The Swaziland Environment Action Plan (SEAP)

RECOMMENDED POLICY AND STRATEGY FRAMEWORK

3.2 COMMERCIAL, RETAIL & INDUSTRIAL

These three related policies are to address the specific issues around the commercial and industrial activities and properties, and in particular their adequacy in implementing the requirements of the NDS, NLEP and ULEP. The industrial policy is of particular relevance to the SEAP.

ISSUES SUMMARY

Land

Historically created plot sizes often obstructive to current planning, retail, industrial and commercial requirements.
Commercial, retail and industrial activities are increasingly international, highlighting the pressures concerning national/international land ownership.
Lack of a rational commercial hierarchy.
Inadequate parking facilities to support commercial/retail uses.
The physical location, control and role of street vendors.

Environmental

Continuing contamination of air, water and land, despite scientific research proving or suggesting crippling, stunting, carcinogenic and other health-related effects.
A narrow focus on job creation, without reference to the broad, longer term economic and social effects of contamination.
Significant current and potential environmental health difficulties with current solid waste disposal sites.
Littering, the shortage of disposal facilities and of anti-littering incentives.
Water used for agricultural and other industries, and its reintroduction into the environment after use.
Neither polluters, for example the transport industry, nor pollutants, for example by air or groundwater contamination, limit themselves to confined geographical areas.
Fuel tank leaks from service stations, oil and battery disposal from garages.

SUMMARY POLICY PROPOSALS

Status of Policies

Non-existent. However, there are several legislative (and therefore de facto) policy provisions concerning solid and industrial waste; the 1996 Solid Waste Disposal Regulations under the SEA Act are of particular relevance.

Broad Overall Objectives

To ensure that access to suitable land is never an inhibiting factor for sustainable commercial, retail and industrial development.
To ensure that commercial, retail and industrial activity does not compromise the quality of life of anyone, in terms of the developmental potential of children and the health and lifespan of all citizens.
To ensure that Swaziland becomes and remains within all internationally accepted limits of commercial and industrial pollution.

Policy Principles

Entrepreneurial activities be given the maximum encouragement and minimum impairment within clearly defined boundaries of equitably and environmentally sustainable development.
Everyone in Swaziland has the right to clean air, water, and land; conversely, no-one in Swaziland has the right to contaminate same without specific permission.

Policy Practical Elements

Self-regulation within polluting industries and commercial/professional associations be encouraged.
Emission control be integrated in all vehicle transfer procedures and licensing provisions.
Implement market-based measures to reduce the preponderance of no-deposit, no-return containers.

Policy Supportive Elements

A National Environmental Audit be carried out as a matter of urgency, determining the nature, extent and consequences - real and potential - of environmental contamination.
Liaise with the South African Environmental authorities - national and provincial - concerning cross-border contamination, the preponderance of no-deposit, no-return containers, and other areas of common concern.

SUMMARY STRATEGY PROPOSALS

General Strategic Approach

SEA to advise all lending institutions, public risk insurance companies and valuers of the possible consequences of contamination to the value of the land.
To advise polluters of their present and potential future responsibilities in cleaning up site contamination.
Local authorities to identify, isolate and monitor hazardous and toxic wastes in their dumps, and identify and develop sanitary land fills if the current sites do not meet environmental standards.
Local authorities to set up policing units for the enforcement of laws controlling waste disposal, littering etc.
To prohibit the siting of industrial facilities which are potentially hazardous to environmental health in residential areas, and the encroachment of residential uses to the proximity of such industrial facilities.
To formulate and institute strategies to safely and effectively manage the use of heavy metals, and as far as possible eliminate the uncontrolled exposure of heavy metals, in particular to women and children.

Sectoral specific strategies

Commercial and Retail Sector

To control and ban where practicable the sale and use of toxic agrochemicals, especially aldicarb, parathion, monocrotophos, dieldrin and DDT.
To introduce use control of toxic agrochemicals to include avoidance of spraying on windy days or in areas leaching to the water table, streams and rivers.
To ban the sale and use of lead paints.
To phase out leaded petrol, and at the same time introduce measures to limit the toxicity of unleaded petrol.
To prevent entry of photographic and dry cleaning wastes into the common public sewerage and solid waste disposal systems by setting up an independent disposal and recycling system.

Industrial Sector

To encourage industries to set up recycling or reuse plants within their premises or to embark on an environmentally sound treatment of their hazardous waste.
To encourage industries to adopt on a permanent basis, material, energy and water saving techniques and to aim for zero discharge of effluent in the course of recycling, cooling and processing water.
Industries to set up programmes for the cleanup of old and abandoned dumping sites, and any other sites where they have deposited contaminants.
To encourage industries to improve their technical capacities in hazardous waste disposal.
To institute free market environmentalism practices to 1) discourage pollution (property rights) and 2) encourage sound environmental management (tax reductions and other conducive benefits).
To set up monitoring facilities to register and record hazardous pollutants - e.g. a register of asbestos in buildings, particularly old buildings and asbestos in contact with acid.
To set up oil recycling depots in local authorities.

Community Participation Strategy

Local authorities, in cooperation with NGO's and the SEA, to educate the public on the hazards of contaminants, and on environmentally-friendly practices such as recycling.
To encourage companies that create environmental impacts to support environmental organisations financially, materially and otherwise.
To target industrial safety officers for education towards ensuring that workers are environmentally literate and understand the environment in which they are working.

Supportive Strategies

To consolidate, review and revise the pieces of scattered legislation, including occupational health and safety regulations, and ensure continued enforcement of the resulting legislation.
To set up comprehensive information bases, linked to the proposed land information system, with a main objective being to identify hazardous or potentially hazardous industrial areas.
To constitute management systems to ensure the systematic monitoring of the above.
To consolidate, review and revise the pieces of scattered legislation, update same in terms of new procedures for nucleotide disposal and newly introduced toxic pesticides etc., and ensure the continued enforcement of the resulting legislation.
To set up procedures for one-off and cyclic EIA's as appropriate.

KEY REFERENCE MATERIAL

Mavimbela, S. 1993 The Clean World: Managing Chemicals and Waste.
McDermott, M. 1994. Site Contamination: Some International Effects on Property Values.

MINISTERIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

MTEC, MEE, MNRE, MHUD, MHSW.