GAP ANALYSIS AND NEEDS ASSESSMENT
REPORT
WEST RAND DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY
AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT PLAN
Compiled for:
West Rand District Municipality
Compiled by:
Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
Gauteng Head Office
P O Box 74785
Lynnwood Ridge
Pretoria
0040
Email: sef@sefsa.co.za
www.sefsa.co.za
June 2010
SEF Ref No: 502654
COPYRIGHT WARNING
Copyright in all text and other matter, including the manner of presentation, is the exclusive property of the author. It is a criminal offence to reproduce and/or use, without
written consent, any matter, technical procedure and/or technique contained in this document. Criminal and civil proceedings will be taken as a matter of strict routine
against any person and/or institution infringing the copyright of the author and/or proprietors.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The West Rand District Municipality appointed SEF to update and amend the existing AQMP
developed in December 2009 to include Merafong City Local Municipality after the Local Municipality
was re-incorporated from the North West Province into the District Municipality. An Air Quality
Management Plan (AQMP) is a legal requirement in terms of Section 15 (1) of the National
Environmental Management: Air Quality Act, 2004 (Act No. 39 of 2004) (NEMAQA), to assist local
governments in performing the air quality management functions delegated to them by the Act.
As part of the AQMP development, a baseline air quality assessment was done based on the existing
and available documentation within the WRDM, such as: air quality data from mines and industry;
meteorology and climate data from South African Weather Services and independent weather station.
The results of the Status Quo and Baseline Emission Inventory reports were used in determining the
gaps and needs for the WRDM in terms of air quality management.
Avoidance and Minimisation gaps and needs
The gap analysis revealed that there is no air pollution minimisation strategy within the WRDM and its
LMs. The WRDM and its LMs have no public education and awareness programmes on air pollution
reduction. The district needs to develop an air pollution minimisation strategy to achieve and sustain
acceptable air quality levels). Awareness levels for communities and businesses on air pollution
through periodic campaigns need to be implemented. Among other air pollution minimisation
measures all development applications (which should undergo an Environmental Impact Assessment
(EIA) process must have air pollution minimisation strategies.
Air quality monitoring gaps
There are only two air quality monitoring stations within the WRDM, one in Mogale CLM and the other
in Randfontein LM. Both the air quality monitoring stations were not operational during the study
period. There are no sufficiently trained officers within the WRDM to analyse the data collected from
weather and monitoring stations. There is little or no information on the various mine dumps within the
district in terms of air quality management and the responsibility for monitoring air quality impacts of
mine dumps is unclear There is no access to reliable weather data in the entire WRDM. Monitoring of
industrial air emissions for listed and non-listed; in terms of NEMAQA is not done. The ambient air
monitoring in the mining areas is limited to dust fall-out monitoring only and information on the medical
waste incineration facilities within the WRDM is very poor.
Enforcement –
There is no capacity (skills and personnel) within the municipality to develop and drive air quality
enforcement. The Municipal By-Laws should be amended to reflect the current status of the
environment and to be interactive and compatible to National and Provincial legislation
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
i
Capacity Building
There is limited capacity within the WRDM its LMs for air quality management. Capacity building is not
being undertaken to prepare the WRDM and the LMs for the imminent delegation of responsibilities for
managing air quality at the LM level. The WRDM needs to capacitate its DM in terms of human
resources and infrastructure requirements. The implementation of the AQMP would require sufficient
funds for the recruitment and training of staff, procurement of facilities and equipment, and the
development of facilities
ii
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
502654 WRDM AQMP
Gap and Needs Assessment
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY........................................................................................................i
TABLE OF CONTENTS: ..................................................................................................... iii
LIST OF TABLES: ................................................................................................................ iii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS: ................................................................................................. iii
GLOSSARY OF TERMS: ..................................................................................................... iv
1. INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................1
2. GAP ANALYSIS ............................................................................................................3
3. NEEDS ASSESSMENT.................................................................................................8
3.1
