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Drakenstein
South Africa
South Africa
Air Quality Management By-law, 2021
- Published in Western Cape Provincial Gazette 8425 on 7 May 2021
- Commenced on 7 May 2021
- [This is the version of this document from 7 May 2021 and includes any amendments published up to 7 March 2025.]
Chapter 1
Interpretation and fundamental principles
1. Definitions
In this by-law, the English text shall prevail in the event of an inconsistency between the different texts; and, unless the context otherwise indicates:"the Act" means the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act, 2004 (Act 39 of 2004), as amended, and any other word or expression to which a meaning has been assigned in the Act shall bear that meaning."adverse effect" means any actual or potential impact on the environment that impairs or would impair the environment or any aspect of it to an extent that is more than trivial or insignificant;"air pollutant" includes dust, smoke, fumes, aerosol and gas that causes or may cause air pollution;"air pollution" means any change in the environment caused by any substance emitted into the atmosphere from any activity, where that change has an adverse effect on human health or well-being or on the composition, resilience and productivity of natural or managed ecosystems, or on materials useful to people, or will have such an effect in the future;"air quality management plan" means the air quality management plan referred to in section 15 of the Act;"air quality officer" means an officer appointed in terms of section 4 of the Act;"ambient air" means "ambient air" as defined in section 1 of the Act;"atmosphere" means air that is not enclosed by a building, machine, chimney or other similar structure;"atmospheric emission" or "emission" means any emission or entrainment process emanating from a point, non-point or mobile source that may result in air pollution;"authorised official" means any employee of municipality responsible for carrying out any duty or function or exercising any power in terms of this by-law and includes any employee delegated to carry out such duties, functions and powers;"chimney" means any structure or opening of any kind from which or through which air pollutants may be emitted;"Constitution" means the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996;"dark smoke" means smoke which has a density of 60 Hartridge smoke units or more or smoke which when measured using a light absorption meter, obscuration measuring equipment or other similar equipment, has an obscuration of 20% or greater;"dust" means any solid matter in a fine or disintegrated form which is capable of being dispersed or suspended in the atmosphere; and includes particulate matter;"dwelling" means any building or structure, or part of a building or structure, used as a dwelling and any outbuildings ancillary to it;"environmental management inspector" means an environmental management inspector referred to in chapter 3;"environment" means the surroundings within which humans exist and that are made up of:(a)the land, water and atmosphere of the earth;(b)micro-organisms, plant and animal life;(c)any part or combination of (a) and (b) and the inter relationships among and between them; and(d)the physical, chemical, aesthetic and cultural properties and conditions of the foregoing that influence human health and well-being;"fuel burning equipment" means any furnace, boiler, incinerator, or other equipment, including a chimney:(a)designed to burn or capable of burning liquid, gas or solid fuel(b)used to dispose of any material or waste by burning; or(c)used to subject liquid, gas or solid fuel to any process involving the application of heat;"light absorption meter" means a measuring device that uses a light measurement cell or detector to determine the amount of light absorbed by an air pollutant."media blasting" means a process that uses pressurized air to propel a stream of abrasive material against a surface (known as blasting media) out of a nozzle and includes sand blasting or shot blasting;"Municipality" means the municipality of Drakenstein established in terms of Section 12 of the Municipal Structures Act, 117 of 1998, and includes any political structure, political office bearer, councillor, duly authorised agent thereof or any employee thereof acting in connection with this by-law by virtue of a power vested in the municipality and delegated or sub-delegated to such political structure, political office bearer, councillor, agent or employee;"National Framework" means the National Framework for Air Quality Management in the Republic of South Africa, as established in terms of the Act;"NEMA" means the National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (Act No. 1 07 of 1998), as amended;"obscuration" means the ratio of visible light attenuated by air pollutants suspended in the effluent streams to incident visible light, expressed as a percentage;"open burning" means the combustion of material by burning without a closed system that has a chimney to vent the emitted products of combustion to the atmosphere;"operator" means a person who owns or manages an undertaking, or who controls an operation or process, which emits air pollutants;"person" means a natural person or a juristic person;"premises" means any building or other structure together with the land on which it is situated and any adjoining land occupied or used