Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
BACKGROUND DOCUMENT TO THE EIA ADMINISTRATIVE
GUIDELINE FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF MASTS
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
DEFINITIONS AND ABBREVIATIONS
AO
Administrative Officer
Applicant
means a person who has submitted or intends to submit an application
Application
means an application for –
(a)
an environmental authorisation in terms of Chapter 3 of the EIA
regulations;
(b)
an amendment to an environmental authorisation in terms of
Chapter
(c)
an exemption from a provision of these Regulations in terms of
Chapter
CAA
4 of the EIA regulations or
5 of the EIA regulations.
Civil Aviation Authority
Construction
means the building, erection or expansion of a facility, structure or
infrastructure that is necessary for the undertaking of an activity, but
excludes any modification, alteration or upgrading of such facility,
structure or infrastructure that does not result in a change to the nature
of the activity being undertaken or an increase in the production,
storage or transportation capacity of that facility, structure or
infrastructure
Department
Means the Gauteng Department of Agriculture Conservation and
Environment
Environmental
Assessment
Practitioner (EAP)
means the individual responsible for the planning, management and
coordination of environmental impact assessments, strategic
environmental assessments, environmental management plans or any
other appropriate environmental instruments introduced through
regulations
ECA
Environment Conservation Act, 1989 (Act No. 73 of 1989)
Environmental
authorisations
means the authorisation by a competent authority of a listed activity in
terms of NEMA
EIA guideline
document
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism. 1998.
Guideline Document. EIA Regulations. Implementation of
Sections 21 22 and 26 of the Environment Conservation Act.
Pretoria. Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism
Old EIA regulations
Regulations contained in Government Notices R 1182, 1183 and
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
1184 of 1997 promulgated in terms of sections 21, 22 and 26 of
the Environment Conservation Act (Act no. 73 of 1989)
EIA Regulations
Listing notices
Regulations contained in Government Notice 385 promulgated in
terms of Chapter 5 of NEMA
Regulations No. 386 and 387 promulgated in terms of Sections 24
and 24D of NEMA
I&APs
Interested and affected parties
GAUCONS
Gauteng Communication Network Strategy
GIS
Geographic Information System
Maintenance
Routine maintenance of infrastructure on a mast to ensure the
continued successful functioning of existing equipment or to
maintain the appearance of the site
NEMA
National Environmental Management Act (Act no. 107 of 1998)
RoD
Record of Decision
SABS
South African Bureau of Standards
Mast
Any structure (whether attached to a pre-existing structure or
not) built with the primary purpose of housing wireless equipment
for the transmission and reception of telecommunication signals.
Masts include all antennas and dishes, ancillary equipment (e.g.
power supply infrastructure) and the purpose-built supporting
structures (e.g. equipment containers and buildings). Where
equipment is fixed directly onto an existing building, the mast
does not include the building
DISSEMINATION OF THE GUIDELINES
CONTAINED IN THIS DOCUMENT
The guidelines contained in this document will be disseminated to all stakeholders and
other interested and affected parties on request. The document will be available in
electronic format and must be obtained from the Department. Any comments and
suggestions in respect to any part of the document must be forwarded to the Department
who will update and improve the document at appropriate intervals over time.
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
INTRODUCTION
1.
1.1
Introduction
The Department of Agriculture, Conservation, Environment and Land Affairs (“the
Department”) is the responsible authority for environmental authorisations in Gauteng. The
Department has produced a guideline for the construction of masts. The purpose of this
guideline is to provide an overview of the department’s approach to the management of
applications in respect of the construction and upgrading of masts with a view to ensuring
that the department’s responsibility in respect of the protection of the environment is carried
out in an efficient and considered manner. The guideline is therefore intended to facilitate a
reduction of the department’s evaluation/ review period, whilst simultaneously ensuring that
such developments take place in a sustainable manner, ensuring that the impacts of such
developments have been addressed.
In developing the guideline, the Department has taken, inter alia, international approaches,
the views of stakeholders, the department’s legislative obligations and its experience in the
processing of environmental impact assessments into account. The purpose of this
document is thus to provide the details of the investigations from which the guideline
document emerged. It includes a number of documents:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Appendix A examples of masts
Appendix B containing the site selection criteria for masts and telecommunication
Infrastructure
Appendix C containing minutes of discussions with local authorities
Appendix D containing minutes of discussions with the South African Civil Aviation
Authority
Appendix E containing the comments and responses report
Appendix F containing other supporting documents.
These appendices are to be read together with this document.
1.2 Background
The telecommunication sector developed at such a pace during the last decade that
it has outpaced other sectors of industry. Ensuring that the environment impacts of
such activities are properly governed, pose significant challenges to both authorities
and other stakeholders.
The environmental authorities responsible for the implementation of environmental
legislation that controls masts could not have foreseen the sheer scale of the
development of the sector. As a result, some environmental authorities (particularly
those in predominantly urban provinces) are experiencing difficulties in coping with
the number of applications being received. This situation is exacerbated by the
high turnover rate of officials in the provincial environmental authorities and the
inconsistent quality of applications received from different EAP’s.
This document is intended to help the Department better fulfil its responsibilities and
obligations in terms of environmental authorisations.
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
It aims to develop a background document to allow for sustainable development of
masts in Gauteng taking into account the social, economic and biophysical
environment. It further aims to administer and assess masts in a more effective way
and to improve communication between the different role players involved with
masts in Gauteng.
1.3
Principles and basic departure points
This document was developed through consultations between the Department and
the telecommunications industry while recognising the Department ’s obligation to
protect the public’s constitutional right to a healthy and safe environment and to
implement specific legislation that protects the environment.
All proposed masts (as defined by the listing notices) must be submitted to the
Department for authorisation prior to their construction. Authorisation may only be
granted subject to an objective assessment of their environmental impact by an
environmental assessment practitioner (EAP).
Masts should be regarded as secondary developments that are driven by demand
created by primary developments. Telecommunications infrastructure should also
be seen as service infrastructure rather than as land uses.
The efficiency of the environmental authorisations process must be improved, so
that the Department informs telecommunications service providers of the outcome
of the authorisation process within a reasonable time. Alternatively, if the
Department cannot issue a Record of Decision within a reasonable time, it is
required by the Regulations to inform the applicant of reasons for the delay.
Applicants are accountable for the supply of accurate information for decisionmaking to the Department and for strictly following the officially laid-down
authorisation procedure and complying with the conditions of approval in the
Record of Decision.
The Department is obliged and entitled to monitor the service provider’s compliance
with the conditions in the record of decision and to withdraw authorisation should
non-compliance with the conditions of authorisation be found.
1.4
Objectives
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
It includes the following components:
#
Decision support guidelines with regards to the mitigation of visual impacts
associated with telecommunication structures: these guidelines should
provide guidance on the visual impact mitigation measures for specific
circumstances (e.g. mitigation in a treed vs. grassy area, when the use of
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
“tree masts” is appropriate, what standard mitigation measures should be
applied for all masts, etc.
!
#
Mechanisms or motivations to enhance the sharing of masts where masts
are proposed in close proximity of each other, with reference to maximum
distances appropriate to different technologies, the capabilities of disguised
masts, maintenance and confidentiality.
#
Mechanisms to enhance the co-use of telecommunications masts with other
appropriate existing structures (e.g. church steeples, lamp poles and
billboards): an indication should be given of the structures that are suitable
for co-use and clear criteria should be provided for deciding when structures
should be shared.
#
The identification of all types of telecommunications masts and deciding on
environmental management, responsibility and policy regarding the
management of the various types of structures.
#
Measures for the prioritising of public land and areas that serve the
community (e.g. churches, schools) for the placement of telecommunications
structures, so that the community can be compensated for the environmental
costs (e.g. visual impacts) associated with such structures.
Inventory of masts in Gauteng
A GIS-based database of all mast structures in Gauteng is to be developed. This
database will be compatible with the Department ’s existing Arc-View GIS
system. The database will be used (amongst other functions) to monitor new
applications, determine opportunities for mast sharing and to define sensitive
areas for telecommunications structures. All owners of masts will be expected to
make data available for inclusion in this database.
!
Government / industry forum (Gaucons Forum)
A government-industry communication forum is to be established to facilitate
communication between the Department and the telecommunications industry
regarding the environmental authorisation process for masts and the
maintenance of the GCNP. The forum will have representation from the major
stakeholders in the telecommunications industry as well as local and other
affected authorities and will advise the Department on the application and further
development of the Mast Construction Guidelines on a continuous basis. The
focus of the forum will be to provide a formal mechanism to discuss problems. It
will not have any decision-making powers.
