National workshop aims to curb air pollution

Richards Bay, with its large primary industries and consequent high levels of pollution, has been chosen as the venue for a high-profile national workshop on air pollution and new air quality legislation.

The workshop starts on Wednesday and community organisations and activists from the country's pollution hotspots have descended on the port town, which has been the scene of two major gas leaks in the past two years.

The theme of the three-day workshop is "The Industrial Fence Line - Towards the Effective Implementation of the New Air Quality Legislation".

It is being hosted by the environmental non governmental organisation GroundWork, which will present its national report on the status of air quality in South Africa.

The overall purpose of the workshop, said GroundWork air quality Campaigner Ardiel Soeker, was to review civil society strategy on industrial air pollution in the light of the new air quality management legislation.

The release of the Air Quality Bill for public comment provided civil society with the opportunity to lobby the government to enact legislation that would hold corporations accountable for what they released into the air.

For the full report, visit www.iol.co.za