Air Quality Standards ...........................................................................................10
3.2
Air Quality Data Collection and Needs Analysis ...................................................11
3.3
Training and Institutional Capacity Building Needs...............................................11
3.4
Financial Requirements .......................................................................................12
4. RECOMMENDED ACTIONS .......................................................................................13
5. CONCLUSION.............................................................................................................15
LIST OF TABLES:
Table 1: SWOT analysis for West Rand District Municipality Air Quality Management
Plan .................................................................................................................................... 4
Table 2: GAP analysis .......................................................................................................... 6
Table 3: Needs Assessment................................................................................................. 8
Table 4: Recommended Actions/Programmes to Implement ...............................................14
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS:
AEL
Atmospheric Emission Licence
APPA
Atmospheric Pollution Prevention Act, 1965 (Act No 45 of 1965)
BNM
Basa Njengo Magogo
DEA
Department of Environmental Affairs (the then DEAT)
DEAT
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism
DMA
District Management Area
EIA
Environmental Impact Assessment
IDP
Integrated Development Plan
AQMP
Air Quality Management Plan
(AQIS)
Air Quality Information System
NEMAQA
National Environmental Management Act, 2004 (Act No. 39 of 2004)
SEF
Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
WRDM
West Rand District Municipality
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
iii
502654 WRDM AQMP
Gap and Needs Assessment
GLOSSARY OF TERMS:
Ambient air – excludes air regulated by the Occupational Health and Safety Act,
1993 (Act No. 85 of 1993)
Listed Activities – means any activity listed in terms of section 21 of NEMAQA
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
iv
502654 WRDM AQMP
Gap and Needs Assessment
1. INTRODUCTION
The West Rand District Municipality (WRDM) has commissioned a project to develop
a district wide Air Quality Management Plan (AQMP). An AQMP is a legal
requirement in terms of Section 15 (1) of the National Environmental Management:
Air Quality Act, 2004 (Act No. 39 of 2004) (NEMAQA), to assist authorities in the
management and statutory regulating of air quality within their area of jurisdiction.
The main responsibility includes the compilation of baseline information, the
management of and operation of ambient monitoring networks, the licensing of listed
activities, and the development of emission reduction measures.
Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd (SEF) completed the draft AQMP for the
WRDM in December 2009. At the time of compiling the report, the WRDM consisted
of the following Local Municipalities (LMs): Mogale City Local Municipality (Mogale
CLM), Westonarian Local Municipality (WLM), Randfontein Local Municipality (RLM)
and the District Management Area (DMA). Post completion of the report, the
Merafong CLM was re-incorporated from the North West Province into the Gauteng
Province, and thus into the WRDM. As a result, the WRDM appointed SEF to update
and amend the existing draft AQMP to include information pertaining to Merafong
CLM.
The main purpose of the AQMP development process is to establish an effective and
sound basis for planning and management of air quality in selected areas. The
compilation of the AQMP began with the collation of baseline information, which
informed the drafting of a Status Quo Report (SQR) and Emissions Inventory Report.
From the analysis of the SQR and the Emissions Inventory Report, numerous gaps
and needs could be identified within the WRDM and LMs pertaining to baseline air
quality information and management.
According to the Manual for Air Quality Management Planning (DEAT1, 2008) a gap
analysis must be conducted to evaluate whether the past and current monitoring,
emission inventory and modelling information available for an area is sufficient to
address air quality issues.
Consultation with stakeholders and technical specialists is necessary to understand
what issues may be outstanding and what may need incorporation to “fill the gaps”.
Examples of identified gaps may include:
•
Monitoring data –
o Gaps in data collection;
o Insufficient monitoring stations;
1
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, now know as the Department of
Environmental Affairs
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
1
502654 WRDM AQMP
Gap and Needs Assessment
Incorrect placement of monitoring stations;
Insufficient parameters measured; and
Insufficient data for meaningful interpretation and therefore inadequate
for comparison to standards.
Emission inventory –
o Incomplete
o Lack of compliance from industry;
o Sources not included; and
o Lack of supporting data for emission factor calculations, e.g. traffic
counts, farm areas (ploughing, sugar cane burning estimates and
application of pesticides).
Model output –
o Insufficient or poor quality input data;
o Output not detailed enough;
o Model not trusted (doubtful results, poor agreement with measured or
Ground-truth data); and
o Calibration of model required.