1.5
Legislation
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Several laws govern the protection of the environment in South Africa. The most
important of these laws that relate to the telecommunications industry and
telecommunications structures, which create the legal framework for the evaluation
of these structures, are listed below.
!
The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act No. 108 of 1996)
Section 24 in the Bill of Rights of the Constitution confers a right to all persons to
an environment that is not harmful to their health or well-being.
It also imposes a duty on the state to protect the environment, for the benefit of
present and future generations, through reasonable legislative and other
measures that –
“(i)
prevent pollution and ecological degradation;
(ii) promote conservation; and
(iii) secure ecologically sustainable development and use of natural resources
while promoting justifiable economic and social development.”
Schedule 4 of the Constitution determines that the environment is a functional
area of concurrent national and provincial competence.
Section 33 entrenches every person’s right to administrative fairness.
!
National Environmental Management Act (Act No. 107 of 1998)
The National Environmental Management Act (NEMA) provides a framework
within which other environmental legislation must be interpreted and within
which all decision-making regarding the protection of the environment must take
place.
Section 2 of NEMA lays down principles that all organs of state must adhere to
when making decisions affecting the environment. Chapter 5 of NEMA requires
that the Integrated Environmental Management approach must be followed to
manage the environmental impacts of activities.
Section 23(2)(c) requires that the effects of activities on the environment should
receive attention before actions are taken in connection with them and Section
24(1) requires that the environmental impact of any activity that needs
authorisation by an organ of state, must be considered, investigated and
assessed prior to the implementation of that activity.
Section 24(2) of NEMA stipulates principles to which integrated environmental
management must comply and allows the promulgation of national and
provincial regulations. This was done on 21 April 2006, when the EIA regulations
and listing notices were promulgated. These regulations are set to come into
force on 3 July 2006.
Section 24(4) lays down the minimum criteria to which all assessments of
activities that could significantly impact on the environment (including EIA’s
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
undertaken in terms of the Regulations must comply. Section 24(4)(d) of NEMA
requires that public information and participation, independent review and
conflict resolution should form part of all phases of the investigation and
assessment of impacts.
Section 28 of NEMA imposes a duty of care and remediation of environmental
damage on all persons whose activities may have caused, may be causing and
may yet cause significant degradation of the environment to take reasonable
steps (including an assessment of environmental impact) to prevent such
damage from occurring or continuing to occur.
Section 31 of NEMA entitles the competent authority (in this case the
Department in Gauteng) to access to all information it may require to properly
fulfil its obligations in terms of NEMA and other legislation aimed at protecting
the environment.
In terms of the EIA regulations, Government Notice No. 385 of 2006 provides
the substantive application procedures for environmental authorisations.
Regulation 21 requires that a basic assessment must be applied to an
application if the authorisation applied for is in respect of an activity listed in
Government Notice No. R. 386 of 2006. Under the said notice, listed activity
number 14 reads:
"The construction of masts of any material or type and of any height, including
those used for telecommunication broadcasting and radio transmission, but
excluding (a) masts of 15 metres and lower exclusively used
(i)
by radio amateurs; or
(ii)
for lighting purposes
(b) flag poles; and
(c) lightning conductor poles.”
These legal provisions effectively require that the construction of masts must
first undergo environmental authorisations prior to commencement of the
activity.
!
The Environment Conservation Act (Act No. 73 of 1989)
The ECA has been repealed and will cease to be in effect once the EIA
regulations and listing notices come into effect on 3 July 2006.
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CONTROL ZONES
2.
2.1
Introduction
Based on current environmental policy and priorities in Gauteng, the province has
been divided into four different control zones, namely a low control zone, a medium
control zone, a high control zone and a very high control zone. These control zones
have been delineated on the basis of topography, land use and natural features that
are to a greater or lesser extent sensitive to telecommunications structures. This
sensitivity zoning is aimed only at masts and should not be used in determining the
environmental sensitivity for other types of activities. The zones were developed in
workshops with the Department officials and were also discussed during the
workshop with stakeholders on 30 November 2001.
The reason for sensitivity zoning of the province is to make the application and
authorisation processes more efficient by ensuring that the Department officials and
EAP’s focus their attention and resources on areas where truly significant
environmental impacts can be expected to occur. Nevertheless the creation of
these zones does not detract from the requirements of the regulations and the
listing notices with regard to environmental authorisations.
2.2
Low control zone
The following environments are included in the low control zone:
!
Industrial Areas
!
Mines and mine dumps
!
Railway lines and stations
!
Filling stations (in locations further than 100m from the nearest residential
property)
!
Airports
!
CBDs
!
Commercial precincts
!
Shopping centres
In terms of listing notice No. 386, mast construction in all these zones must at least
undergo a basic assessment.
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2.3
Medium control zone
The following environments are included in the medium control zone:
!
Schools and other education institutions (excluding private nursery schools)
!
Agricultural holdings (except areas of high agricultural potential)
!
Formal parks (community parks – local authorities must participate in each
instance to ensure that the visual intrusion of masts are not detrimental to the
function and aesthetic value of parks)
!
Religious structures
!
Sports fields and stadiums
Note: Applications for masts at sports fields, parks, schools and educational
institutions should indicate additional measures regarding the structural integrity of
the installations to ensure the safety of users of these areas.
In terms of listing notice No. 386, mast construction in all these zones must at least
undergo a basic assessment.
2.4
High control zone
The following environments are included in the high control zone:
!
Zoned open space other than formal parks
!
Residential properties
!
Natural vacant open space
!
Cemeteries and areas of cultural importance
!
The Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site
!
The Dinokeng Conservation Area
!
Areas where Red Data species may occur (suitable habitat)
In terms of listing notice No. 386, mast construction in all these zones must at least
undergo a basic assessment.
2.5 Very high control zone
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The very high control zone consists of areas and / or features that are important
from a natural and cultural conservation perspective. All applications in these areas
will be at least subjected to a basic assessment.
The following environments are included in the high control zone:
!
Within the natural floodplains of streams or rivers
!
Wetlands and pans
!
Archaeological sites
!
Ridges and koppies
!
Officially proclaimed nature conservation areas, botanical gardens,
conservancies, bird sanctuaries and a 100m buffer zone around such areas
!
Areas where Red Data species are known to occur (including a 270m buffer
zone around such)
!
Historical sites as proclaimed by the National Monuments Act or the National
Heritage Resources Act no. 25 of 1999
Please note that all the buffers included in the control zones originated from existing
the Department policies and guidelines. In terms of the Department policies such as
the “Final Draft Development Guidelines for Ridges” (dated April 2001) and the Red
Data Plan Policy for Environmental Impact Evaluations” (dated 11 August 2000)
ridges and areas containing red-data plant species are classified as “no-go” areas.
Calling an area a “no-go” area does not imply that the Department may place an
absolute ban on development in that area. The Department cannot tell a developer
before the start of the environmental authorisation process that development cannot
be allowed under any circumstances. This would be contrary to the process
prescribed by the EIA regulations, which requires that a decision must be made on
the basis of a basic assessment and/or scoping. The Department is obliged to
review all development applications for these areas on their merits through the
legislated environmental authorisation process.
The Department has mapped exclusions and inclusion areas, which indicate
geographical areas wherein mast construction may be subject to additional
requirements, or alternatively excluded from these requirements. The applicant may
request these maps from the Department.
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3.
3.1
TELECOMMUNICATION STRUCTURES
Inventory of structures
An inventory of examples of telecommunication structure types will be kept and
maintained by the Department. The structures range from modern composite
material “needle masts” to large concrete tower structures. The purpose of this
inventory is to highlight choices of available telecommunication structure types to all
stakeholders including interested and affected parties thereby assisting informed
public participation and decision making. This information will be made available to
interested and affected parties on request.
3.2
Camouflage of mast structures and containers
From an environmental perspective it is important that the chosen mast structures
and container types are appropriate for the specific environment in which it will be
placed. The choice of structure or camouflage must therefore be done on an
individual case-by-case basis taking the specific characteristics of each individual
site into account. The blanket application of one or a few standard camouflage
types is not acceptable. It is important that the focus is shifted to case-by-case
custom design that may also incorporate multi-use of structures rather than the
endless repetition of specific predetermined camouflage types throughout the
province. It is also important that unnecessary camouflage at very high cost be
avoided unless it is absolutely necessary. The party (the applicant, local authority
or community) who requires camouflage of any type must motivate it fully. The
Department also has the right to change the type of camouflage or to prescribe a
completely different option based on its assessment of the environment around any
specific site.
