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March 2010 - from the Smoke Stack

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March 2010 - from the Smoke Stack Eskom and World Bank Sowing Seeds of Destruction groundWork is a non-profi t environmental justice service and developmental organisation working primarily in South In this issue Africa, but increasingly in Southern Africa. groundWork seeks to improve the quality of life of vulnerable people in 3 From the Smoke Stack Southern Africa through assisting civil society to have a greater impact on environmental governanace. groundWork 5 Personal Refl ections on Copenhagen places particular emphasis on assisting vulnerable and previously disadvantaged people who are most affected by 7 Banking on Climate Destruction environmental injustices. 12 Coalescing against Eskom groundWork’s current campaign areas are: air quality, waste and environmental health. 14 Free State Waste Pickers’ Summit groundWork is constituted as a trust. The Chairperson of the Board of 17 Health Care Waste Crisis? What Crisis? Trustees is Joy Kistnasamy, lecturer in environmental health at the Durban 20 Should Poisons be in a Farmer’s Arsenal? University of Technology. The other trustees are: Farid Esack, Patrick Kulati, Richard Lyster, Thuli Makama, Sandile 23 Support Appropriation from Below Ndawonde and Jon White. GROUNDWORK’S SOUTH 25 Greenfl y AFRICAN STAFF ARE: Director: Bobby Peek Deputy Director: Gill Addison 26 In Brief Offi ce Manager: Bathoko Sibisi Air Quality Campaign Manager: Siziwe 28 Highly Recommended Reading Khanyile Waste Campaign Manager: Musa Chamane Environmental Health Campaign Manager: Nomcebo Mvelase Research Manager: Rico Euripidou GROUNDWORK’S USA STAFF AFFILIATIONS: ARE: groundWork is affi liated to the following international Director: Heeten Kalan organisations: Coordinator: Sunita Dubey HOW TO CONTACT US: Health Care Without Harm International POPs Elimination Network 6 Raven Street Basel Action Network Pietermaritzburg Oilwatch International P O Box 2375, Pietermaritzburg, 3200 Global Anti-Incineration Alliance Tel: 033-342-5662 groundWork is the South African member of Friends of the Earth Fax: 033-342-5665 International e-mail: [email protected] CREDITS: Web: www.groundwork.org.za 555 Amory Street, Boston Printed on recycled paper from Sappi Fine Papers MA 02130, USA Layout by Boutique Books - Printing by ArrowPrint Tel: +1-617-522-0604 Fax: +1-617-522-5591 e-mail: [email protected] Web: www.groundwork-usa.org Having for so long avoided being controlled by the World Bank, are we now being pulled into their structural adjustment trap by Eskom in the pursuit of “power”? Cover design by Barry Downard. - 2 - groundWork - Vol 12 No 1 - March 2010 - From the Smoke Stack From the Smoke Stack Photo by FoE by groundWork Director, Bobby Peek At the outset I must make some statement on the while industry receives excessive energy, virtually ‘non-event’ that happened on the 24th of December at cost, and wastes this energy just across from 2009. Government fi nally, in gazette number 32816, people’s homes, where there are energy shortages! passed the fi rst ever National Ambient Air Quality Standards, something we have been calling for Delivering on environmental justice, however, is since 1995. Every year government said next year! also about a process of democratic engagement But what can we do with this new law? Presently, with the people who are most negatively affected very little, for it is ambient air not emissions out by government’s promises and policies. So, when of a stack and it is on very few occasions that you read that ‘a new engagement between one can isolate the polluter to the extent that the government, the business sector and organised evidence will stand up in a court of law. Just ask labour is being forged’ to deliver a prosperous Sasol. Whenever there is a major pollution incident nation, you wonder what happened to the ‘people in Sasolburg they blame the abattoir or some other of the nation’. This reality of exclusion is most entity - even the people for burning coal because alarming in a post-apartheid South Africa where, they do not have energy. So we still have a long except on a very few occasions, decisions are made way to go. While we welcome this legislation, we through consulting those that are most powerful must now not sit on our laurels. rather than those who are most affected. I am not in any way saying that labour is not much affected. In February we witnessed both President Zuma Losing 900 000 jobs in one year is being much and Minister of Finance Pravin Gordhan make their affected, but when is labour going to shift out of inaugural State of the Nation and Budget speeches its comfort zone with government and realise that respectively. There is never much meat contained in it is with the people, their families, their neighbours such speeches and often too much is read into them and their comrades that power should be vested to - just check the thick