Air in Witbank, Mpumalanga, is the worlds dirtiest thanks to Eskom. Eskom is attempting to bypass Pollution laws aimed at protecting our Constitutional right to an environment that is not harmful to our health or well-bring (section 24). After studying air quality in the Witbank area for almost two years, a team of scientists from the European Union came to an alarming conclusion. Looking at their data, they found that Witbank’s air was the world’s dirtiest – even when compared to the likes of Beijing, where people wear face masks to protect themselves from air pollution Eskom has 11 coal-fired power stations in Mpumalanga. The impact of coal on human health is hard to overstate. Even Eskom’s own documents acknowledge that its polluting power stations are killing people. Section 24 of the Constitution states that we have a right to an environment that is not harmful our health or well-being. It is time for a change. South Africa currently relies on coal for electricity (about 85% of electricity is produced from coal), yet we have all the right conditions to set up effective and non-harmful renewable energy systems. South Africa has legislation to limit the amount of pollution that the likes of Eskom can pump into our air.That legislation was designed to protect human rights guaranteed by our Constitution. In terms of the legislation, Eskom’s power stations must meet a set of minimum emission standards by April 2015, and Eskom has known about this deadline since 2005. In December last year Eskom applied for “rolling postponements” – a technical term meaning that, if successful, two thirds of Eskoms coal power stations would not have to comply with emission standards.... In the utility’s application, Eskom stated that the costs of meeting the standards were too high and that “it is not practically feasible or beneficial to South Africa to fully comply with the minimal emission standards”. What can WE do? The application is still under consideration and thus we still have the ability to speak up & hold Eskom accountable. Click here to help: greenpeace.org/africa/en/getinvolved/cancel-eskoms-application-to-pollute-freely1/ greenpeace.org/africa/quitcoal/?utm_source=FBlink&utm_medium=Facebook&utm_content=Sunday&utm_campaign=PoisonedPeople Google Eskom and pollution for more sources & articles.
Posted on: Mon, 25 Aug 2014 09:11:36 +0000
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