environmental justice!
Regards, Linda Ambler
Back to the top
By groundWork Director, Bobby Peek
There is no doubt that the NGO sector has to move into a
new era seven years after achieving our hard fought for democracy.
In a new democratic South Africa we have to be vigilant to
ensure that the promises made by our elected leaders are delivered.
Civil society organizes itself to keep a constant guard to
make our democracy real. In playing this watchdog role,
NGO's have to be critical of the same politicians that we
have placed in authority.
This does not go down well with many politicians, but groundWork
has not backed down from this challenge. groundWork's
focus on industrial air pollution is a key area where we have
been critical of government and have been calling on government
to be accountable to its citizens.
However, within groundWork, we realise that it is
equally important to proactively and constructively work with
government to assist them in giving meaning to our constitution.
The constitution is only as good as we collectively make it
happen.
It is in this spirit that groundWork and our
international partner, Health Care Without Harm, have started
working with the Department of Health in KwaZulu-Natal.
We are assisting hospitals to reduce their medical waste to
reduce the risks posed by medical waste to the public and
to health care workers as well as to reduce the costs of disposing
of this waste.
It is by keeping a balance between supporting government
and being critical of government that will determine the success
of NGO's in the future.
Back to the top
United by our common suffering at the World Conference on
Racism
By Bobby Peek
During August Durban was a buzz with people from all parts
of the globe attending the World Conference Against Racism
(WCAR). There were people from many cultures organising
on many issues. There were those calling for reparations
for past slavery, those speaking of present slavery, the Dalit
(“untouchables”) from India, the Roma (people
who travel and have no borders) and many others from all continents.
The need to get environmental racism recognised was viewed
as critical by groundWork, International Possibilities
Unlimited (IPU) and the South African Exchange Programme on
Environmental Justice (SAEPEJ). Thus on the week-end
of August 25-26, we jointly hosted a diverse group of over
150 people in a two-day gathering where Asians, Blacks, Latinos,
and Indigenous Peoples from Nigeria, Ecuador, Dominica, Australia,
South Africa, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Argentina, Panama, Canada,
and the United States testified on cases of environmental
racism in their communities and workplaces.
This two-day gathering commenced with an Environmental Justice
Speak-Out on Saturday, August 25. This was the first
large gathering of international Environmental Justice activists
in SA since the Earthlife International Conference in 1992.
On Sunday 26th August participants toured South Durban's residential
neighbourhoods where industry has been allowed to develop
to the harm of local residents.
People of colour from South America, Africa, North America
and Australia had painful stories to tell. At the heart
of the experience of environmental injustice and environmental
racism is the abuse of power. Poor people, particularly
people of colour, live in damaged environments that damage
their health and their livelihoods. All these stories centred
on the suffering experienced because of skin colour and the
abuse by multi-nationals corporations supported by government's
worldwide.
Painful testimonies where delivered by many participants.
Nnimmo Bassey from Nigeria started the day by reminding people
of the hardship suffered by people in Nigeria due to Shell's
lack of respect for human life in Africa. “We
are killed but have no right to cry. Our environments are
destroyed and we have no right to complain,” he said.
This struck resonance with the South Durban people who were
being gassed by Shell's leaking petrol pipelines in their
neighbourhoods at the very time the conference was occurring.
Mexicans told stories of the suffering in the Maquiladora
(“sweat shops”) and on farms in the USA, where
salaries where five times lower than the minimum wage in the
USA.
Indigenous people from Australia and the USA shared a platform
with the Environmental Justice Networking Forum (EJNF) of
South Africa, highlighting how their governments support environmental
racism through omission or commission, for example, allowing
sacred indigenous lands to be desecrated for mining and toxic
waste dumping.
South African participants had their own testimonies that
reverberated with the participants. There were stories
of suffering due to asbestos poisoning in the Northern Cape,
forced relocation for dam construction in KwaZulu-Natal, and
ill-health caused by pollution from the Sasol plant in Secunda.
This is all suffering that is happening in a democratic country.
On Sunday, August 26, participants went on a “toxic
tour” to witness the real face of environmental racism
and globalisation as manifested in South Durban. Participants
were taken through areas that were racially segregated due
to past apartheid practices. Here people live in the
same road as a toxic waste dumpsite or an oil refinery.