Insufficient stakeholder consultation;
Complaints data may indicate that there is a problem in a particular area, but
there is no data to back this up;
Licensing function –
o Insufficient licensing and permitting procedures; and
o Lack of enforcement of permit conditions.
Capacity –
o Insufficient staff in air quality management; and
o Lack of expertise and resources.
Poor interaction between spheres of government – municipalities to do
the monitoring function and Districts to do the licensing function.
(Devolvement of Municipal Health personnel to Districts will require additional
air quality management personnel to be appointed.) Very little collaboration
between Locals and Districts
o
o
o
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Funding constraints; and
Method to mainstream Climate Change issues, e.g. adaptation and mitigation
in the AQMP.
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
2
502654 WRDM AQMP
Gap and Needs Assessment
2. GAP ANALYSIS
Strengths
• Provincial leadership and senior management commitment to environmental management
in general and air quality management;
• Presence of appropriate organisational structures; and
• Sound relationship with key stakeholders such as the Department of Environmental Affairs
(DEA), private sector companies and LMs.
Weaknesses
The findings of the gap assessment were achieved through the Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis (Table 1). Strengths and
weaknesses are inherently internal, while the opportunities and threats are inherently
external factors, which affect the attainment of identified air quality management
goals. The gaps identified during this process are highlighted in
• Lack of air quality management capacity at appropriate levels and within both the local
Municipalities and Districts;
• The lack of preparedness of the WRDM to execute the Atmospheric Emission Licence
function delegated in terms of NEMAQA;
• The problem is compounded by lack of financial and suitable skilled human resources;
• Insufficient commitment and acceptance of air quality management at political and
municipal management levels;
• The roles and responsibilities at WRDM and LM are not well understood;
• Inadequate air quality monitoring networks;
• The limited , and sometimes non-existent, in-house skills for maintaining and operating
monitoring equipment and monitoring networks present challenges;
• Emissions from transport or diffuse sources, such as emissions from residential fuel
burning and agricultural areas are not identified and computed;
• Poor indoor and ambient air quality occurs in low income and informal settlements
throughout the WRDM as a result of domestic fires and fuel burning, fires from informal
trading, refuse burning, dust from unpaved roads and wind blown dust from denuded
areas;
• The burning of wood and paraffin is a common practice and produces SO2 and PM10, as
well as VOCs;
• The relatively high population densities, together with the low release height of the
pollutants, imply that the health risk is greater in these areas;
• The lack of understanding with regard to the state of air quality in residential areas, the
low level of community awareness and its impacts, its associated remedial measures and
alternative cleaner fuel options is a shortcoming that needs to be addressed;
• No estimation of total pollutant load from various point, area and mobile sources have
been computed;
• Absence of representative emissions inventories, especially for, small industries, vehicle
emissions, mining and agricultural activities;
• Lack of air pollution data;
• The lack of information, the absence of reporting procedures and limiting in-stack
monitoring by industries are issues that need to be addressed;
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
3
Opportunities
Gap and Needs Assessment
• Sound legal framework for air quality management at all levels of governance
• Accessible donor funding;
• Climate change and global warming creating immediate global attention to air quality
management issues, which translate to provincial and local interventions;
• Transition from Atmospheric Prevention Act, 1965 (Act No. 45 of 1965) APPA to
NEMAQA provides opportunities for municipalities to take care of air quality governance;
and
• Commitment and transparency from large private sector companies (especially those with
Scheduled Processes) to reduce air pollution associated with their operations.