3.3
GIS database of structures
The Department will maintain a GIS database of all masts in Gauteng. The
database will be used to determine the proximity of existing masts to new site
applications, so that sharing of structures can be facilitated. The database will also
be used to help administer the monitoring and auditing of compliance with
conditions of approval, and to identify areas which have reached an “environmental
threshold value” (due to the proliferation of a large number of masts in an area)
where the construction of additional masts must be prevented if possible due to the
unacceptable cumulative impact on the environment. The threshold values for
defined areas will be determined from time to time by the Department after
evaluating the cumulative impact of masts against the sensitivity of the
environment. Without a complete database of mast sites, this is not currently
possible and the Department will in the interim follow a cautious approach by
regarding all the high and very high control zones as areas that have reached their
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
threshold unless proved otherwise through substantial evidence in each individual
application.
The database will include the following information:
!
Structure identification number
!
Site name
!
Site owner
!
Physical address
!
Property number
!
District, town or suburb
!
Geographical coordinates
!
Structure height relative to base (including antennas and other attachments)
!
Mast type
!
Diameter of structure at ground level (only for large concrete structures and
lattice masts)
!
Area of the site in m2
!
Indication of type of authorisation issued
!
The Department reference number
!
Current status (constructed or not constructed)
Applicants will be required to provide information together with every application in
a specified format that will make it easy to incorporate this information in the
database.
Information of different service providers will be stored on different layers in the
database.
The information in the database relating to planned sites or networks that have not
yet been subjected to the impact assessment procedure will generally not be made
available to any third parties. Only information that relates to applications that are
currently the subject of public participation in the environmental authorisation
process, or sites that have already been considered in the environmental
authorisation process will be made available to the public. Information in basic
assessment, scoping and EIA reports, according to the EIA regulations is available
to the public.
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3.4
Mast sharing guideline
Unnecessary duplication and proliferation of masts should be avoided. Duplication
and proliferation of structures is environmentally undesirable due to cumulative
visual impact that these structures may have on the aesthetic appeal or quality of
the environment. It falls well within the statutory competence of the Department to
establish mast sharing as a preferred environmental alternative.
Interference between telecommunication systems is a product of both bad planning
and non-intentional transmission and reception paths (according to CSIR
specialists). Bad planning can never be an excuse for non-sharing of masts. If
interference is given as a reason for non-sharing, auditable calculations to show the
planned interference should be given. SABS ETSI TR 100053 should be used as a
reference.
The Department will generally give preference to sharing existing
telecommunication structures, rather than allowing the construction of a new
structure in close proximity to an existing structure. Mast sharing should be
considered whenever a new location is within 600m of an existing mast structure.
The onus shall in all such cases be on the applicant to prove why an existing
structure cannot be shared. If the reasons are technical, a technical report by an
independent radio engineer, as approved by the Department, should be submitted
as evidence. In any instance in the medium, high and very high control zones
where masts are not shared within a radius of 300m, the Department may decline
authorisation for an application if it will lead to cumulative visual impacts irrespective
of whether there are feasible alternatives or not unless compelling reasons to
deviate from this approach does support such applications.
The Department will generally also not allow the expansion of “mast farms” or
“hubs”. New infrastructure in such places will only be allowed if it also serves the
purpose of reducing the visual and general environmental impacts by facilitating
sharing on the new structure. In such cases, sharing on the new structure should
lead to the decommissioning and removal of existing structures, thereby
substantially reducing the environmental impact.
New mast structures should also be designed and constructed to facilitate mast
sharing. An exception to this will be in low demand areas where it would be more
appropriate to build a low impact structure due to the sensitivity of the environment.
This must be fully motivated.
Applicants must provide all their information with respect to existing masts to the
Department in order to determine potential cumulative impacts and potential for
mast sharing.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) supports the Department in this guideline and the
two organisations will work together to ensure that the cumulative visual and safety
impacts of masts are reduced to the lowest possible level.
3.5
The use of other structures
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Whenever possible, existing structures (other than masts) should be used for the
placement of antennas. Examples of such structures include:
!
Multi storey buildings (rooftop sites)
!
Church steeples
!
Water pressure tanks
!
Reservoirs
In some instances masts can also be incorporated into a multi-functional design that
fulfils more than one purpose. Examples include:
!
Masts incorporated into billboards at commercial centres
!
Masts that also serve as street lamps or poles for floodlights at sports grounds
!
Masts that form integral parts of buildings and other structures
The Department will generally encourage the combination of telecommunication
infrastructure with other structures, and may request that such alternatives be
investigated, whenever it is feasible and appropriate. Should it not be possible to
share such structures, detailed proof substantiating this should be supplied to the
Department.
3.6
Classification of telecommunication structures
The following classification of masts is based on the relative potential impact that
structures may have on the environment:
!
Low impact structures
#
All freestanding mast structures less than 10m in height (including antennas
and lightning protectors on top of masts) without:
-
Navigation lights
-
Red and white band colouring
-
Camouflage
#
Small dishes, les than 1m in diameter
#
Micro antennas fixed to building structures
#
Containers and equipment housed within buildings or located underground
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#
!
Low to medium impact structures
#
#
#
#
!
All freestanding mast structures between 10m and 25m in height (including
antennas and lightning protectors on top of masts) without:
-
Navigation lights
-
Red and white band colouring
-
Camouflage
Dishes, between 1m and 2m in diameter
Containers and equipment buildings smaller than 12m2 and less that 2.3m
high.
Rooftop antennas that does not add more than 3m to the height of the
building or structure to which they are attached
Medium to high impact structures
#
All freestanding mast structures between 25m and 45m in height (including
antennas and lightning protectors on top of masts).
#
All camouflaged mast structures
#
Dishes, between 2m and 5m in diameter
#
#
!
Rooftop antennas that does not add to the height of the building or structure
to which they are attached
Containers and equipment buildings between 12m2 and 50m2 in surface area
and less that 3m high
Rooftop antennas that add more than 3m to the height of the building or
structure to which they are attached
High impact structures
#
All freestanding mast structures taller than 45m in height (including antennas
and lightning protectors on top of masts)
#
All freestanding mast structures of which the footprint area of the mast
structure (not associated buildings) is greater than 20m2
#
Dishes, larger than 5m in diameter
#
Containers and equipment buildings larger than 50m2 in surface area
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The potential impact of telecommunications infrastructure as categorised above provides
important information for consideration during environmental authorisations.
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4.
APPLICATION PROCEDURE
For detailed application procedures, the applicant is referred to the EIA regulations and the
Department for guidance.
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5.
5.1
GUIDELINES FOR Environmental Assessment
Practitioners (EAPs’).
Introduction
The regulations confer a unique role to the EAP. Although the applicant pays the
EAP, the EAP’s obligation is to facilitate a process between the applicant and the
relevant authority. In doing this, the EAP must act independently and is not allowed
to show any bias towards either the applicant or the authority. The EAP must
concentrate on gathering and presenting all relevant information that should inform
a decision by the authority in an objective, honest and unbiased manner.
5.2
Knowledge of legislation, policies etc.
The assessment of the impacts of identified activities takes place within the
framework of environmental laws and regulations. These laws and regulations spell
out the responsibilities and obligations of all parties in the environment impact
assessment process. While the EAP is not expected to be a legal specialist, the
EAP must at least have a working knowledge and proper understanding of the
relevant pieces of legislation.
It is the duty of the EAP to inform the applicant of all the implications in the relevant
legislation. Whenever an EAP is unsure about any legal provision he or she should
immediately inform the applicant of the uncertainty and then refer the matter to an
environmental law expert for advice and seek a ruling from the competent authority
where uncertainty persists. EAP’s are advised to keep formal records of
consultations with applicants and other parties in respect of legal interpretation in
order to avoid disputes from arising and also to provide a basis for settling disputes
when they do arise.
5.3
Knowledge of the Department’s requirements and processes
It is the responsibility of the EAP to make sure that he or she is fully aware of all the
Department’s requirements and processes. EAP’s should not “learn at the expense
of applicants”. The application procedure as spelled out in the EIA regulations must
be followed.
5.4
Registration of EAP’s and the Code of Conduct for EAP’s
EAP’s play a very important role in environmental authorisations.
They are
responsible for ensuring the effective facilitation of the process between the
applicant and the relevant authority in an unbiased way. Unfortunately the so-called
failures of the system are sometimes due to failures on the part of the EAP. There
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have been instances where they have not delivered the expected quality of work,
especially with respect to site assessments, which is often of an insufficient quality.
It has, therefore, become necessary to introduce measures to ensure that the
EAP’s fulfil their obligations in terms of the regulations.
The Department proposes that all EAP’s appointed in terms of the Regulations
should accept the Code of Conduct in writing prior to undertaking an EIA process
on behalf of an applicant. The EAP should in all aspects relating to the
authorisation of an application for a mast construction comply with the conditions of
the Code of Conduct. It will be up to he applicants to enforce this, as they are
responsible for the appointment of EAP’s in terms of the EIA regulations.
