Centre for Environmental Rights – Advancing Environmental Rights in South Africa

On 31 December 2021, the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment published her intention to amend the Section 24H Registration Authority Regulations. These Regulations provide for the Environmental Assessment Practitioners Association of South Africa (EAPASA) as the authority responsible for the registration of environmental assessment practitioners. You can find more information on EAPASA at www.eapasa.org .

The period for public comment on the proposed changes has been extended to 21 February 2022.

However, Regulation 22 was amended on 7 February 2022. This amendment extended the deadline for the compulsory registration of EAPs by 6 months. The new date for compulsory registration  with EAPASA is now 8 August 2022.

Some of the proposed changes include:

• New section on when these Regulations apply (e.g during applications for environmental authorisation, waste management licences, atmospheric emission licences, section 24G applications and appeals under section 43 of NEMA);
• Substituted section providing for details on which activities and tasks require an environment assessment practitioner to be registered with EAPASA (for example tasks in connection with applying for environmental authorisation, a waste management licence, an atmospheric emission licences, section 24G applications and appeals under section 43 of NEMA). Previously, Regulation 14 simply provided that “No person other than a registered environmental assessment practitioner, registered with a registration authority, may hold primary responsibility for the planning, management, coordination or review of environmental impact assessments and associated EMPrs.” Specific tasks within these application processes are now provided in the proposed amendment to Regulation 14;
• Changes to the transitional provisions;
• Changes to commencement of provisions where previously EAPS where given 4 years (48 months) in which to register with EAPASA from the date of its first appointment, the proposed amendment now provides for 54 months. In addition to this further delay for compliance, certain provisions will only come into effect by notice of publication in the gazette (i.e there is no defined date for commencement).

The proposed amendment is available here

The Section 24H Registration Authority Regulations, 2016 are available here.