Threats
502654 WRDM AQMP
• High levels of staff turnover making it difficult and/or impossible to train and retain
personnel with appropriate skills;
• Economic downturn making it difficulty for private sector companies to invest in emission
reduction measures;
• Lack of environmental and air quality management awareness among the general public
and decision makers;
• Air quality management initiatives competing with human basic needs;
• The excessive costs of purchasing, commissioning, operating and maintaining ambient air
monitoring equipment is problematic when competing with social priorities e.g. housing,
education and health;
• The custodians of datasets such as industries are not always willing to share data and in
many instances the integrity of the datasets are compromised by broken records and poor
data;
• Town planning and particularly transport planning does not always consider the impacts of
developments on the air quality of an area;
• The potential negative impact of town and transport planning activities on the air quality of
an are is not always considered when planning decisions are taken e.g. sitting of
developments in areas bordering industries and mine tailing dams;
• Trans-boundary air pollution is a factor that influences the air quality of WRDM;
• The magnitude of the resulting impacts is not well understood and quantified;
• The management of trans-boundary movement of emissions is not currently addressed by
WRDM;
• Pesticide use in agriculture, particularly through aerial spraying, results in spray drift,
which can distribute organo-chemicals in the vicinity and downwind of the spray area;
• Burning of crop residue, general waste and tyres to prevent frost damage on farms
generates smoke, toxic emissions and contributes significantly to atmospheric particulate
loading; and
• Crop spraying without informing citizens of the date, time and possible health impacts
needs to be addressed.
Table
.
2
Table 1: SWOT analysis for West Rand District Municipality Air Quality Management
Plan
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
4
Strengths
• Provincial leadership and senior management commitment to environmental management
in general and air quality management;
• Presence of appropriate organisational structures; and
• Sound relationship with key stakeholders such as the Department of Environmental Affairs
(DEA), private sector companies and LMs.
Weaknesses
Gap and Needs Assessment
• Lack of air quality management capacity at appropriate levels and within both the local
Municipalities and Districts;
• The lack of preparedness of the WRDM to execute the Atmospheric Emission Licence
function delegated in terms of NEMAQA;
• The problem is compounded by lack of financial and suitable skilled human resources;
• Insufficient commitment and acceptance of air quality management at political and
municipal management levels;
• The roles and responsibilities at WRDM and LM are not well understood;
• Inadequate air quality monitoring networks;
• The limited , and sometimes non-existent, in-house skills for maintaining and operating
monitoring equipment and monitoring networks present challenges;
• Emissions from transport or diffuse sources, such as emissions from residential fuel
burning and agricultural areas are not identified and computed;
• Poor indoor and ambient air quality occurs in low income and informal settlements
throughout the WRDM as a result of domestic fires and fuel burning, fires from informal
trading, refuse burning, dust from unpaved roads and wind blown dust from denuded
areas;
• The burning of wood and paraffin is a common practice and produces SO2 and PM10, as
well as VOCs;
• The relatively high population densities, together with the low release height of the
pollutants, imply that the health risk is greater in these areas;
• The lack of understanding with regard to the state of air quality in residential areas, the
low level of community awareness and its impacts, its associated remedial measures and
alternative cleaner fuel options is a shortcoming that needs to be addressed;
• No estimation of total pollutant load from various point, area and mobile sources have
been computed;
• Absence of representative emissions inventories, especially for, small industries, vehicle
emissions, mining and agricultural activities;
• Lack of air pollution data;
• The lack of information, the absence of reporting procedures and limiting in-stack
monitoring by industries are issues that need to be addressed;
Opportunities
502654 WRDM AQMP
• Sound legal framework for air quality management at all levels of governance
• Accessible donor funding;
• Climate change and global warming creating immediate global attention to air quality
management issues, which translate to provincial and local interventions;
• Transition from Atmospheric Prevention Act, 1965 (Act No. 45 of 1965) APPA to
NEMAQA provides opportunities for municipalities to take care of air quality governance;
and
• Commitment and transparency from large private sector companies (especially those with
Scheduled Processes) to reduce air pollution associated with their operations.
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
5
Threats
502654 WRDM AQMP
Gap and Needs Assessment
• High levels of staff turnover making it difficult and/or impossible to train and retain
personnel with appropriate skills;
• Economic downturn making it difficulty for private sector companies to invest in emission
reduction measures;
• Lack of environmental and air quality management awareness among the general public
and decision makers;
• Air quality management initiatives competing with human basic needs;
• The excessive costs of purchasing, commissioning, operating and maintaining ambient air
monitoring equipment is problematic when competing with social priorities e.g. housing,
education and health;
• The custodians of datasets such as industries are not always willing to share data and in
many instances the integrity of the datasets are compromised by broken records and poor
data;
• Town planning and particularly transport planning does not always consider the impacts of
developments on the air quality of an area;
• The potential negative impact of town and transport planning activities on the air quality of
an are is not always considered when planning decisions are taken e.g. sitting of
developments in areas bordering industries and mine tailing dams;
• Trans-boundary air pollution is a factor that influences the air quality of WRDM;
• The magnitude of the resulting impacts is not well understood and quantified;
• The management of trans-boundary movement of emissions is not currently addressed by
WRDM;
• Pesticide use in agriculture, particularly through aerial spraying, results in spray drift,
which can distribute organo-chemicals in the vicinity and downwind of the spray area;
• Burning of crop residue, general waste and tyres to prevent frost damage on farms
generates smoke, toxic emissions and contributes significantly to atmospheric particulate
loading; and
• Crop spraying without informing citizens of the date, time and possible health impacts
needs to be addressed.