5.5
Content of the Code of Conduct:
EAP’s wishing to undertake work as stipulated in the EIA regulations in respect of
environmental authorisations, in addition to the minimum requirements provide for
by the EIA regulations be required (by the applicant) to bide by the following code of
conduct:
!
The EAP shall at all times place the integrity of the environment and the
constitutional right of individuals to a healthy environment above all other
interests.
!
The EAP must ensure that he or she is independent in every respect and that
his or her payment by the applicant is not dependent on the issuing of a positive
RoD. The EAP must also ensure that he or she is not involved in any other
aspect of the project and that he or she earns less than 50% of earnings from
any specific applicant. It is advised that these aspects be included in a formal
contract between the applicant and the consultant.
!
The EAP shall ensure that potential environmental impacts are considered as
early as possible in the site selection process and shall guide the applicant in
identifying sites in the least sensitive zones possible, within the constraints of
technical considerations.
!
The EAP shall follow the procedures specified in the Department Guideline for
EAP’s. Where uncertainty exists about the interpretation of this document, the
EAP shall request clarification from the Department.
!
The EAP shall not undertake any work for which he or she is not qualified and
will ensure that suitably qualified specialists are used whenever necessary.
!
The EAP shall only undertake actions related to environmental authorisations
according to the terms of written agreements on official the Department
letterheads. No verbal agreements with the Department officials will be
permitted. Where verbal clarifications are reached between the EAP and the
Department, the EAP shall only implement such clarification after confirmation
thereof in writing by the Department, as singed by the Head of the Department.
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5.6
!
The EAP shall in all contact with the interested and affected parties maintain an
independent stance regarding the environmental impacts of the proposed
structure. The EAP shall not promote the applicant’s preferred alternative, but
shall objectively review evidence to identify the alternative with the lowest
potential environmental impact.
!
The EAP shall be accountable for the accuracy of data and information
presented in the documentation.
!
The EAP shall not conduct his activities in a manner involving dishonesty, fraud,
deceit or misrepresentation.
!
The EAP must not commence with work before the applicant has issued him or
her with a letter of appointment.
Public participation including key stakeholders
Chapter 6 of the EIA regulations contain the minimum requirements necessary for
public participation. These provisions should be adhered to. In terms of the EIA
regulations, public participation is the responsibility of the applicant. In most
instances the EAP will also be used to fulfil this function on behalf of the applicant.
If not, the applicant must take responsibility for the aspects described under this
point.
The applicant or EAP shall maintain an objective attitude towards the public. The
applicant or EAP shall not promote any alternative project options, except in so far
as one alternative may cause less environmental impact than another alternative.
The applicant or EAP shall respond to requests for information by the public and
shall provide complete and objective information to the public to address their
concerns.
The applicant or EAP shall gather the comments of the public and key stakeholders,
respond to the comments and record both the comments and the responses in a
“Comments and Responses Report” as required by regulation 59 of the EIA
regulations. This report must also include an assessment of public concerns as well
as an indication of further steps that are necessary in the public participation
process. All comments shall be reflected truthfully and completely in the report.
The Comments and Responses Report must be submitted to the Department.
Minutes of meetings, written comments from interested parties and the consultant’s
replies to these comments, must be included as appendices to the report.
It is the applicant’s responsibility to prove to the Department that adequate public
participation has taken place. The applicant or EAP must include all necessary
information in the Comments and Responses Report to prove that the process
followed was appropriate and adequate for the particular application. The
Department reserves the right to request an applicant to re-do the public
participation process in instances where it is found to have been done inadequately
as required by the EIA regulations.
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The following are considered to be key stakeholders that must be consulted in all
circumstances:
!
The relevant local authority:
Local authorities currently have no jurisdiction to make decisions in respect of
environmental authorisations unless they are designated competent authorities.
RoD’s and any conditions attached to it with respect to environmental issues as
issued by the Department are binding as well as overriding and may not be
changed by a local authority. It is, therefore, extremely important to ensure that
local authorities participate in the process as a key stakeholders in each and
every instance as required by regulation 56(b)(iv) of the EIA regulations. The
local authorities must provide their inputs, proposals and suggestions timeously
so that they can be considered for inclusion in the RoD’s issued by the
Department. It is the responsibility of the applicant or EAP to ensure that local
authorities are fully informed. The applicant or EAP must be able to prove that
local authorities have been notified of the application. Jointly, with the applicant,
it is the responsibility of the EAP to ensure that the environmental authorisation
process precedes local authority processes to ensure that the local authorities
can use the RoD’s in their decision-making processes.
!
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)
The CAA is represented on the Gaucons Forum. The Civil Aviation Authority is
also very concerned about the proliferation of telecommunication structures,
especially in urban areas where such structures pose a real safety threat to
flying personnel from the Police and emergency services. In future the
Department and the CAA will work closely together to ensure that mast sharing
is maximised and that the policies of the two regulators are applied in a manner
that better serves the needs of both authorities. In order to ensure that the CAA
is in a position to make better, informed decisions in respect of their
requirements for masts, it is important that the applicant or EAP fully inform the
CAA of alternatives and the environmental assessments as it may have an
impact on the decisions the CAA make. It is also important that the potential
environmental impacts of the CAA requirements be assessed in each instance
by the consultant.
!
Directly affected neighbours
Directly affected neighbours include all landowners and tenants around a
telecommunication structure that may potentially be directly affected by the
structure in any manner. Neighbours may extend beyond adjoining properties in
certain circumstances and in other circumstances neighbours may only be a few
adjoining properties if the structure is located on a very large property.
Landscape and topography may also play a role as they often have an influence
on the size of the viewshed where the impact is significant. It is the duty of the
EAP to define and motivate the directly affected neighbours. These neighbours
must be notified and informed of the proposed structure. The applicant must
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
prove to the Department that the methods of informing these neighbours were
appropriate and effective in each instance, and met the minimum requirements
prescribed by Chapter 6 of the EIA regulations. Special attention must be given
to language and cultural considerations.
!
Ratepayers organisations, local resident’s associations and conservation
groups
Any organisation of ratepayers that represents the community in the area local
residents associations, ward committees, conservation groups and traditional
authorities (where applicable) must be notified and be provided with information
on the proposed structure in writing.
!
All service providers who have existing masts within 600m of the
proposed alternative site
All service providers who have existing structures within 600m of the site must
be notified and be provided information on the proposed development in writing.
5.7
Advertisement
Advertisements must conform to the minimum prescriptions of the EIA regulations, in
addition to the requirements provided below. The EAP shall obtain an official
Department reference number for each site alternative to be advertised and shall
obtain official Department notification indicating that advertising may start. The EAP
must clearly indicate the reference number in all notices to the public (including onsite notices, newspaper advertisements and notices to neighbours, etc.).
!
On site advertisement
On-site advertisements must comply with the minimum requirements of Chapter
6 of the EIA regulations and as additionally stipulated hereunder. This includes
printed on stiff, flat white weatherproof material of sufficient strength to survive
any weather conditions. The size of the advertisements must be at least 84cm
high by 58cm wide. The lettering must be in “Arial” font and the smallest letters
must be at least 8mm high and 6mm wide in permanent black ink. The line
thickness of the letters must be at least 1,2mm.
The advertisements must be fitted to an existing fence or other structure with the
permission of the landowner or must be fitted to specially planted metal rods of
sufficient strength. Advertisements may under no circumstances be fastened to
trees, shrubs or other plants or to the post of any road sign. The advertisement
must be placed between 400cm and 500cm above the ground and must be
clearly visible. The advertisement must remain on site for at least 30 calendar
days. If sites are not readily accessible to the public view, a second
advertisement must be placed at the nearest point from where it its clearly
visible to people who pass by, referring them to the first advertisement. The
Department also reserves the right to demand that more advertisements be
placed at strategic locations. The advertisements must be maintained in good
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condition for the duration of the advertisement period. If an advertisement does
not conform or is not displayed for the full advertisement period, for whatever
reason, the Department reserves the right to demand that the site be readvertised.
!
Newspaper advertisement
Newspaper advertisement must conform to the minimum requirements of
Chapter 6 of the EIA regulations and as further stipulated by the Department
hereunder. This includes separately for each application (including its alternative
sites if applicable) in a local newspaper or several newspapers as stipulated by
the Department. The size of the advertisement must be at least 100cm2. The
lettering must be in “Arial” font and the smallest letters must be at least 1.5mm
high and 1.1mm wide. The comment period on the advertisement must be at
least 30 days.
!
The contents of advertisements
Where an exemption from compliance with certain parts of the Regulations is
sought, this must be stated in the advertisement as required by Chapter 5 of the
EIA regulations.
