The Minister of Environment, Forestry, and Fisheries (DEFF), Ms. Barbara Creecy has published a 30 day period of consultation on her intention to amend the Section 24H Registration Authority Regulations of 2016, of the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA), in Government Notice No. 40, Gazette Number 42967 of 24 January 2020. The Gazette notifies the Minister’s intent to extend the date for the compulsory registration of Environmental Assessment Practitioners (EAPs) from 08 February 2020 to 08 February 2022. Previously, these Regulations took effect 24 months from the date of the appointment of the Environmental Assessment Practitioners Association of South Africa (EAPASA) as the single Registration Authority on 08 February 2018. Once Section 24H is amended, Regulation 14 of these Regulations will take effect 48 months from the date of the appointment of EAPASA.
Members of the public are invited to submit written comments or inputs to the Minister, within 30 days of publication of this notice in the Gazette.
To date, EAPASA has received 400 applications, 121 of which have been approved as Registered EAPs and 17 approved as Candidate EAPs while others have been deemed incomplete and returned to applicants. The Association currently has 1 207 draft applications on the online registration system which have not yet been submitted and has trained 100 assessors to assess these applications as they are received.
As the first Statutory Environmental Assessment Professional Body recognised by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA), EAPASA encourages all practising EAPs with primary responsibility for preparing and reviewing Environmental Impact Assessments to submit their applications as soon as possible to ensure they are registered by the new deadline.
EAPASA assures all involved stakeholders that it is committed to its mandate of registering practising EAPs in order to improve the quality of environmental assessment in South Africa.
Environmental Assessment Practitioners can register at the link below:
Visit the EAPASA website: https://www.eapasa.org/
https://registration.eapasa.org/
For media enquiries contact Snowy Makhudu, Chairperson of the EAPASA Board at chairperson@eapasa.org / 083 640 8070
ISSUED BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT PRACTITIONERS ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH AFRICA (EAPASA)