Table 2: GAP analysis
Air Quality
Management
Status Quo Gaps
Avoidance
and
Minimisation
• There is no air pollution minimisation strategy within the WRDM and its LMs;
• No public education and awareness programmes on air pollution reduction exists within
the LMs; and
• There is a need to establish district-specific air quality standards within the WRDM.
Monitoring
• There are only two air quality monitoring stations within the WRDM, one in Mogale CLM
and the other in RLM - the air quality monitoring station in Mogale CLM is not operational;
• There are no sufficiently trained officers within the WRDM to analyse the data collected
from weather and monitoring stations;
• There is little or no information on the various mine dumps within the district in terms of
air quality management and the responsibility for monitoring air quality impacts of mine
dumps is unclear
• There is no access to reliable weather data in the entire WRDM;
• There is no monitoring of industrial air emissions for listed and non-listed; in terms of
NEMAQA;
• There is no sufficient data on the use of fossil fuel within residential areas;
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
6
502654 WRDM AQMP
Gap and Needs Assessment
• There is no vehicle counts data;useful for populating transport emissions;
• There are no fuels sales volume data for Merafong CLM;
• The ambient air monitoring in the mining areas is limited to dust fall-out monitoring only;
and
• Poor information on the medical waste incineration facilities within the WRDM.
Enforcement
• There is no capacity (skills and personnel) within the municipality to develop and drive air
quality enforcement; and
• Municipal By-Laws should be amended to reflect the current status of the environment
and to be interactive and compatible to National and Provincial legislation.
Capacity
Building and
Staffing viz-aviz delegated
responsibilities
in terms of
NEMAQA
• Limited capacity within various spheres of government for air quality management
• Capacity building is not being undertaken to prepare the WRDM and the LMs for the
imminent delegation of responsibilities for managing air quality at the LM level..
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
7
502654 WRDM AQMP
Gap and Needs Assessment
3. NEEDS ASSESSMENT
The gaps identified during the drafting of a Status Quo and Emissions Inventory
Reports were further used to establish the needs of the WRDM in terms of air quality
management. The needs identified related to issues surrounding emission and nonemission problems (Table 3).
Table 3: Needs Assessment
Air Quality
Management
Desired State (by 2014)
Avoidance and
Minimisation
• Air pollution minimisation strategy to be developed to achieve and sustain
acceptable air quality levels);
• Improved awareness levels for communities and businesses on air pollution
through periodic campaigns;
• Major air pollution generators identified within the WRDM and LMs;
• All development applications (which should undergo an Environmental Impact
Assessment (EIA) process must have air pollution minimisation strategies;
• Adopt the National Ambient Air Quality Standards within the WRDM;
• Buy-in from all emitters in the area in terms of air quality standards and monitoring
(e.g. the mining companies);
• Develop emission inventory for all pollutants and sources at the WRDM and LM
level;
• Involve relevant stakeholders to be part of compilation of strategies;
• Capacity building and education – all people must be equipped to realize their roles
and responsibilities towards achieving a sustainable air quality environment;
• Implement the “polluter pays” principle – a person or institution generating
pollution should be penalized in terms of magnitude and effect of pollution
generated.(polluter will be liable for monitoring, management, supervision, and
clean-up);
• To protect health by minimizing the negative impact of pollution on humans and to
improve the integrity of natural ecosystems;
• Initiate possible greening projects;
• Reduce the extend of ozone depleting substances;
• Implement cleaner production processes;
• Promote energy efficiency in all sectors; and
• To obtain information from medical institutions (GP’S, clinics, hospitals, etc) in an
effort to establish possible parameters responsible for air pollution related
illnesses.(investigate the associations between mortality, morbidity, hospitalisation,
etc and their relationship between priority pollutants.