Leaking petrol pipelines from a refinery travel under community
residential areas. Children's playgrounds neighbour
chemical industries.
Many participants said they felt at home on the tour.
This could have been Harlem and the South Bronx where, because
the residents are poor and black, toxic waste has been dumped
there.
One participant described what he saw and heard as follows:
“Look left, and one sees the gorgeous Indian Ocean. Look
right, and one sees smoke stacks - large tin cylindrical tanks
above ground pipes crisscrossing the land, funnel-shaped constructions
puffing away, and most disturbingly, a long canal running
from the necks of chugging oil refineries and production plants
directly to the ocean. The canal also passes through many
people's backyards. The tour guide's voice choked as he related
how local children, unable to understand the dangers, often
snuck into the canal to swim and play.”
It was here where the talk became a reality, where people
recognised the ugly face of globalisation, which knows no
boundaries.
This was the start to the World Conference Against Racism
for the many people. In sharing the experiences and
the struggles it is our hope that we can start taking the
theories and values that are so often spoken about and place
them into practice. With the World Summit on Sustainable
Development (WSSD) taking place in South Africa in 2002, one
has to ask whether the industrial practices spoken about during
this weekend are sustainable? They most certainly are
not. However, next year, no doubt, there will be governments
trying to defend these practices of human rights abuse as
legitimate and sustainable. This gathering must be used
as a platform to catapult the struggle towards the WSSD and
beyond.
It is time to start talking about reparations for environmental
abuse of peoples of colour, also referred to as ecological
debt. And finally, as Mrs Fatima Meer indicated in her
closing address at the Speak Out, the world needs to return
to the values of old and of its indigenous peoples and its
rich and diverse cultures, and move away from the need to
globalise all.
For those of you who want to read more on this Speak Out,
visit our website, or contact the office for a copy of the
full report of the Speak Out.
Back to the top
More spills in South Durban
More than 750 000 thousand litres of petrol has leaked into
the neighbourhoods of South Durban after a 25 year old Shell
and BP petrol pipeline sprung a leak. Now, two months
after the leak was first detected, Shell and BP have requested
that some of the people living in the area relocate.
Three days after the leak was first detected by residents
in the area, hydrocarbons at levels of 3 700 parts per million
were recorded next to a storm water drain. Levels of
benzene have also raised concern and weeks later Benzene levels
have been found to be 200 part per billion in certain houses,
a level that is several times higher than WHO outdoor limits.
One resident adjacent to the leaking pipeline has spent the
last two months of her pregnancy breathing in these benzene,
toluene, ethyl benzene and xylene fumes. Shell and BP
have claimed that: “environmental benzene is not known
to cause childhood leukaemia”. However, the first
report of benzene causing leukaemia was published in 1928.
In 1948 the American Petroleum Institute published a toxicological
review of benzene, noting that benzene causes leukaemia and
that the only safe level of exposure to benzene is ZERO ppm”.
(www.toxictorts.com/benzene.htm)
Soon after this leak was sprung, further fuel pipelines were
tested and found to be leaking as well. These pipelines
have no above-ground markers indicating exactly where these
pipelines are (as is the case in some overseas countries).
Many of these pipelines are placed on the fence line of houses.
In many cases the residents in the area are unaware that they
have fuel pipelines right next to their homes.
In 1998 Shell and BP tested their pipelines and repaired
structurally weak areas. However, just a few years later
there are numerous leaks on their pipelines. Shell and BP
do not want to replace their pipelines over the next few years
as proposed by the community. Instead, Shell and BP
are recommending that more tests be done on these pipelines,
which are around three decades old. They have also proposed
relocating local residents. This is against the promise
made by Minister of Environmental Affairs, Minister Moosa
that people will not be relocated in South Durban.
groundWork calls on government to take action against
Shell and BP for this incident and the other incidents that
occurred at the Shell and BP plants this year. In March
2001, 26 tons of tetra-ethyl lead leaked out of a storage
tank adjacent to the community and in June Shell and BP dumped
hydrogen sulphide gas onto the community.