newspapers the day after. shape a new world. Many analysts indicate that these speeches are Cosatu often calls for an industrial strategy that often repetitive in their promises but actually show will meet the basic needs of the people, and very little delivery. The reality is that environment Minister Gordhan was quick to reference this. It was a non–issue in the past, and even less thought is an environmental justice position that we have was given to environmental justice. So, when one been advocating for some time and which states reads statements on water scarcity and emission that unless you have a development paradigm that taxes in these speeches we, as environmental delivers fair remuneration rather than exploitative campaigners, welcome them. As environmental work, affordable basic services for all and not only justice campaigners, we can even take this a step for those that can afford them, good nutrition further for reference is made in these speeches to and housing and clean healthy environments, waste management, health, human settlements South Africa will continue to grow apart, making and energy. These components are critical in the us the most unequal society globally. How can we delivery of environmental justice. Consider people make government accountable for fulfi lling their in human settlements – homes and shacks – in the promises? Vaal Triangle having to burn coal in their homes - Vol 12 No 1 - March 2010 - groundWork - 3 - From the Smoke Stack Excitingly, environmental taxes are spoken of but and, because this waste – which is hazardous waste there is ambiguity in how these taxes will be used. – removal and disposal has been privatised, these Firstly, it is said for general revenue and then for situations are not going to be uncommon in future. meeting environmental objectives. Some people Government does not pay – waste rots in hospitals. might scoff at environmental taxes but those who The saga of the dumping of waste in the Free use more than what is enough to sustain them must State continues with the present position being pay society and those who use less back, in order that government is considering giving Wasteman that equity is reached. This should happen not permission to dump their hazardous waste illegally through trading but through careful transparent once more in a general landfi ll site in KwaZulu societal checks and balances so the system cannot Natal. Waste is a critical and essential service and be abused. must be treated as one. groundWork is calling for a commission of enquiry into this waste debacle. The budget speech also highlighted the inconsistency of government positioning. While climate change is Finally, as we are dealing with making sense of the a global concern, Minister Gordhan presents two key national speeches this week, major corporations developments that take us further into the climate Anglo Platinum and Africa Rainbow Minerals have change death trap, with a return seemingly no taken Richard Spoor to court for defamation. longer possible. The fi rst is that, as Eskom is running Richard has been working with community people out of money, so is Petronet and now the public in Limpopo to keep mining companies from taking will have to foot the bill for the greenhouse gas their land and to get just and fair compensation intensive multi-product petroleum pipeline through for resources communities have and for the land the neighbourhoods of south Durban to Gauteng. they are forced to give up. How can we attempt to Are we going to foot the bill for PetroSA’s new oil seek meaning from Cape Town and parliamentary refi nery at Coega? Eskom’s new build programme speeches when across the country government continues to suck the coffers of government dry and and corporations continue to do things in the same they are set to receive around R282 billion from the manner as the past – use the might of the law and public-sector infrastructure programme. Enhancing brutality against the poor – rather than differently, people’s health as a targeted outcome is not going as our President has asked! to be gained by continuing to hang onto fossil fuels in the manner in which government is doing so. Finally, we do hope that you fi nd our newsletter interesting and, at times, provocative, but we need You will notice that this newsletter is Eskom heavy. your assistance to make it even more exciting and Together with more than 100 organisations in to break through more barriers and mindsets. So, South Africa, Africa and globally, we are calling on please do write to us at [email protected]. the World Bank to not loan South Africa money, for za about your views on the work we do and on all this will mean is further poverty as we seek to environmental justice in general. We will seek to pay back this loan – in dollar denominations – and it print letters that take the environmental justice would mean further development of coal powered debate to another level.
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