In addition to the minimum requirements in terms of Chapter 6 of the EIA
regulations, the Department has the right to prescribe the contents of the
advertisement in special or exceptional circumstances.
5.8 Application form including the site assessment form
The EAP must submit an application containing the site assessment form to the
responsible the Department official in the format provided by the Department. The
form must be clearly and legibly filled in to facilitate review of the report by the
Department.
The EAP may not appoint or contract any employee of the Department or any other
authority at national, provincial or local level to assist with the completion of the
application form.
The following aspects are be included in the application form:
!
Identification of the site
#
Site name
#
Applicant’s reference number
#
The Department reference number
#
Physical address
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!
!
#
Property number (stand number or farm portion)
#
Town or district
#
Latitude and longitude (decimal degrees or degrees and decimal minutes)
#
Site location map
#
Indicate the control zone within which the site is located
#
Indicate and describe other masts within 600m from the site.
Description of proposed structure and associated infrastructure
#
Type (according to the Department registered mast types) e.g. concrete
tower, monopole, lattice, camouflage, rooftop, etc
#
Total height of structure from base (base can be at ground level or rooftop
level) including antennas
#
Access road – describe type and length
#
Equipment container or building – describe type and dimensions
#
Power supply – describe type (e.g. above ground / below ground) and length
#
Paving – describe type and surface area
#
Fencing
#
Other infrastructure
Assessment of potential visual impact:
#
Short distance (<500m) visual exposure in all directions
#
Medium distance (500m – 1km) and long distance (>1km) visual exposure in
all directions
#
Sensitivity of landforms
#
Visual impact absorption capacity of vegetation
#
Character of adjacent land uses in eight main compass directions
#
Short distance viewer incidence
#
Total / overall significance of visual impacts taking all the above factors into
account
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!
Sensitive environmental elements
!
Assessment of potential biophysical and social impacts
!
Potential for erosion and factors conducive to erosion
!
Vegetation type / ground cover
!
Potential for impacts on rare or endangered plant species
!
Potential for impacts on rare or endangered animal species
!
Potential for impacts on features of cultural or historical importance
!
Potential for sharing with existing masts or other structures
!
Recommendations
# Authorisation route to be followed (basic assessment / scoping and EIA)
!
#
Additional public participation: Indicate what types of additional public
participation are necessary
#
Mast type (provide clear motivation for camouflaging where applicable)
#
Mast height
#
Sharing (if sharing is not possible, provide clear motivation why)
#
Specific conditions of approval
Site photos
#
!
Provide colour photos of the mast site and the surrounding environment in all
directions.
Details of the site assessment
#
Environmental consulting company
#
Site assessor’s name
#
Contact numbers
#
Date of site assessment
#
A copy of written consent of the landowner to undertake the proposed activity
on that land.
5.15 Consideration of alternatives
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The EAP shall ensure that a range of feasible alternatives (site alternatives,
alternative heights of structures or alternative types of structures), as required by
the EIA regulations are considered in the environmental authorisation process. If
the applicant has not identified alternatives, the EAP must assist the applicant to
identify and investigate feasible alternatives for consideration in the environmental
assessment process. All site alternatives must be feasible from a technical point of
view and the Department reserves the right to choose any of the alternative sites at
its discretion. The Department also has the right to request the applicant to
investigate further alternatives. The Department generally will not review
applications where the consideration of alternatives has not been properly
addressed. These applications will be returned to the applicant for revision.
5.9 Requests for additional information
It is the EAP’s duty to provide comprehensive information on the site conditions and
the expected environmental impacts in the format described above. If the EAP fails
to supply some of this information, the Department generally will not be in a position
to properly review the application and the Department may request the missing
information to be supplied. The EAP must endeavour to supply all the information
required in terms of the checklist provided by the Department. If the Department
requests additional information, the EAP must supply this within the time prescribed
by the Department. If the additional information cannot be supplied within the
prescribed time, EAP must inform the Department of the reasons for the delay.
Failure to provide such reasons will result in the Department regarding the
application to have been withdrawn.
5.10 Appeal of Records of Decision
In the event that the Department issues a Record of Decision that either declines
authorisation or authorises an alternative that is not preferred by the applicant, or in
terms of any other decision for which an appeal is allowed, the applicant may
appeal the decision through the appeal process provided under Chapter 7 of the
EIA regulations.
5.11 Requests for meetings with the Department officials
EAP’s should submit their application to the responsible Department official at least
two weeks prior to any meetings. This will enable the Department ’s personnel to
become familiar with the project prior to meeting the consultant. Meetings will be
arranged at the discretion of the Department officials because they need to prioritise
their activities according to the potential impacts of applications and they cannot
accommodate meetings for each and every concern the EAP may have.
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6.
GUIDELINES FOR OFFICIALS
6.1 Determination of the geographical area of the activity based on
exclusions and inclusion mappings
The site of mast construction will be located on the exclusions and inclusions maps
maintained by the Department. These maps will determine if the activity falls within
a geographical area that possibly has been excluded from environmental
authorisation for that particular activity. It may also fall within an area that additional
requirements are required over and above the listing notices. The results of this
assessment will be communicated to the applicant. The exclusions and inclusion
maps are also available from the Department for the use of the EAP and applicant.
6.2 Prioritisation of public areas
Where public sites have been identified as alternative site locations for
telecommunications structures, the EAP must provide a comparison of the positive
and negative impacts of the public sites vs. private sites. Unless the owners or
managers of public land are opposed to the location of a telecommunication mast
on their land and as long as the environmental impacts of sites on public land are
less significant or of equal significance to the impacts on public land, then public
land must be considered the preferred alternative. It must be specifically motivated
if an alternative on private land is preferred over an alternative on public land. The
Department reserves the right to authorise any of the alternatives presented at its
discretion.
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GUIDELINES FOR THE INDUSTRY
7.
7.1
Introduction
In South Africa the telecommunication industry is a large and diverse group of
private, public and public owned enterprises as well as government institutions that
operate telecommunication infrastructure for various purposes. The environmental
impacts of the infrastructure varies from extremely high to almost negligible. The
one element that sets the industry apart from all other industries is the steady
stream of applications that are received by the Department on a continuous basis.
7.2
The applicant
Within the context of the telecommunications industry, the applicant is the
organisation or person who requires the authorisation in order to fulfil its
telecommunication function. The applicant should not be an agent, unless such an
agent is empowered to act fully on behalf of the organisation, which applies on
behalf of the organisation for the following reasons:
7.3
!
The RoD cannot be issued to anyone but the applicant and the applicant will be
held responsible for the environmental management throughout the lifecycle of
the project. The applicant must therefore be in a real position to fulfil all the
long-term obligations that may result from an authorisation in terms of the EIA
regulations.
!
In terms of the EIA regulations the applicant has significant responsibilities and
obligations. The applicant must clearly be in a position to fulfil all these
responsibilities and obligations.
!
The EAP fulfils an information gathering and facilitating role between the
applicant and the relevant authority. It is therefore important that the EAP is not
part of performance based project teams as it may jeopardise the independence
of the EAP as required by the EIA regulations. The EAP must be in a position
where he or she can freely advise both the applicant and the relevant authority
on any matter that will have environmental consequences at any time.
The responsibilities and obligations of the applicant
The EIA regulations confer very specific responsibilities and obligations on the
applicant. It is important that applicants have a good understanding of exactly what
these responsibilities and obligations are. Failure to comply can lead to costly
delays and even the withdrawal of applications.
The following are key
responsibilities of the applicant:
!
The appointment of an independent consultant
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In accordance with the EIA Regulations the applicant must appoint an
Environmental Assessment Practitioner that fulfils the general requirements of
EAP’s as prescribed by regulation 18 of the EIA regulations.
!
The financial responsibility towards the consultant
The applicant is responsible for all costs relating to the employment of the
consultant.
!
Ensuring that the EAP has no other financial incentives from the project
The applicant must ensure that the EAP has no financial or other interest in the
undertaking of the proposed activity, except with regard to complying with the
regulations.
!
Ensuring that the EAP is competent
The applicant must ensure that the EAP is competent in respect of
environmental expertise, the ability to perform relevant tasks, the ability to
manage public participation processes, the ability to write reports, the ability to
gather and preserve data as well as a good working knowledge of relevant
policies, legislation, guidelines, norms and standards.
!
Is responsible for the public participation process
The applicant or EAP is responsible for the public participation process to
ensure that all interested parties, including government departments that may
have jurisdiction over any aspect of the activity, are provided with the
opportunity to participate in all relevant procedures.