Back to the top
Medical Waste skillshare
By Llewellyn Leonard
A spectre is haunting South Africa...the spectre of hospital
waste. Waste from health care is a mounting concern in South
Africa, as in many countries. Proper handling of health care
wastes is a complicated issue, particularly when resources
are scarce, as they are in most public hospitals. So groundWork
reached out through its international networks, Health Care
Without Harm and the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives,
for help.
In December 2000, groundWork, together with other
international folk, held a series of meetings with a few hospitals
at which a medical waste skills share visit was proposed.
The aim of the skills share would be to help hospitals reduce
the amount of waste generated, thereby saving costs and increasing
worker safety. The skills share would also work
with hospitals to better manage their waste. After months
of planning and preparation, and prior visits to hospitals,
the Medical Waste Skills Share was undertaken between 22 August
to 4 September, 2001. The hospitals where the skills share
visits were conducted were Edendale hospital Pietermarizburg,
Ngwelezana hospital, Empangeni and the Good Shepherd hospital
in Swaziland.
I am employed by groundWork as the point person to
work on medical waste issues, and was pleased during the skills
share to have the opportunity of accompanying and working
with professionals in the field. Glenn McRae from CGH Environmental
Strategies based in the USA was the consultant for hospitals
because of his expertise as an organizational analyst and
management consultant who has worked with health care institutions
around the world. Neil Tangri, a Field Director of the NGO
Essential Action in USA, was also present during the Medical
Waste Skills Share.
According to Neil Tangri: “The skills share represents
a new approach for groundWork, building long term working
relationships with waste producers to jointly explore the
possibilities for good management ... Our purpose was to look
for strategies to halt the mass incineration of health care
wastes and develop better management strategies that would
protect both workers and community members.”
Ngwelezana hospital
At Ngwelezana hospital we were warmly greeted by excited staff
members who were eager to start addressing waste issues within
and outside the institution. Our visit to the hospital was
conducted over a period of two and a half days. An initial
hospital meeting with staff heads was conducted in the morning.
At the outset, I had anticipated about ten staff heads to
convene with us, however, upon arrival, we were received by
more than 50 hospital staff members, including management
cleaners and nursing assistances, showing that willingness
at the hospital to reduce waste was genuine.
Since I had worked at the Ngwelezana and Edendale hospitals
prior to the skills share, so as to better understand the
challenges facing the institution and to get hands on experience
of the operations at the hospitals, I had become quite familiar
with staff members at both the institutions. The occupational
health and safety matron, Sister Ruth Jele, as well as the
infection control nurse, Sister Jabu Nene, had been quite
obliging in helping me to set up the skills share visit to
the Ngwelezana hospital.
During our walk through the facility, I was glad to see how
the staff heads at the different wards eagerly awaited our
arrival, and when we did arrive expressed their concerns and
issues in a legitimate way. Some staff members were enthusiastic
to ask questions and when Glenn McRae or Neil Tangri made
recommendations, they keenly listened with open anticipation.
One of the most common concerns expressed was the fact that
more rigorous education and training programs would be needed
on waste reduction at the hospital. Reorientation programs
were thought to be needed for all levels of personnel at regular
intervals.
Edendale hospital
Like Ngwelezana hospital, the response from the hospital staff
at Edendale was overwhelming. Four days were spent at Edendale,
since we felt that more work needed to be done here considering
the fact that medical waste issues had reached an uncontrollable
magnitude with nurses flushing medical waste down toilets.
The agenda, however, was similar to the Ngwelezana hospital
visit, and during our walk through the facility we were accompanied
by the infection control nurse, Sister Jabu Masinga. Also
accompanying us was the occupational health and safety
matron, the stores manager and the hospital grounds man, Mr.
Mawisa Nyandu who was responsible for collecting the hospital
waste every day.
During our visit, we had the opportunity of observing how
medical waste was collected and disposed of at the hospital.
Although red bags are supposed to be used only for infectious
waste, segregation of the waste was not being conducted at
the hospital with infectious waste being mixed with non-infectious
waste.
Red bags are the most expensive to dispose of. The more red
bags, the greater the costs to the hospital. We were told
that the medical waste collection company, Compass Waste,
charged the hospital R18, 19 to collect a 90 litre red bag.
