Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries Barbara Creecy has noted the decision by the North Gauteng High Court to set aside the environmental authorisation for the Thabametsi power station.
The Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries will abide by the order of the court and refer the application for an environmental authorisation back to the Chief Director: Integrated Environmental Authorisations for review and decision.
Environmental Authorisation for the Thabametsi power station in Limpopo was reviewed by order of the High Court in 2017 with a revised decision being issued by the Department in January 2018.
“The Department is committed to ensuring that the Constitutional rights of South Africans to an environment that is not harmful to health and well-being are always taken into consideration, while ensuring that economic growth is not hampered. South Africa has adopted the National Development Plan (NDP), which maps out the vision of the country for the 20 years ahead,” the Department said on Wednesday.
This includes the transition to a lower carbon economy and climate resilient society in line with the overarching principle of sustainable development, which is the cornerstone of the NDP’s Vision 2030. –SAnews.gov.za