7.4
Strategic assessment of networks
Where authorisation applications form part of larger networks, the
telecommunications service provider should approach the Department during the
early planning stage of the networks. Industry should inform the Department
proactively to understand the strategic nature and need of networks such as
microwave networks, instead of making individual site-specific applications. The
Department should in its turn identify less sensitive areas where authorisation
processes will be less cumbersome.
7.5
Large number of applications
Applicants should give the Department at least 30 days written warning if the
applicant expects to submit a large number of applications within a short space of
time, to enable the Department to prepare itself for this.
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7.6
Applications from parties other than license holders
No applications will be accepted from parties other than those who are properly
licensed by telecommunications authorities to operate telecommunications
networks or that belong to a legitimate organisation that require the authorisation to
meet obligations or needs of the organisation. Although applications from
prospective technology partners to the third cellular phone network were accepted
in the past, this practice will no longer be allowed, in order to avoid the unintended
consequences of speculation of sites for purposes not originally intended. RoDs do
not confer an inalienable open right but rather authorise an activity for a specific
purpose at a specific place, usually with conditions attached.
7.7
Compliance with national and international norms and standards
All telecommunications masts must comply with the latest norms and standards
published by the World Health Organisation, the International Committee on NonIonising Radiation Protection (which have been adopted by the National
Department of Health), the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa
and the South African Bureau of Standards. Where such standards may be in
conflict, the Department will apply the most stringent of these standards.
7.8
Site selection
Site selection by a telecommunications specialist should be done in an
environmentally sensitive way. Unnecessary difficulties can be avoided if the
industry acts proactively and select sites taking note of environmental criteria. Site
selection guidelines are provided in (Appendix B).
7.9
Lease agreements
In cases where lease agreements are entered into before authorisation is obtained,
the applicant must make it clear to the landowner with whom a lease has been
entered into that the construction of the structure is dependent on environmental
authorisation, which is subject to environmental considerations only. It must be
made clear that the income-generating potential of the site for the landowner and
other commercial factors are not considered in the environmental authorisation
process. It is also important that residents on the site who may have a lease
contract with the landowner must also be consulted as interested and affected
parties. Further in terms of the EIA regulations, if the applicant is not the owner of
the land on which the activity is to be undertaken, the applicant must, before
applying for an environmental authorisation in respect of that activity, obtain the
written consent of the landowner to undertake the proposed activity on that land.
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7.10 Consideration of alternatives
The applicant shall provide a range of feasible alternatives (site alternatives,
alternative heights of structures or alternative types of structures) to the Department
for consideration in the EIA process.
7.11 Public participation
The applicant is responsible for ensuring that public participation is undertaken as
required by Chapter 6 of the EIA regulations. . This means that the applicant is
obliged to include public participation in the brief to the environmental EAP or to
appoint a public participation specialist.
The applicant is also responsible for enabling an adequate public participation
process in terms of the project timeframe and milestones as well as in terms of
financial provision.
7.12 Prioritisation of public areas
It is the policy of government that the provision of infrastructure services should be
to the benefit of the widest possible community. For that reason the Department
prefers the provision of telecommunication infrastructure in public places where the
rent will benefit the wider society as opposed to individuals. It is important to select
as many sites as possible in public areas such as:
!
Formal parks (community parks)
!
School grounds
!
Places of worship
!
Sports grounds
!
Community centres
!
Clinics and public hospitals
!
Etc.
7.13 Sharing of structures
The cumulative impact of masts is the biggest single environmental concern about
masts in Gauteng. It is difficult to address cumulative impacts on a case-by-case
basis. Applicants are required to address cumulative impacts in all individual
applications. Due to the lack of strategic assessments by the industry, it is
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
imperative to make every application subject to the possible sharing with existing
infrastructure. Applicants should proactively maximise the sharing of infrastructure.
The Department generally will not approve new masts in the close vicinity of
existing masts unless it is proven beyond reasonable doubt by an independent
radio planner that mast sharing is not possible (also see section 3.4 of this report).
7.14 Informing the Department of the start of construction
The applicant must inform the responsible Department official in writing of the start
of construction of an authorised telecommunications structure. This will be included
as a condition of the ROD.
7.15 Compliance with conditions of authorisation
The applicant is responsible for compliance with all the conditions laid down in the
Record of Decision and Environmental Management Plans, and to this end is
responsible for communicating these conditions to all its employees and contractors
whose activities may cause environmental impacts on the particular site. Failure to
comply with conditions in the Record of Decision may lead to the withdrawal of
authorisation.
The Record of Decision may also require the applicant to audit compliance with the
conditions. The results of these audit reports must be provided to the Department
on request or at intervals as specified in the ROD.
7.16 Appeal of Record of Decision
All appeals should be addressed to the competent authority. The address to which
the appeal should be sent will be indicated on the Record of Decision.
Applicants may decide to appeal a record of decision themselves or they may
appoint an EAP or any other person to handle the appeal on their behalf. All
appeals must comply with the requirements of Chapter 7 of the EIA Regulations.
7.17 Public access to information
All information contained in environmental assessment reports, including the
application form, becomes public information once the public participation process
has started. The applicant may not refuse the public to get access to this
information, except where ample grounds for refusal of access to this information
exist in terms of the Promotion of Access to Information Act (Act no. 2 of 2000).
7.18 Selling of authorised sites
Applicants may only sell authorised sites (whether constructed or not) for use for
the exact purpose for which the sites were authorised in the first place.
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When selling sites that have been authorised by the Department, the seller must
make the buyer aware of the conditions under which the authorisation was granted.
The seller must also provide the Department with:
!
Copies of correspondence wherein the buyer has been informed of the
conditions of authorisation;
!
A list and description of the sites that it is selling together with the Department
reference numbers.
Where no reference numbers are available for sites (e.g. sites that were assessed
before the Department started issuing reference numbers), the buyer must provide
the Department with full details of the sites in a format suitable for incorporation into
the Department ’s database of telecommunications structures.
7.19 Periodic submission of GIS database of structures necessary
The applicant must provide the Department with information on the following in
ArcView format on an annual basis:
!
Sites authorised by the Department that have not been constructed
!
Sites authorised by the Department that have been constructed.
This information must contain data fields as prescribed by the Department and must
cover all sites that have been authorised since the previous database was
submitted to the Department.
7.20 Decommissioning
Applicant must rehabilitate the environment upon decommissioning of a structure.
As a general rule, sites must be rehabilitated to their original state before the mast
was constructed. However, where the surrounding land use has changed
substantially since construction, the nature of the rehabilitation will depend on the
nature and character of the site and its surroundings at the time of
decommissioning. The applicant must obtain the Department ’s approval for any
rehabilitation, and must include it in its environment management plan as required
by the EIA regulations. Further, other requirements for decommissioning will be
included as part of the conditions of the ROD.
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GUIDELINES FOR THE PUBLIC
8.
8.1
Introduction
It is very important that members of the public should understand their role in the
environmental assessment process and how they can meaningfully participate in
the process. This will ensure that their comments are valuable to the environmental
EAP and to the Department in the identification of significant environmental issues.
Some members of the public regard masts as a very emotive issue and as a result,
they tend to object to masts in general without motivating their objections by
referring to site-specific conditions. Such complaints do not add much value to the
environmental assessment process.
The guidelines provided below are written to:
!
Inform members of the public about their rights and responsibilities regarding
participation in the environmental assessment process for telecommunications
structures;
!
Inform the public about objective evidence surrounding the perceived impacts of
telecommunications structures; and to
!
Assist the public to formulate their comments in a manner that will ensure that
they can be afforded due attention in the environmental assessment process.
These guidelines should be provided in a pamphlet format that can be distributed
together with the notices to neighbours.
8.2
Legal right to participate
All interested parties have the right to participate and voice their opinions about any
aspect of a proposed mast that may have an effect on the environment. The right to
participate is entrenched by several different pieces of legislation, notably the
following:
!
The Constitution
Section 24 of the South African Constitution confers the right to an environment
that is not detrimental to one’s health and well-being. Section 32 of the
Constitution further confers the right to obtain access to any information (held by
any organ of State or by private organisation or individuals) that is required for
the exercise or protection of any rights.
!
The National Environmental Management Act (Act no. 107 of 1998)
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Section 2(4)(f) of the National Environmental Management Act requires that
participation of all interested and affected parties in environmental governance
must be promoted, and that all people must have the opportunity to develop the
understanding, skills and capacity necessary for achieving equitable and
effective participation, and participation by vulnerable and disadvantaged
persons must be ensured.
Section 24(4)(d) of the National Environmental Management Act requires that
public information and participation, must form part of all phases of the
investigation and assessment of environmental impacts.
The EIA regulations under Chapter 6 prescribe the mode of public participation
for environmental authorisations.