A count of all red bags was conducted everyday by Compass
Waste. Some of the red bag collection records observed showed
figures totalling over 300 bags on some days. After two days
of working with the hospital staff the numbers of red bags
had decreased to 76. This low total was not seen in past records
at all.
During the last day of our visit at the hospital, an in servicing
for all staff members was conducted. The response for the
in servicing was awe-inspiring and a total of over ninety
staff members were present. Glenn McRae presented a feedback
about the hospital visit as well as an overview of waste management.
As at the in servicing at Ngwelezana hospital, I reiterated
that the skills share visit was just the beginning of a much
larger medical waste reduction and occupational safety agenda
and required a step-by-step process to achieve the overall
aim. Setting specific yet realistic goals and timelines and
sticking to them would be essential.
Good Shepherd Hospital
After spending a relaxing Sunday viewing wildlife at Mbuluzi
game reserve in Swaziland, we headed off to Good Shepherd
hospital the following morning. Violet Buluma of Yonge Nawe
Environmental Network accompanied us and was appointed as
the lead person to work on medical waste issues in Swaziland.
Unlike South Africa, Swaziland does not have any registered
landfills where the hospitals can send their waste. The hospital
therefore had an on site incinerator, which was used to burn
all hospital waste. Everything from sharps to infectious waste
was burnt in the incinerator. Considering the fact that the
ash from the incinerator was highly hazardous to the community
and environment, we were surprised to see that the ash was
simply dumped at the back of the hospital. The grounds man
had also dug a hole next to the ash-dump site, which was used
for the disposal of florescent light bulbs.
I was shocked to see that the hospital lacked resources such
as sharps containers to dispose of their needles and syringes.
They were therefore forced to use paint tins with holes cut
on top to dispose of the sharps.
Findings by consultants
According to Glenn McRae, “wastes from health care facilities
can pose a risk to health care workers, patients and local
communities. While there is much concern about the possible
spread of disease (especially from contact with "sharps"
such as needles), the treatment of those wastes, through incineration,
can release an array of hazardous pollutants into the air
and water.”
Three findings were particularly significant in examining
waste management practices at the hospitals that were toured.
1. The first was that, the fear of diseases like HIV and
hepatitis had led hospitals to treat most of the waste as
if it were potentially infectious. In fact, most waste in
hospitals -- 90% or more, if properly segregated -- is simply
trash, much of it packaging similar to what you would find
in any shop or office. A lack of good segregation meant that
a large amount of non-infectious waste was being sent for
incineration. With good segregation of wastes, less than 10%
would need to be treated to disinfect it.
2. The second finding, was the general perception that the
best way to deal with all waste from hospitals was to burn
it. This is based on the erroneous assumption that most wastes
in hospitals are somehow contaminated and represent a threat.
The specific danger in hospital waste is related mostly to
the presence of large numbers of sharps such as syringes with
needles. These specific wastes do pose a danger of transmitting
disease, and require special treatment, although not necessarily
incineration. Fortunately, in the hospitals that were visited,
there were good programs to segregate these needles in special
containers.
According to Neil Tangri, “groundWork will be
looking into alternative technologies, such as the autoclaving
and microwaving systems that are popular in many other countries.”
3. The third finding concerned the chemical, mercury. Mercury
is a highly potent neurotoxin, especially dangerous to pregnant
women and children. In hospitals, it is found primarily in
thermometers and blood pressure devices (sphygmomanometers).
The skills share group was shocked to find that in each hospital
literally kilos of mercury were released into the hospital
environment (and out into the community environment) every
year through accidental equipment breakage. According to Mr.
McRae, “mercury released at hospitals can stay in the
hospital, slowly vaporizing and affecting staff and patients,
or it can be carried out in wastes and burnt sending it out
in the air to the community. There was found to be very little
awareness of the dangers of mercury among hospital staff.
The two hospitals in South Africa that participated in the
program acknowledged that they needed to improve their systems
and volunteered to work with groundWork to be part
of the initial study. I will now be working with the staff
at these facilities to establish new practices in waste management
that can be used as models for other hospitals throughout
South Africa to improve practices and reduce the threat to
communities that the current system of waste management poses.
