The 27th Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP 27) will be held in the Republic of Egypt during November 2022. Despite current geopolitical tensions, disruption of global supply chains, general inflation and an energy and food crisis it is hoped that for South Africa, COP27, which is being described as an ‘African COP’
Tina Costas
Climate change impacts to be assessed as part of the environmental authorisation process
Project developers and financiers should scrutinise existing projects that are in pre-environmental authorisation stage, and all future projects, to determine what issues need to be assessed prior to applying for authorisation.
The 8 march 2017 judgment in Earthlife Africa Johannesburg v The Minister of Environmental Affairs and others is South Africa’s first judgment relating to…
Enhancing sustainable development by using biodiversity offsets
Greenfield developments can make a significant environmental impact. Where the impact relates to biodiversity that has a high ecological value, regulatory authorities are increasingly requiring project developers to implement a biodiversity offset. A biodiversity offset is intended to ensure that no net loss in biological resources occurs as a result of the project being developed.…
Draft EIA Guideline for Renewable Energy Projects published
A draft Renewable Energy Projects Guideline has been published for comment. The REPG is a guideline document and sets out the principles and general tools for identifying the approval that may be required for each renewable energy technology. The REPG does not replace any existing regulation – it is simply a tool to provide guidance…