Waste firm to face charges
ENVIROSERV is to face criminal charges regarding its alleged non-compliance with waste management conditions.
This is according to the Department of Environmental Affairs, which also said in a media briefing yesterday that it had no doubt that the firm was responsible for the odour in the Upper Highway area.
The department said the waste management company could be fined up to R10 million for charges relating to its alleged non-compliance of conditions of its waste management licence and for noncompliance with the national Air Quality Act. It also faces a charge relating to allegedly not fulfilling certain duties of care according to provisions contained in the National Environmental Management Act.
The site, which deals with hazardous waste, has since August been under strict investigation by the department, and has been forced to close many of its operations.
The department said closing the landfill was one of the options being looked at. It also could not rule out that the odour emanating from the site could cause ailments to nearby residents, as many disgruntled residents have claimed.
Mark Gordon, deputy director-general of chemicals and waste management at the department, said investigations had revealed the Shongweni landfill site as the source of the odour. He said the problem was caused by a type of sulfatereducing bacteria, which thrived in low pH waste bodies.
The Mercury previously reported that EnviroServ had identified the Desulfovibrio vulgaris bacteria as the cause, which it said was able to breed because of amendments to the waste management act which forced lower pH levels.
But the department yesterday denied claims that the regulations were to blame. “We do not buy that reason. We give a wide pH range of 6-12. Within this, we give operators and management control.”
He said the pH levels at the site were at a record low a year ago. “EnviroServ should have known this would happen. They should have monitored trends.”
Gordon said the odour flared recently because of a “significant amount of sulfates” collected in the waste body since the site started in 2010. He said they had already looked at options for disposing of hazardous waste should Shongweni be forced to close.
Gordon said there was another site capable of handling the waste on the North Coast, and that sites in other provinces could also take the waste.
Veracity
The department rejected the idea that the veracity of the investigations may have been compromised because investigators, like those conducting the still-outstanding toxicology report, were paid by EnviroServ.
“Bias has been eliminated, they are acting under the supervision of the Department of Environmental Affairs. They report to us… we approve the appointments, and scope (of investigation). EnviroServ has little say in it.”
EnviroServ chief executive Dean Thompson said the company had been served with the charges, but called these “premature”. The charges had “omitted to consider a number of relevant considerations” and would therefore be opposed.
“We have been in a consultative process with the authorities for months now, and an agreed process has been in place which only ends in April.” He said the toxicology report, which looked at health risks, would be ready in midApril.
Ann McDonnell, DA environmental spokesperson in KZN, said the party would use its clout at national level to speed up the shutdown of the site. A DA team would visit the site and neighbouring communities today.