Back to the top
The smokescreen
by Ardiel Soeker
Social investment and job creation are common bartering tools
used by developers and consultants to get community buy in
for projects and to divert attention from the real issues
of concern.
In many EIA scoping meetings, communities are often told
how many jobs will be created by the development, and what
educational and training opportunities will be available if
the project goes ahead. This leads to vigorous discussions
on how the jobs will be made available to reduce unemployment,
alleviate poverty and stimulate the economy. The actual
project, the technology being proposed and it's health and
environmental impacts are incidental.
The public participation process generally follows a set
recipe: send out as many invites as possible to interested
and affected parties, bus in as many unemployed people to
scoping meetings and ensure that participants get a taste
of what benefits the project will bring by organizing a good
lunch or supper, then you have it made.
Throw in an American to confuse participants about the technology
and to emphasize how really good this project will be for
us because that is how America became the greatest and most
successful country in the world and then you've really got
it made.
Unfortunately, for such consultants and developers, communities
in South Africa are learning fast that the social investment
and job opportunities can come at a cost that is far greater
than the investment itself - people's health and well-being.
The proposal to develop a hazardous waste incinerator in
Sasolburg is encountering rising opposition from both the
local and international community. The developer is Peacock
Bay Environmental Services (PBES), a South African company.
They are working in partnership with an American company,
Roy F. Weston International. They have proposed building an
incinerator (Rotary Kiln Thermal Oxidation System). The deadline
to comment on the scoping phase of the proposal was the 31st
August 2001.
groundWork formulated a written comment on the Preliminary
EIA for the proposal. groundWork's submission
received written support from many local councillors, residents,
national organisations and international organisations.
In our submission we state that we do not dispute that there
is a need in SA for technology to decontaminate hazardous
wastes, including POPs. But we dispute that incineration
is the appropriate technology. We argue that incineration
is a polluting technology. No incinerator is able to
achieve 100% DRE, and thus all incinerators release toxic
emissions. The air pollution in the Sasolburg area and
the greater Vaal Triangle is a cause of concern and has been
for many years. Recent air sampling undertaken by a
number of different agencies, including Sasol and groundWork,
has revealed elevated levels of toxic pollutants in the area.
Clinic reports as well as anecdotal reports from residents
and doctors in the area reveal high levels of pollution related
illnesses among residents. For this reason the siting of yet
another polluting technology cannot be supported until, at
the very least, an effective air quality management plan is
in place in the area.
We further argue that the incinerator would produce very
toxic fly ash and bottom ash. If the air pollution control
equipment is operating properly, these ashes will be highly
contaminated with heavy metals, PCBs, dioxins and furans,
as well as numerous other toxic byproducts of combustion.
The Department of Water Affairs (DWAF) has recently stated
that incinerator ash is hazardous waste, which must be disposed
of in a hazardous waste landfill site. Furthermore,
these toxic chemicals will readily dissolve into water if
landfilled, thus presenting precisely the same problem that
the waste treatment was intended to solve: the residue is
too toxic to bury.
The Sasolburg Environmental Committee (SEC) is one organisation
that has not let the real issues of poverty and unemployment
blur their ability to look at the complete picture. Assisted
by groundWork, the SEC spearheaded an awareness campaign
targeting ordinary residents as well as community leaders
and local and provincial politicians. Pamphlets, workshops
and public meetings led to an increasing number of residents
expressing their opposition to the proposal.
Around the country, other communities responded to the call
of groundWork for expressions of support. The Anti
Incineration Alliance in Cape Town registered their support
for the SEC. The alliance consists of community groups
in Mitchell's Plain and Khayelitsha who oppose the proposal
by Swartklip products, an ammunitions plant, to develop an
ammunitions incinerator. Organisations in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal
have also registered their opposition to the PBES proposal.