8.3
Responsibilities of interested parties
In order to ensure that the decision-making process runs smoothly and is not
unnecessarily delayed, it is necessary that interested parties should comply with
certain guidelines. These guidelines are outlined below.
Interested parties should respond within the times prescribed by the EIA regulations
or any other guidelines published for public participation.
Responding within the indicated timeframes will greatly improve the ability of the
project applicant, the EAP and the Department to consider the comments properly,
to adequately respond to them and to provide answers to queries.
Interested parties must respond in writing to ensure that their comments are
accurately incorporated into reports that will be used for decision-making.
Interested parties must provide sufficient motivations for their comments. General
statements, which do not provide reasons for an objection within the specific
context of a proposed site, cannot be considered in the decision-making process.
Thus statements such as “I do not like masts” have little value in the environmental
assessment process. Objections must be related to the site-specific conditions on
the proposed site.
Interested parties must indicate the reference numbers shown on notice boards and
notices to neighbours in all correspondence. This ensures that the comments
submitted follow the correct routes in the Department ’s administrative system. The
use of reference numbers is very important due to the large number of applications
that the Department receives.
Members of the public may address their concerns to the EAP or directly to the
Department. .
8.4
Categories of comments and responses to these comments
Comments from interested parties can be categorised into two distinct groups.
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Comments relating to site-specific attributes of the site, the local area or the region
are categorised as site issues. Site issues provide sufficient information and
motivation for them to be considered further in the environmental assessment of the
site. The importance of the site issue will also determine the extent of the
assessment required.
General comments and responses not pertaining to the attributes of a specific site
are categorised as global issues. Global issues in themselves seldom provide
sufficient information or motivation for further assessment to take place. These
issues are largely the same for all mast sites and can therefore usually be resolved
most effectively at a strategic level. It is often difficult to address these issues on a
site-by-site basis.
8.5
Site issues
Guidelines for submitting comments regarding site-specific issues are provided
below. All comments regarding site issues may be illustrated with photographs
where appropriate.
Consideration of feasible alternatives
!
If a member of the public is not satisfied with the location of a structure or
the type of structure that is being proposed such a person may request that
reasonable feasible alternatives be investigated.
Incompatibility with neighbouring land uses
!
If a member of the public regards a mast as being incompatible with a
surrounding or adjacent land use, this should be motivated with reference to
the particular attributes of the land use that will be negatively affected. The
nature of the land use and the effect that a mast may have on this land use
must be clearly indicated. Reference should be made to the distance and
direction between the affected land use and the proposed
telecommunications structure.
An assessment of the impact of proposed masts on adjacent land uses is
included in the environmental site assessment. These impacts will also be
identified as impacts on other sensitive environmental attributes in the
environmental site assessment.
!
Visual impacts
Visual impact is usually the most important impact of a telecommunications
structure. EAP’s are required to complete a detailed qualitative visual impact
assessment as part of the environmental site assessments. This information,
together with the mast-specific information (such as mast height) is
considered in determining the proposed mast’s visual influence on land uses
surrounding the mast site.
If you regard the proposed structure’s visual impact as important, this should
be motivated with reference to the following:
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#
Over what distance will the structure be visible?
#
From where will the structure be visible? Will the structure for instance be
visible from an important tourist viewpoint, from the living area of a house
or will the structure interfere with views from high-lying residential areas?
#
Who (individuals or groups) will be affected by views of the structure?
#
How many people will be affected by views of the structure?
#
Will the structure be screened by vegetation? If there are tall trees close
to the proposed location of the structure, this may reduce the visibility of
the structure.
#
Will the structure be situated at a prominent topographical position?
Structures that are placed on high-lying areas and ridgelines where they
break the skyline are much more visible than structures placed in valleys.
It is a standard condition of authorisation that metal monopole masts
should be painted dark green in order to mitigate the structure’s visual
impact. Dark green is a neutral colour that tends to blend in well with
most backgrounds especially over short distance views. The equipment
container and the palisade fence around the container will also be painted
green, unless these structures are designed to blend with the appearance
of existing structures close to the site or if the landowner requests a
deviation from this condition.
Camouflaged masts (e.g. palm trees and pine trees) are popular in
certain areas. They do however have the following disadvantages:
#
They are expensive to construct
#
They are difficult and expensive to maintain
#
They are not visually acceptable to all viewers, and in fact they
change a mast into a much bigger visual entity.
#
They generate much more wind noise than normal masts
#
They make the option of sharing masts between different operators
very difficult.
The use of a camouflaged mast must, therefore, be very well motivated
before the Department will consider authorising such a structure. These
types of masts will only be considered if they blend in with the visual
character of the surrounding area.
!
Impact on vegetation
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Members of the public must submit detailed comments if suspect that
there may be or if they know that there are rare or endangered plants or
exceptional plant specimens or populations at or close to the site of the
proposed telecommunications structure. Please include a detailed
description of the location of these plants.
All impacts on flora are dealt with in the environmental site assessment.
The significance of this impact will have a large influence on the
consideration of the application for construction. Where a significant
impact on rare or endangered plants is expected, alternative mast
locations must be considered.
!
Impacts on fauna
Please submit detailed comments if you suspect that there may be or are
aware that there are rare or endangered animal species at or close to the
site of the proposed telecommunications structure. Please include a
detailed description of where these animals are found.
All impacts on fauna are dealt with in the environmental site assessment.
The significance of this impact will have a large influence on the
continuation of the application for construction. Where a significant impact
on fauna is expected, alternative mast locations must be considered.
!
Noise
A monopole structure offers much less wind resistance than a lattice-type
masts or masts disguised as palm trees or pine trees. A mast
camouflaged as a pine tree or palm tree significantly increases wind
noise because of the wind resistance caused by the branch structures.
Monopoles therefore cause the least noise of these alternatives.
Monopoles are therefore recommended in most cases and the use of a
pine tree, palm tree or lattice mast must therefore be very well motivated.
The taller a mast the greater the potential for wind noise.
The design of the proposed mast must be suited to the environment in
areas that experience a significant number of windy days per annum and
excessive wind velocity. In these areas it is recommended that the
infrastructure should have the minimum mast height to decrease the
potential for generating wind noise.
Two further aspects regarding noise must be considered:
#
Noise from electrical cables: Cellular phone mast structures do not
carry electrical cables, apart from a 220v feeder cable for an aircraft
warning light, should it be required. The hum or buzz associated with
overhead power lines, which is related to the high voltage and
frequency of overhead power carriers, is not found on
telecommunication structures.
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
#
!
Noise from air conditioners: Air conditioners are installed in the
equipment containers that form part of the installation. Air conditioners
do make a certain amount of noise, which is aggravated by poor
maintenance. The technology currently available enables silent air
conditioners to be utilised. The owner of the mast is required to
ensure that that whatever infrastructure is installed, is regularly
maintained.
Sharing of masts in close proximity
In instances where other masts exist in close proximity to a proposed
mast site, the Department may insist that mast sharing should be
considered. The environmental site assessment by the EAP includes an
assessment of whether there are other suitable structures located close
to the site, and where such suitable masts exist, it is often recommended
that the masts should be shared. The service provider is to contact the
owner of the existing mast to explore the possibility of mast sharing.
Recommendations in this regard are included in the environmental
assessment that is submitted to the Department.
If a member of the public submits comments regarding sharing of
structures, it should be borne in mind that certain types of structures are
difficult or impossible to share. Palm tree and pine tree masts (especially
the older ones) for instance are very difficult or impossible to share. The
number of antennas that are already present on the existing structures
should also be considered. All mast structures are designed to carry a
certain maximum load, and some structures already carry the maximum
number of antennas possible.
8.6
Global issues
The following are global issues where the impacts are the same for all or most
telecommunication structures. Government has therefore, over time, developed a
general response to these issues. Global issues can usually be better addressed
at a strategic level than on a site-to-site basis. The following represent the current
status of some of the more prominent global issues:
!
Health impacts of telecommunications infrastructure
The Department endorses the following official statement of the South African
Department of Health regarding the perceived health effects of
telecommunications infrastructure:
“The Department has as its mandate the health and safety of the South African
public. In exercising regulatory control with regard to the health effects of
electromagnetic radiation, the Department charts it course only by reference to
confirmed scientific evidence; it is determined to be neither complacent nor
alarmist.
The levels of radiation energy emitted by cell phones in normal use result in
exposures that are well below internationally accepted limits such as those
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
proposed by the International Commission for Non-Ionising Radiation
Protection (ICNIRP). These guidelines are endorsed by the Department as it
considers ICNIRP to be the most representative and authoritative body on nonionising radiation protection in the world - a view which is shared by regulatory
authorities all over the world.
