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Air quality Project
Project Co-ordinator: Ardiel Soeker
| Read the Oilwatch
South Africa Bulletin (Winter 2003) |
 The
20th Century, also known as the chemical century, produced many
wonders and innovations in the name of so-called "progress".
However, what it also produced were many new dangerous and hazardous
chemical substances. Many, many man-made chemicals enter our
environment as products of manufacture as well as unintended by-products
in the form of air pollution. Poor people usually bear
the brunt of the negative impacts of this progress, whilst benefitting
the least from its wonders and innovations. |
| Community
action to clean up the oil industry in south africa |
| National
Report on Community based Air Pollution Monitoring in South Africa
- Air Pollution in Selected Industrial Areas in South Africa,
2000 - 2002 |
In South Africa, oil, gas and coal refineries constitute
some of the biggest industrial polluters. South Africa as
a developing country is often the recipient of outdated machinery
and technology. Foreign-owned companies, like BP and Shell,
can operate refineries in South Africa on poorly maintained, outdated
infrastructure, reaping huge profits, whilst emitting levels of
pollution much higher than that permitted in their home countries. |
| groundWork's Air Quality Project is designed
to enable communities to defend themselves in the face of serious
problems of industrial air pollution in South Africa. The objective
of the Air Quality Project is to ensure that communities affected
by industrial air pollution are better able to defend and promote
their environmental interests at local, national and international
levels. |
"There's so much pollution in the air now
that if it weren't for our lungs there'd be now place to put it
all." Robert Orben, writer |
The Project has several goals
The project aims to deliver a number of outputs, namely: community air
pollution monitoring systems; technical assistance for communities; community
links with national and international community organisations; a national
report on the status of industrial air pollution; the development and
implementation of a national civil society strategy on air quality; and
a media strategy and information service. These outputs are described
in more detail below.
 Community
air pollution monitoring systems to be developed
groundWork has been working with communities in Sasolburg, South
Durban, Secunda, Cape Town and Swaziland to develop community based air
monitoring systems. These communities have all taken bucket air samples
during the past two years. The results of these bucket samples have
revealed elevated levels of dangerous pollutants in all of these areas.
Community monitoring systems are being developed in
these identified hotspots. These monitoring systems include activities
such as training individuals to take air samples, and developing “sniffers”
in the community who will be observant to the smells of different chemicals
and other signs of pollution resulting from inefficient management and
operations of the refineries and industries.
This is supplemented by additional forms of monitoring -
such as asking teachers to record the health complaints of learners, monitoring
clinic records, attaining information from industry and government air
monitoring programs, and from refinery and industry emission inventories.
Technical assistance will supplement community monitoring
groundWork is providing technical assistance to supplement community
monitoring and to assist in negotiations with industries in order to affect
improvements in air quality.
A response strategy to support communities affected by specific
incidents at refineries and other industries is also an important element
within the Air Quality Project. South African refineries are notorious
for their high number of serious incidents or adcidents. In the
past year alone every one of the refineries in South Africa experienced
a major accident resulting in the loss of workers’ lives or in injury.
groundWork seeks to build confidence and knowledge among affected
communities through its response strategy.
Linking local communities with national and international
community organisations
 The
project aims to build community links between local and international
community organisations. This will further build confidence and deepen
understanding of pollution struggles within South Africa. Learning and
sharing experiences towards joint action will be the key objectives of
theses interchanges. Moreover, these exchanges will break the isolation
of refinery communities and place their struggles in the context of national
and international struggles.
National report on the status of industrial air pollution
to be generated annually
A national report on the status of industrial air pollution will be generated
annually. The 2002 National Report is almost completed and
will be released in early 2003.
This report has been informed by the community monitoring
data, community exchanges and other relevant information, in order to
provide alternative information to decision makers. The report will be
an advocacy tool to be used by communities in negotiations with industry
and government.
Towards a national civil society strategy on air quality
Another key component of the annual pollution status report is the development
of a civil society strategy on air pollution. Accordingly a national
civil society strategy workshop was hosted by groundWork in Sasolburg
in July 2002.
Media service to focus on pollution information
In addition to the above, groundWork provides a media and information
service to the affected communities in order to expose dirty industries,
and provide the media with credible information on pollution and industry.
History will never be the same!
groundWork’s underlying core to achieving these outcomes is the
building of capacity amongst communities that have until just recently
always considered themselves powerless in the face of the might of industry.
They have relied on information from industry and they have been denied
the benefit of alternative, non-profit driven support. History will
never be the same!
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