International attention has also been drawn to the proposal,
led by the Boston based South African Exchange Programme on
Environmental Justice and the Global Alliance for Incineration
Alternatives. Community groups in the Philippines, in
South America and East Asia have also come out in support
of SEC in this campaign.
groundWork, together with a representative of the
Metsimaholo Local Council in Sasolburg and a representative
of the SEC, met with the MEC for Environment in the Free State
Province. The MEC is responsible for making the final decision
on whether the project goes ahead or not. After listening
to our concerns, the MEC assured us that he would not make
a decision that would contradict the views and concerns of
the Local Municipality and the Sasolburg community.
groundWork informed the Minister for Environment,
Valli Moosa, about our concerns with regard to the proposal
violating the Stockholm Convention, which South Africa recently
signed.
| In groundWork's submission we
urge the Free State government not to grant its approval
to PBES and Weston. Instead we call for the following:
1. A full EIA that would include further, more
thorough investigation of alternative technologies.
2. A halt to all new incineration plants in SA.
3. The government to avail itself of assistance
from the Global Environment Facility for the investigating
and development of non-polluting treatment facilities
for the decontamination of organic hazardous waste.
4. The project to be placed on hold until DEAT has established
a current inventory of the hazardous waste stockpile
situation as well as a PRTR to indicate monthly waste
generation quantities.
5. The South African Government to ensure that
the existing stockpiles of hazardous waste are correctly
and safely stored, until appropriate disposal facilities
are erected. |
Back to the top
Waste-tech Landfill Site gets further extension
The extension of the Aloes I landfill site, and the development
of the Aloes II landfill site were strongly opposed by several
communities surrounding Aloes in the Nineties. The disregard
for community concerns led to the community seeking assistance
from the South African Human Rights Commission.
In a recent agreement between the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan
Municipality and Waste-tech, Waste-tech have been granted
a three-year extension of the lease for the Aloes site.
Waste-tech will now apply to the Department of Water Affairs
and Forestry for an extension on its permit for Aloes II.
This is despite the fact that the community have for years
been calling for the dumping of hazardous waste to stop at
Aloes.
In terms of the above agreement, Waste-tech have committed
themselves to build a leachate treatment facility on site
to deal with the over 75 million litres of leachate presently
contained in Aloes I and II. In the interim, Waste-tech
will also construct another leachate holding dam to help alleviate
some of the problems associated with the extraordinarily huge
amount of leachate on the site. The presence of all
this leachate is a terrible nuisance for surrounding communities,
as very noxious vapours are given off by the site.
Waste-tech operations heavily criticised
groundWork has contracted Stass Environmental to review
the historical operating conditions at the Aloes site.
The Stass Report will be forwarded to the SA Human Rights
Commission on behalf of the community shortly. A representative
of Stass Environmental visited the site in September 2001.
His observations included the following:
“An area on top of the [closed] Aloes I site has been reopened
on the rehabilitated area, through an excavation and landfilling
operation of approximately 40m by 40 m. The base of
this excavation is filled with black coloured liquid (assumed
to be leachate), indicating that there is also disposal of
liquids.”
“The trench access manholes are overgrown with bushes, showing
that no monitoring or maintenance has been occurring for a
considerable period of time. Because of the apparent
unmaintained state of this cut-off system, it is entirely
possible that leachate is finding it's way to the storm water
canal running alongside the main road, towards the Swartkops
River estuary.”
“205 litre plastic drums marked as cyanide waste were unattended
by the side of the road. Such materials must be stored in
safe conditions within the encapsulation cell. Only personnel
equipped with PPE (personnel protective equipment) should
be allowed to handle such waste. None of the personnel on
the site was observe d to be wearing any PPE.”
It is clear from the site visit that Waste-tech is not taking
seriously the conditions set down by government for operating
the landfill site and that government is not monitoring these
conditions appropriately.
Back to the top
Merriman Gumede is the founder of the Thandulwazi Youth Society,
an environmental focus organisation in rural Ndwedwe, West
of Durban.
One of the most regular callers to the groundWork
offices is Mduduzi Merriman Gumede.
Monday mornings to Friday afternoons Merriman is based at
Cedara (just North of Pietermaritzburg) where he works as
a senior personnel officer for the KZN Department of Agriculture
and Environmental Affairs. Friday afternoons he takes
off home to Ndwedwe and the rest of the weekend he “is
running all over the show” organising the greater Ndwedwe
community around environmental issues.
Merriman (30) is the youngest of 7 children. Most of
his childhood was spent in rural Ndwedwe. His mother
supported the family by growing and selling vegetables.