Air Quality
Management
System
• Every LM within the WRDM should have an operational air quality monitoring
station;
• Capture and analysis of air quality data within the WRDM and LMs; and
• Dispersion modelling should be undertaken in the near future, so as to better
understand the significance of trans-boundary emissions. Implementation of the
dispersion modelling will depend on the availability of an emission inventory;
• Develop an Air Quality Information System (AQIS) that will allow industries and
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
8
502654 WRDM AQMP
Air Quality
Management
Gap and Needs Assessment
Desired State (by 2014)
mines to transfer data from their monitoring stations to the WRDM;
• The AQIS will allow the to transfer data to the SAAQIS.
2
Listed Activities or
Scheduled
processes in terms
of NEMAQA and
Mining Processes
• Monitor industrial air emissions for listed activities to ensure that they comply with
Minimum Emission Standards in terms of Section 21 of the NEMAQA.
• Liaise with industries to ensure that they understand the new licensing
requirements and they commit to operating within these limits and report their
emissions levels to relevant authorities or the Gauteng Department of Agriculture
and Rural Development (GDARD)2;
• Increase efficiency of process that will result in reduced emissions complying to
legal requirements;
• Application of best available techniques including process design, process control
optimization, high efficiency dust collectors and post combustion control
technologies;
• Enhanced compliance by mining companies through improved gas emission and
dust controls;
• Dust fall-out monitoring;
• Implementation of dust suppression techniques;
• Installation of scrubbers where feasible and increased control/management of
waste disposal sites; and
• Incorporation of monitoring stacks by smelters.
Non-listed
industrial activities
or non scheduledscheduled
processes
• Establish the sources, pollution and the volumes of the pollutants emitted within the
various LMs. This can be achieved through the compilation of an Emission
Inventory for each LM;
• An Emission Inventory needs to focus on the following:
• Company profile and their activity;
• Source location (latitude and longitude);
• Type of fuel burning appliances used;
• The fuel input, both type and quantity;
• The stake parameters;
• Period of operation; and
• Control equipment.
• Type and quantity of waste by-products
Domestic Fuel
Burning
• Establish baseline information on the use of fossil fuel within residential areas;
• Provide alternative energy sources options to residential areas that are dependent
on fossil fuels; and
• Increase efficiency use of fossil fuels within residential applications.
Transport
emissions
• Conduct vehicle counts;
• Establish volumes of vehicle fuels sold in the WRDM by fuel type (DME keeps a
record of fuel vehicle fuels sales sold per magisterial region. Merafong City does
not fall within any magisterial region and the WRDM needs to liaise with DME for
the inclusion of Merafong City ;
• Install road side air quality monitoring equipment for selected routes and locations;
Previously the Gauteng Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Environment
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
9
502654 WRDM AQMP
Air Quality
Management
Gap and Needs Assessment
Desired State (by 2014)
• Measuring emissions associated with vehicles;
• Developing tarred roads to reduce particulate generation from gravel/ sand roads
and to maintain these roads to reduce other fugitive emissions. and
• Improving rail networks to minimize, particularly, the use of heavy vehicles,
investigate the re-introduction of the Johannesburg-Carletonville passenger rail.
Agricultural
activities and
Biomass burning
Landfill sites,
waste disposal
facilities (transfer
stations, recycling
centres, waste buy
back centres and
Incinerators
Enforcement
Air Quality
Management
Capacity
3.1
•
•
•
•
•
Best practice when tilling soils for ploughing;
Best practice for burning of fields in preparation for seeding;
Ensuring that pesticide spraying is done in accordance to best practice;
Proper crop handling by harvesting machines;
Ensuring that dust generated during the loading and transporting of crops; is
reduced and suppressed; and
• Raise public awareness on veld fires, specifically the practice of maintaining fire
breaks to reduce the occurrence of accidental veld fires.
• To ensure that all incinerators are permitted and are operating according to permit
requirements.
