The Project seeks to address the unfair and discriminatory distribution of the adverse environmental impacts of development activities on poor and vulnerable communities and to enhance environmental decision-making by promoting effective and informed public participation and access to information. It seeks to assist disadvantaged people and communities to assert their environmental rights. The main mechanisms employed are litigation, representation of clients during administrative procedures, networking, advocacy, education in the law and law reform.

The EJP focuses on addressing the impact of development activities that are likely to affect the health, livelihood and well-being of marginalised and poor people and communities. It examines decision-making relating to mainly new industrial activities, as well as addressing harm caused to the environment and health by past poorly regulated activity.  The EJP thematic issues include fostering sustainable development and enforcement of best practice in licensing new activities as well as in rehabilitation of environmental harm, promoting safety and health at the workplace, public participation and the right to information in environmental decision-making.

Our work typically involves representing clients in environmental impact assessment processes for the authorisation of new industries, litigation compelling the rehabilitation of mining activities, and engaging in law reform and advocacy around our key focus areas.  In all these areas, the protection of public health and environment through the proper protection of water resources is a key area for our intervention.  In the past we have focused on air quality and the prevention of environmental disasters but seek to extend our work to encompass the protection of water quality.  Our specific focus will be in the areas of the rehabilitation of mind dumps, and the authorisation of new industrial and farming activity where air and water quality may be compromised.

The EJP aims to contribute to the following:

• Effective and constructive participation in environmental impact assessment (EIA) processes concerning the activities of potentially harmful industries and activities (including incinerators). 
• Greater participation in regional air quality planning to address the incremental and cumulative effects of multi-source pollution on the ambient air quality and human health.
• Greater participation in water resource management processes to ensure sustainability of the resource and planning processes in the interest of equitable access to this scare resource.
• Addressing the environmental implications of mining and general management of waste.
• Contributing to the law reform process by making submissions on amendments to legislation and proposed new legislation.
• Providing legal and technical expertise to communities that have no other recourse to the law to achieve the abatement of pollution and harm caused by polluting and environmentally unsustainable practices.
• Research and develop strategies available to those affected to address environmental injustice, degradation of the environment and inequitable and unsustainable natural resource utilisation.

The LRC has the only public interest environmental law practice in SA that provides these services to those who are unable to afford to pay and as part of an ongoing, focused programme.
The project interacts with other public interest environmental law organisations as well as communities affected by environmental problems.  Feedback from this kind of interaction and the active interest of the lawyers in environmental issues, allows the EJP to structure its work in a way that addresses most effectively the public interest environmental issues, which are a priority within the South African context.

The project works in the following broad environmental areas:

• Air quality and water quality in priority areas where air and water quality is compromised
• Mining related environmental problems
• The EIA process for proposed new nuclear power plants
• Protecting procedural rights in the EIA process in a number of individual cases
• Medical waste management
• Large industrial processes impacting on the surrounding environment
• The right to information on genetically modified organisms.

The project has a proven track record of success over the past ten years and has achieved amongst others the following results - some through litigation:

• A reduction in sulphur dioxide emissions in all four oil refineries in South Africa and negotiation of an emission reduction plan with some
• Rehabilitation of abandoned mine sites affecting the health and well-being of nearby communities
• Judicial review of mine permits granted with very lenient measures for environmental protection
• Closure of illegal mining operations
• Negotiation of environmental management plans with large industrial developments
• Prevention of authorisation for medical waste incinerators without sufficient air pollution control devices
• Active representation of civil society in law reform processes, leading to the inclusion of issues important to clients in the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA), revised EIA regulations and the Air Quality Act
• Negotiating a reduction in lead and sulphur levels in fuel
• Successful litigation overturning authorisation granted for development of a nuclear power plant where interested and affected parties were not given opportunity to be heard on the final EIA.

The work of the project is of an ongoing nature with matters being resolved or taking a new course and new matters taken on throughout a year.

Environmental Justice Project 2003 - 2005 Report

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