Merriman's interest in environmental issues was sparked while
he was at school in Ulundi. There was a very active
environmental club at the school. After school he returned
home to Ndwedwe and started the started the Thandulwazi Youth
Society. It is a membership-based organisation working
mainly through the creation of environmental clubs in schools
in the Ndwedwe area.
The main activities of the Society include:
-
Promoting recycling (as there is no waste collection
services in the area)
-
Restoration of wetlands
-
Planting of indigenous trees
-
Preservation of river catchments
-
Removal of alien vegetation
-
Organising field trips to game reserves
-
Clean up campaigns
The Society has succeeded in having KZN Wildlife (previously
the KZN Parks Board) post a permanent field ranger in Ndwedwe
to promote awareness and interest in conservation issues in
the area. They have also succeeded in persuading the
local chief to set aside the catchment area of the Umdlothi
River as a nature reserve.
He has worked with the Wildlife and Environment Society of
South Africa (WESSA), the Institute of Natural Resources (INR)
and various government departments.
Up until now the Society has operated without funding.
This year the Thandulwazi Youth Society received R100 000
from the National Land Care Programme from the Department
of Agriculture. A very worthy recipient indeed!!
Back to the top
groundWork news
groundWork welcomes three new staff members onto our
team.
Bathoko Sibisi
Our new assistant administrator, “Bathoks” will
be familiar to many of you. She has worked at the Environmental
Justice Networking Forum for the past 5 years. Bathoko
is multi-skilled and already in a few days has helped tremendously
in relieving the work pressures on all of us. She is
also completely unflappable, unlike some of us in the office
whose emotions range from hysterical to down right moody!
Bathoko has a 14-year old son.
Llewellyn Leonard
At 24 “Llew” is the youngest in the office, and
makes Gill feel positively decrepit. Llew joined us
earlier this year as an intern and impressed us so much that
in August 2001 he was appointed as the coordinator of our
Medical waste and incineration project. He was immediately
thrown in the deep-end and told to organize the visit of two
medical waste experts to South Africa (see story on pages
12- 14). One of his first assignments was visiting all
the wards in Edendale Hospital (Pietermaritzburg) to observe
how the hospital staff dealt with the waste they generated.
He saw some scary sights! Llew has a BSc Honours in Geography
from the University of Durban Westville, and is currently
completing his masters in Water Quality and Environmental
Management.
Ardiel Soeker
Ardiel is a stalwart in the environmental justice sector
with an unblemished career in the fields of community organizing
and advocacy. Ardiel is our Air Quality Project coordinator.
He relieves Bobby of our oil refinery and bucket brigade campaigns.
He has already had much success in helping organize residents
in Sasolburg, and is also stirring the pot in Secunda. Ardiel
is based in Cape Town, which gives groundWork easy access
to Parliament and the many polluted, poor communities in the
Western Cape.
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Autoclaving proposed to deal with KZN medical waste
Compass Waste Services cc, which has the monopoly on medical
waste treatment and disposal in KwaZulu-Natal, recently decided
that they would switch from incineration to autoclaving. Compass
currently incinerates all the waste it collects at an incinerator
in Ixopo. The incinerator is owned by the Ixopo municipality
but is operated under contract by Compass. This incinerator
is not able to meet many of the legally required health and
safety standards and poses a real threat to health and the
environment. What makes this incinerator even more of
a concern is that it is located in the heart of dairy country,
which means it is highly likely that it is contaminating our
dairy products. For nearly two years groundWork has
been leaning on the government to take strong action on the
incinerator. Now Compass have decided to develop an
autoclave, which is technology designed to treat medical waste
without producing any emissions.
Communities halt development of Military Incinerator
Communities in the Western Cape are fighting a proposal for
the development of a military incinerator between Khayelitsha
and Mitchell's Plain. The communities have been assisted
by Angela Andrews of the Legal Resources Centre. The incinerator
is being proposed by Swartklips Products, a subsidiary of
arms manufacturer Denel. To date no permission has been
granted and the authorities have responded to community and
legal challenges by suggesting conflict resolution to look
more deeply into the possibility of alternatives to incineration.
