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Manila/Pietermaritzburg – More than
a hundred environmental and civil society groups belonging to a growing
global movement against waste incineration today sent an urgent appeal
to President Thabo Mbeki to reject the proposed incinerator
in Sasolburg for stockpiled hazardous wastes, stressing that the proposal
runs counter to the aims of an international treaty which
aims to eliminate persistent toxic substances.
The groups, most of which are members of the
Global Anti-Incinerator Alliance (GAIA) and the International POPs Elimination
Network (IPEN), warned that incineration generates toxic by-products,
among them the ultra-toxic dioxins and furans which have been linked to
extensive health problems including cancer, birth defects, reproductive
disorders and the suppression of the immune system which could accelerate
the inception of full blown AIDS in people already suffering from HIV
infection.
Dioxins and furans belong to the list of substances
being targeted for elimination by the Stockholm Convention on Persistent
Organic Pollutants (POPs). South Africa is a signatory to the Convention
that was adopted by more than a hundred countries in Stockholm last year.
“We find it alarming to learn that your government
is considering the use of a dangerously polluting technology whose operation
will virtually undermine the objectives of the POPs treaty,” the environmental
and civil society groups told President Mbeki.
“Studies reveal that burning hazardous waste,
even in "sophisticated state of the art" incinerators,
will lead to the release of three types of lethal waste into the environment:
heavy metals, unburned noxious chemicals and new toxic pollutants such
as dioxins and furans. All of these are dispersed
into the environment in the form of air pollution or toxic fly ash, having
potentially fatal affects on the health of the exposed population.
These pollutants will represent an added toxic burden to the citizens
of Sasolburg who are already being heavily-impacted by the smog and air
pollution caused by the local oil refinery and various chemical industries
in the town,” the groups added.
The groups also pointed out that these toxic
pollutants travel vast distances and accumulate in the food chain.
Their environmental and health effects may therefore extend well beyond
Sasolburg and the whole of South Africa and even to neighbouring African
states.
They also warned that the approval of
the incinerator proposal, aggressively being pushed by the Peacock
Bay Environmental Services Pty Ltd, would send a negative signal
that could damage South Africa’s image before the international environmental
community, particularly in the light of the upcoming World Summit for
Sustainable Development in Johannesburg.
The global petition, endorsed by 109 environmental
and civil society groups from Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Americas,
appealed to the South African government to opt for alternative, non-combustion
destruction technologies instead which do not generate POPs, in keeping
with the pollution elimination objectives of the POPs treaty. Other
countries like the Philippines and Slovakia are in the process of
implementing such projects to utilize alternative non-combustion
technologies to destroy problem POPs stockpiles within their borders.
Speaking on behalf of the Sasolburg Environmental
Committee (SEC), Nicholas Kasa welcomed the initiative by the global NGO
community. “Their letter to Pres. Mbeki reinforces our legitimate
opposition versus the PBES incinerator project. We are not alone in defending
our constitutional right to a safe and healthy environment,” he said.
The anti-incinerator petition concluded that
by rejecting the Sasolburg incinerator and adopting non-burn alternatives,
South Africa would be setting a positive example for the African continent
and the world as regards the proper treatment and disposal of hazardous
waste. They added that such a decision would validate the choice
of South Africa as venue for the upcoming Earth Summit.
For her part, Linda Ambler of the environmental
justice group groundWork said that “the proposed incinerator will
be the largest hazardous waste incinerator in the country and opens opportunities
for hazardous waste to be imported into South Africa from other countries
for burning in Sasolburg. Since we first heard about the proposal
we have been in continuous contact with the various decision makers pleading
with them to oppose the project in favour of alternative technology which
would not demand such high a cost to human health and the environment."
The letter to Pres. Mbeki was initiated after
a visit to South Africa and Sasolburg by Manny Calonzo of the by the Global
Anti-Incinerator Alliance (GAIA), an international NGO coalition with
offices in the Philippines and USA, and supported by other networks working
for a sustainable future. During the South Africa visit Manny Calonzo
met with local community activists and attended a hearing by the Free
State Portfolio Committee on Environment on the proposed incinerator.
For inquiry, please contact Linda Ambler at
groundWork in South Africa (phone: +2733-3425662; e-mail: linda@groundwork.org.za)
or Manny C. Calonzo at the GAIA Secretariat in the Philippines (phone:
+632-9290376; manny.gaia@no-burn.org).
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