• Stack emission testing to be undertaken to prove compliance to emission limits.
• To provide waste removal services in areas where informal waste burning is an
issue.
• Ensuring ‘good practices’ pertaining to landfill management and air pollution
mitigation.
• Implementing stipulations for waste disposal facilities (garden refuse sites and
transfer stations, waste buy centres, recycling centers with regard to avoiding
waste burning.
• Conduct ambient air quality monitoring of selected toxic and odoriferous
substances emanating from the landfill site. and
• Conduct emission inventory for the landfill sites.
•
•
•
•
Capacity building;
Appointment of specialized personnel;
Up-dating the municipal By-Laws; and
Development of a tariff structure for licensing applications/approvals and law
enforcement issues.
• Active participation at inter-municipal and provincial forums and seminars in order
to exchange ideas and experiences on air quality management and related issues.
Air Quality Standards
To put the goals of an AQMP into action, one must convert them into objectives and
targets. It is these targets, which are translated into the air quality standards and the
desired air quality state within a specified area. Goal setting in the AQMP should
highlight:
•
Goals on meeting existing legislated standards and regulations;
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
10
502654 WRDM AQMP
•
•
•
•
•
Gap and Needs Assessment
Identification of primary and secondary pollutants of concern in terms of:
o Health; and
o Environmental impact.
Develop mitigation measures for primary and secondary pollutants of
concern in terms of:
o Health; and
o Environmental impact.
Assessment of regional issues, such as:
o Acid rain;
o Regional Ozone; and
o Trans-boundary problems.
Global issues, such as:
o Greenhouse gases; and
o Persistent Organic Pollutants.
Training, institutional capacity building and information management.
Phase 5 of the AQMP will address ambient air quality standards and the desired
state of the air within the WRDM.
3.2
Air Quality Data Collection and Needs Analysis
The Status Quo and Emission Inventory Reports revealed that inadequate data
exists to comprehensively assess air quality in the WRDM. The custodians of
datasets, particularly industries and mines, are not always willing to share data and in
many instances the integrity of the datasets are compromised by broken records and
poor data. Without consistent quality assurance and quality control procedures, the
integrity of data can not be persevered. The limited, and sometimes nonexistent, inhouse skills for maintaining and operating the existing monitoring equipment and
monitoring networks presents challenges. The two air quality monitoring stations
within the WRDM, one in the Mogale CLM and the other in the RLM have not been
functioning throughout the study and no data was provided from these stations during
this period.
The South African Weather Service weather stations within the WRDM only reports
on temperature, humidity and rainfall values, but the values related to wind direction
is not available.
3.3
Training and Institutional Capacity Building Needs
The SQR revealed that there is a need in the WRDM for the appointment of service
providers for a period of at least 12 months to capacitate both WRDM and LM
officials in terms of air quality data management, analyses and interpretation. Internal
training needs to take place and the WRDM has to not only appoint air quality
officers, but also set up an air quality office within the WRDM. The DEA has defined
capacity building requirements and training programmes for provincial and local
municipalities. WRDM should communicate its training requirements to DEA who will
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
11
502654 WRDM AQMP
Gap and Needs Assessment
advice accordingly This will be a major step towards the alignment of the permitting
and licensing processes for AEL applications, as these powers have been (since
September 2009) delegated to Local and/ or District Municipalities.
3.4
Financial Requirements
The implementation of the AQMP would require sufficient funds for the recruitment
and training of staff, procurement of facilities and equipment, and the development of
facilities. The implementation of the AQMP should be done in a phased manner,
taking into cognisance the Municipality’s priorities at the time. The priority projects to
be implemented have been outlined in the Implementation Strategy Report.