Government puts brakes on self-regulation
The Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT)
has released a draft policy document stating that the development
of all Environmental Management Cooperation Agreements (EMCAs)
must be placed on hold. For the past year groundWork
has spearheaded a civil society campaign calling for a moratorium
on the development of these pro-industry, voluntary agreements.
groundWork has argued that EMCAs should only be introduced
in SA after strong laws have been passed which prescribe legally
binding ambient air standards and emission standards,
with accompanying enforcement mechanisms. The DEAT has
now done an about-turn and has decided that EMCAs may only
be implemented after the necessary legislative and regulatory
infrastructure is in place.
Waste giant forced to do a full EIA
EnviroServ, South Africa's largest waste company, will have
to do a full environmental impact assessment (EIA) if they
want to put up a medical waste incinerator in Shongweni, West
of Durban. Earlier this year EnviroServ undertook a
preliminary EIA for their proposed incinerator. groundWork
called on the provincial government to reject this preliminary
EIA on the grounds that insufficient public scoping had been
undertaken, and that the preliminary EIA contained many inaccuracies
about incineration. The provincial government responded
in writing to groundWork stating that they would direct that
EnviroServ go back to the drawing board and undertake a full-EIA,
which would have to include a thorough investigation of alternatives
to incineration.
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“Stormy Weather - 101 Solutions to Global Climate Change”,
by Guy Dauncey with Patrick Mazza, New Society Publishers,
2001 (A5, 271 pages)
“At the beginning of this 21st Century America stands virtually
alone in its denial of the urgency and magnitude of the accelerating
pace of climate change. It is no accident. The reason
for this denial lies in a relentless campaign of deception
and disinformation in the US by the coal and oil industries
to persuade the public that the issue is either non-existent
or negligible… The wealth of solutions included in “Stormy
Weather” eliminates forever any excuse to remain passive in
the face of what is perhaps the most profound challenge ever
faced by humanity. In all her anguished expressions, nature
is calling on us to save the world. “Stormy Weather”
is telling us how.”
So writes Ross Gelbspan is his foreward to “Stormy
Weather - 101 Solutions to Global Climate Change”.
Each chapter of this book is directed at a different level
and sector of our global society, from the individual, to
industries, to nations and the global society. Thus
chapter headings include: “ Ten solutions for individuals”,
“Ten solutions for cities, towns and counties”,
“Fifteen solutions for Energy companies”, Ten
solutions for developing economies”, and “Ten
Global Solutions'.
This book can be ordered from New Society Publishers on www.newsociety.com.
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NGO participation
The World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) is taking
place in Sandton from 2 - 11 September 2002. The NGO
Summit will take place simultaneously and will be held at
Gallagher Estate. Business will also be holding a parallel
summit to be held at the Nasrec Convention Centre.
South African Office on World Summit for Sustainable Development
The SA NGO Coalition has appointed the Rural Development Services
Network (RDSN) as the implementing agency for NGO preparations
for the WSSD. The RDSN is facilitating the establishment
of an independent secretariat made up of elected NGO representatives.
The NGO WSSD offices have been opened in Johannesburg.
Their contact details are: Telephone: 011 - 403 4119;
Fax: 011 - 403 0790; E-mail: info@worldsummit.org.za;
www.worldsummit.org.za
Civil society participation in South Africa: Civil Society
Indaba (CSI)
In order that South Africa's civil society's voice is heard,
the SA Secretariat for the WSSD is developing a Civil Society
Indaba. The CSI will communicate South African issues
into the International Steering Committee, on which the CSI
will be represented. These issues will inform the final
themes for the NGO Conference. The CSI will have
regional representatives, one from each province and two representatives
from each sector/major group.
Dates to watch our for:
Southern Summit on the WSSD will be held in Algiers 8 -10
October. NGO country reports on Agenda 21 and process
to WSSD will be submitted by various country NGO bodies.
An Africa Regional WSSD Prepcom meeting will be held in Nairobi
from 15 - 18 October. Content issues on Africa will
be discussed here.
A Pan Africa conference organised by the Heinrich Boell Stichfting
will take place in Nairobi in November to bring together the
outcomes for Africa of the above meetings.
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