in connection with any activities carried on in that building or structure, and includes any land without any buildings or other structure, locomotive, boat or other vessel which operates or is present within the area under the jurisdiction of the municipality;"public nuisance" means an unreasonable interference or likely interference caused by air pollution with:(a)the health or well being of the public;(b)the ordinary comfort, convenience and peace of the public."rubber product" means anything composed of natural or synthetic rubber including anything containing or coated with rubber;"smoke" means the gases, particulate matter and products of combustion emitted into the atmosphere when material is burned or subjected to heat and includes soot, grit and gritty particulates emitted in smoke;"soot blowing" means a method of cleaning deposited carbon from the internal surfaces of fuel burning equipment, which usually includes the use of a jet of air or steam onto heat exchange surfaces to clean deposits;"spray area" means the area or enclosure referred to in section 20.2. Purpose and objectives
3. Application
Chapter 2
Duty of care
4. Air pollution duty of care
Chapter 3
Designation of air quality officer and environmental management inspectors
5. Designation of air quality officer and environmental management inspectors
6. Powers and functions of the air quality officer
7. Powers and functions of designated environmental management inspectors
A designated environmental management inspector shall, within his or her mandate as determined by the MEC, have all the powers and functions as set out in sections 31G to 31L of NEMA.Chapter 4
Local emission standards, norms and standards and smoke control zones
Part 1 – Local emission standards
8. Identification of Substances and Development of Local Emission Standards
Part 2 – Norms and standards
9. Substances identification process
10. Declaration of air pollution control zones
11. Public participation process
For the purposes of the publication of the local emission standards and the declaration of air pollution control zones, the municipality must follow the public participation process as set out in section 13 of the Municipal Systems Act, 2000, as amended.Chapter 5
Smoke emissions from premises other than dwellings
12. Prohibition of dark smoke from premises
13. Installation and operation of fuel burning equipment
14. Emission measuring
15. Monitoring and sampling
An owner or occupier of premises, and the operator of any fuel-burning equipment, who is required to conduct emission measurements or to install obscuration measuring equipment in terms of section 14(1) must–16. Temporary exemption
17. Transitional arrangements in respect of authorised fuel burning equipment
Chapter 6
Emissions caused by burning of material
18. Emissions caused by burning of industrial waste, domestic waste and garden waste on any premises
A person who carries out or permits the burning of any industrial, domestic or garden waste, on any premises, for the purpose of disposing of that waste, is committing an offence unless such waste is legally disposed of in terms of section 26 of the National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 (Act 59 of 2008).19. Emissions caused by tyre burning and burning of rubber and other material for the recovery of metal
Chapter 7
Emissions caused by spray painting and media blasting
20. Spray painting emissions
21. Media blasting emissions
Chapter 8
Emissions from compressed ignition powered vehicles
22. Prohibition
23. Stopping of vehicles for inspection and testing
24. Testing procedure
25. Repair notice
Chapter 9
Compliance and enforcement
26. Compliance Notice
27. Remedial steps
28. Access to premises and enforcement
Chapter 10
General provisions
29. Indemnity
The municipality shall not be liable for any damage caused to any property or premises by any action or omission of the employees or officials of the municipality when exercising any function or performing any duty in terms of this by-law, provided that such employees or officials must, when exercising such function or performing such duty, take reasonable steps to prevent any damage to such property or premises.30. Exemptions
31. Offences and penalties
32. Appeal
A person whose rights are affected by decision taken in terms of delegated authority may appeal to the city manager against such decision in terms section 62 of the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act, 2000 (Act 32 of 2000) by giving a written notice within 21 days of the date of notification of the decision and the reasons for the appeal.33. Repeal of by-law and savings
34. Short title and commencement
This by-law shall be known as the Drakenstein: Air Quality Management By-law 2021, and shall come into operation on the date of publication thereof in the Provincial Gazette.History of this document
07 May 2021 this version
Cited documents 7
Act 7
1. | Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 | 12573 citations |
2. | Local Government: Municipal Systems Act, 2000 | 4650 citations |
3. | Local Government: Municipal Structures Act, 1998 | 4515 citations |
4. | National Environmental Management Act, 1998 | 2400 citations |
5. | Occupational Health and Safety Act, 1993 | 1008 citations |
6. | National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 | 455 citations |
7. | National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act, 2004 | 364 citations |