WEBINAR – Overview of the National Environmental Management: Waste Act (Act 59 of 2008)

The National Environmental Management: Waste Act 59 of 2008 (NEMWA) came into force in South Africa on 1 July 2009. While the main Act became effective on this date, certain sections, particularly those relating to contaminated land were enacted on 2 May 2014.

The Act reformed the law regulating waste management in order to protect health and the environment by providing reasonable measures for the prevention of pollution and ecological degradation and for securing ecologically sustainable development. It also provides for institutional arrangements, planning, national norms and standards for regulating the management of waste by all spheres of government, licensing and control of waste management activities, national waste information system, and compliance and enforcement.

Focus Areas of the Webinar

Representatives from the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment will provide an overview of the Waste Act with a specific focus on:

• Roles and responsibilities of national, provincial, and local government
• Permitting and licensing requirements
• Classification of hazardous and general waste
• Norms and standards for waste storage
• Waste manifests and roles and responsibilities
• Waste minimisation
• SAWIC registration process
• Compliance and enforcement procedures