There is no confirmed scientific evidence of a health risk to humans resulting
from cell phone use, and there would appear to be no demonstrable health
benefit to be obtained by using devices to reduce exposure.
As a result of this lack of scientific evidence of any deleterious effects, the
Department has not deemed it necessary to exercise regulatory control over
the sale and use of cell phones. However, the situation is being monitored
constantly and the example and guidance of regulatory authorities and
research institutions around the world are constantly being considered in
determining policy in this regard.
Similarly, the Department has not deemed it necessary from a radiation protection
standpoint to exercise control over the erection and operation of cell phone base
stations”
The World Health Organisation and the International Committee for Non-Ionising
Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) have also issued official statements regarding the
health effects of cellular phones and base stations. The WHO’s fact sheet
“Electromagnetic Fields and Public Health” (Fact sheet no. 193 of June 2000)
and the ICNIRP’s statement “Health Issues related to the use of hand-held
radiotelephones and base transmitters” are available from the following websites
respectively: http://www.who.int/ and www.icnirp.de/
Further examples of scientific study about the perceived health effects of cellular
communications are contained in recent British and Canadian studies
commissioned by the governments of these countries. The “Independent Expert
Group on Mobile Phones” (IEGMP) undertook the British study in 2000. Their
report is available at the following website address: www.iegmp.org.uk/. The
Royal Society of Canada undertook the Canadian study in 1999. Their report is
available at: www.rsc.ca/
These statements and guidelines should also be available on request from the
environmental consultant.
!
Property devaluation
While it is recognised that cellular telecommunications masts and base stations
may affect property values, the evidence in most cases shows that this is not in
fact a significant negative issue. The provision of telecommunications
infrastructure is an essential service in urban areas with definite benefits to
society, especially to the communities in which the infrastructure is planned.
Objections received against the development of infrastructure, including
telecommunication infrastructure, should be accompanied by reasonable and
feasible alternatives.
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Gauteng Mast Construction Guideline Background Document
!
Increased traffic
The initial infrastructure construction period is the only time that there will be an
increase in traffic to the site. However, due to the small scale of construction the
duration of the impact will be short (2-3 weeks) and of negligible magnitude.
The overall increase in traffic after construction will be negligible and will be
limited to maintenance work carried out from time to time. Most functions of the
equipment will be managed by remote control and only periodic repairs and
inspections on site will generate any additional traffic.
!
Increased crime
According to the South African Police Service there is no indication in their
statistics of an increase in crime due to the presence of cellular
telecommunications infrastructure. There is, however, a clear indication that the
coverage provided by the infrastructure has a positive impact on safety in
general.
!
Electronic interference
All equipment to be used is approved by the South African Bureau of Standards
(SABS) and the independent Communications Authority of South Africa
(ICASA). Under normal operating circumstances there will not be any significant
interference.
#
Effect on television reception:
By law the bands allocated to telecommunication service providers may not
cause interference with television, and the Postmaster General as well as
ICASA strictly control this. Experience has shown that landlords initiate
blame on all their reception problems on the most recent operator. To
prevent this situation from arising, it is recommended that the
telecommunication service provider should in conjunction with the landowner
appoint an EAP to record the quality of reception and audit the installation
prior to and after the installation of a telecommunication structure.
#
Effect on computers:
All telecommunications related equipment has to comply to various IEEE
national and international standards relating to interference with other
equipment.
The equipment to be installed must comply with these
standards, which ensures minimum interference with computer equipment.
#
Effect on satellite dishes:
Dependent on the type of dish two types or bands of satellite transmission
are used: the 5 GHz band or the 11GHz band
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The 5GHz band is used for the larger C band dishes - 1,8m to 5m in
diameter while the 11GHz band is used by DSTV. These frequencies are
satellite-based and are strictly controlled by Intelsat. All communications
equipment and specifically GSM 900 x 1800 comply with regulations as
determined by ICASA and the Postmaster General.
!
Increased risk of lightning damage
High masts do attract lightning and can in fact be regarded as highly efficient
lightning conductors. In order to prevent damage to the equipment attached to
these masts, they are better earthed than any other structures in the immediate
environment. Provided that the masts are properly enclosed in a fenced off area,
masts should in fact reduce the potential risk of lightning damage to property or
loss of life. In residential areas the attraction of lightning to a mast can,
however, have a disturbing impact on some people.
8.7
What will happen to the public’s comments?
Comments from the public will be included in a report that will be submitted to the
Department and compiled by the EAP. The Department will consider all the public’s
comments and the assessments provided by the EAP and decide whether the
issues raised in the comments are important enough to warrant further
investigations. This report will be made available for public scrutiny before a final
decision is made. The Department will then issue a ‘record of decision’, which will
either authorise a structure (with conditions) or decline authorisation.
Please note that the telecommunications service provider may be required to
provide alternative site locations in the area where it intends to construct a
telecommunications structure. This site may be one of several alternative sites
under investigation.
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GAUCONS FORUM
9.
9.1
Terms of reference
The Gaucons Forum shall have the following functions:
9.2
!
Advising on the implementation and improvement of the Gauteng Mast
Construction Guidelines.
!
Providing interpretation of the Gauteng Mast Construction Guidelines and the
related applicable environmental legislation
!
Ensuring that all role players are kept abreast of new developments and
knowledge about the health and environmental impacts of telecommunications
structures
!
Ensuring that objective public information about the health and environmental
impacts of masts is disseminated
!
Ensuring a level playing field for the environmental authorisation of applications
from different telecommunication service providers
!
Promoting the continual improvement in the environmental performance of
masts and in the quality of assessment of their environmental impacts
!
Promoting the constitutional imperative of cooperative government by promoting
coordination between the policies and procedures of the Department and local
governments in Gauteng
Frequency of meetings
The forum will meet four times a year.
9.3
Representation
Each organisation must nominate 2 representatives (one principal representative
and one alternate), of which at least one must attend each meeting. Four
Departmental officials will attend the meetings. The following organisations has
indicated that they whish to be represented on the forum.
Telkom
Vodacom
MTN
Cell C
Sentech
Eskom
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SANDF
SA Radio League
Professional Mobile Association
Webb Industries
S.A. Civil Aviation Authority
SAPS
Armscor
City of Tshwane
Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality
Kungwini / Metsweding Local Municipality
Lesedi Local Municipality
It is important that all 3 metropolitan councils and all three district councils
participate. It is then their responsibility to disseminate the information to substructures under their jurisdictions. Currently, not all of these structures participate
and it is important that the Department invite them again to participate.
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10.
KEY ISSUES
10.1 Introduction
There are several key issues that cannot be resolved within the scope of the current
project. These issues need to be resolved in time through interaction in the
Gaucons forum. The main issues that require attention are discussed in this
section.
10.2 Unauthorised masts and structures that do not conform to
conditions of RODs
Due to various reasons there seems to be a number of masts that are currently
unauthorised or that do not conform to conditions of RODs. These should be
handled in terms of Section 24(G) of NEMA, which provides for rectification of
unlawfully commenced and continued acts of a listed activity.
10.3 Harmonisation of provincial and local authority authorisation
processes:
According to Section 2(4)(l) of NEMA, “There must be intergovernmental coordination and harmonisation of policies, legislation and actions relating to the
environment.” The current state of affairs where the application of land-use
legislation varies significantly between different local authorities makes it impossible
to create a standard link between the provincial and local government in Gauteng
within the restricted time frame of this project. The forum should work towards the
formulation of a link over time.
10.4 Need to regard masts as infrastructure
Local authorities in Gauteng have different approaches to telecommunications
structures. Some regard these structures as a land use, in which case the
applicants must obtain a “consent use” or an authorisation for a change of land use
in addition the approval of building plans and environmental authorisation. In other
local authorities, masts are regarded as a form of infrastructure, in which case only
approval of a building plan is necessary from the local authority and there is no
duplication between the authorisation processes for local and provincial
government.
Town Planning schemes have as their primary objective the control over the use of
building and the use of land. They provide the legislative framework that sets the
parameters for human activity on land or inside buildings on land. These schemes
do not regulate infrastructure installations such as electricity networks, water
reticulation networks, phone line networks or sewage networks. This infrastructure,
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which provides the basic services that a city needs to function, are not considered
to be “land uses” in town planning schemes. Similarly, masts should also be
regarded as forms of infrastructure rather than as land uses.
10.5 Authorisations that were issued to unsuccessful bidders for the
third cellular licence
There are a large number of applications that were authorised for the bidders in the
third cellular licence. Many of these sites are in close proximity to other authorised
sites of the successful bidders. The intention has never been to allow al these sites
to become active. The Civil Aviation Authority is also concerned about this. The
Gaucons Forum should resolve this issue as a matter of urgency.
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