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
12
502654 WRDM AQMP
Gap and Needs Assessment
4. RECOMMENDED ACTIONS
Emerging out of the gap analysis, various initiatives may be necessary. The following
programmes/projects have therefore been identified as priority projects to be
included in the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) (of the District and/or LMs, where
relevant) and implemented within the next 4 years: 2011-2014.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Maintenance of air quality monitoring equipment at existing air quality
monitoring stations needs to be improved and sufficient budget must be
allocated to this task;
There is a need for a network of monitoring stations to be set up within the
WRDM. The monitoring stations should be set-up during the 2013/2014
financial year. The location of such a monitoring network will need to be
informed by an emissions inventory, dispersion modelling simulations and the
passive monitoring study (as recommended), which should commence
immediately;
These monitoring stations must be equipped with a back-up system in the
event that any of the equipment needs to be replaced or repaired;
Sufficient budget allocation and cash flow for maintenance and back-up is
therefore required;
Data recorded at the monitoring stations needs to be captured on a database
and analysed on a regular basis. The district should purchase a remote system
where-by real-time data is transmitted continuously from the station. This data
should be fed into an online, electronic software program that automatically
verifies the data and displays the results. The analyses should be done
together with the local Air Quality Officer and not just reported to him/her, in
order for capacity building to take place. Essentially, once operational, all
verified ambient air quality monitoring data should be incorporated into
SAAQIS;
Effective air quality by-law enforcement, a project to revise and update the
District by-laws should be initiated in the 2010/2011 financial year. The District
should develop an air quality by-law based on the generic air quality by-law
developed by DEA;
WRDM must audit industries (key emitters) in the area, with the intention of
establishing industry/sector specific standards, if need be;
Adopting national air quality standards in consultation with GDARD by 2011;
Initiation of a memorandum of understanding between the WRDM and the LMs
as well as other key stakeholders, such as the mines, for implementation of the
AQMP;
Funding for activities must be supplemented from fees generated from
licensing applications;
Electrification of households currently reliant on fossil fuels;
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
13
502654 WRDM AQMP
•
•
Gap and Needs Assessment
Roll-out of the Basa Njengo Magogo (BNM) top down fire making methods for
areas where coal is a major source of fuel. The BNM method results in
minimum smoke; and
Exploring other energy sources, such as those recommended in the Gauteng
Energy Strategy of January 2010.
These initiatives can be summarised as follows:
Table 4: Recommended Actions/Programmes to Implement
Air Quality
Management
Recommended Actions/Programmes to Implement
Avoidance
and
minimisation.
• Develop air quality management strategies to reduce air pollution;
• Introduce education and awareness programmes to residential and commercial areas;
• LMs must develop an air quality database of major air pollution generators and these
should be the focus of initial air pollution avoidance initiatives; and
• Establish an air quality monitoring standards working group, with access to a reference
group (“think tank”).
Monitoring
• A network of monitoring stations is to be set up within the WRDM;
• Appointment of service providers for a period of 12 months to capacitate both WRDM and
LM officials in terms of air quality data management, analyses and interpretation;
• Basic internal training for current staff on air quality;
• Appointment of Air Quality Officers and setting up of an Air Quality Office within the
WRDM
• Develop a task team to ensure monitoring; and
• Ensure that the network is operational and compliant with Quality Assurance objectives
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
14
502654 WRDM AQMP
Gap and Needs Assessment
5. CONCLUSION
This report provided a summary of the current situation within the WRDM, including
its four LMs, as outlined in the SQR. The Status Quo and Emissions Inventory
provided a baseline for understanding what the current challenges facing the WRDM
are, what gaps exist; what the ‘desired state’ for air management should look like and
what is required or needed to achieve the ‘desired state’.
A number of interventions or recommended actions have been suggested. These
broadly relate to the following strategic areas:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Maintenance of air quality monitoring equipment at existing air quality
monitoring stations;
A network of monitoring stations should be set up within the WRDM;
Sufficient budget allocation and cash flow for maintenance and back-up is
required;
Data recorded at the monitoring stations need to be captured and analysed;
Effective air quality by-law enforcement;
Institutional and organisational needs; and
Policy and planning.
The next phase of the AQMP focuses on the identification of strategic goals and
objectives for the short term (1 – 3 years) and long term (3 – 5 years), to address the
gaps and needs identified in this report. These goals and objectives must be in line
with the strategic objectives at each of the steps of the AQMP process as set out in
the Manual for Air Quality Management Planning in South Africa (DEAT 2008)
These recommended interventions must be translated into planning actions and
programmes to be considered for implementation in the next WRDM IDP.
Prepared by Strategic Environmental Focus (Pty) Ltd
15