GAUTRAIN'S ENVIRONMENTAL CARE

Adherence to Gautrain’s Draft Final Environment Management Plan is a requirement of the Gauteng Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Environment. The aim is to ensure that sound environmental management processes are incorporated in day-to-day Project construction and operations activities.

There are two broad environmental approval components for the Gautrain Project. These are environmental assessment and environmental management. Environmental assessment is a process of ensuring that the environmental implications of a proposed activity (in this case a rapid rail link) are identified and assessed so that a decision can be made on the acceptability of the proposed activity. Environmental management is a process of ensuring that mitigation required to prevent or control impacts is properly defined and implemented. Each of these components is further elaborated in the process flow diagram and below.

ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT

• The Gautrain Project was subjected to a detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) during 2002-2003. It was submitted to the Gauteng Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Environment (GDACE) for a decision.
• Included in the EIA submission was a Revision 1 Environmental Management Plan (EMP). An authorisation for the proposed project to proceed – a Record of Decision (RoD) – was issued by GDACE on 29 September 2003 and an amended RoD was issued on 25 April 2004. The RoD included a number of conditions including the further development of the Revision 1 EMP.

ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT PROCESS

• The RoD conditions stipulated the process for the further development of the (Revision 1) EMP submitted with the EIA. This required the formulation of a Revision 2 EMP which contained applicable standards and proposed method statements.
• In addition, GDACE requested that a document listing relevant standards be compiled and submitted to GDACE for their comments in 2004. GDACE provided comments on these Draft Standards, which were taken into account in the formulation of the Revision 2 EMP.
• In formulating the Revision 2 EMP it became clear that it would not be possible to get the EMPs approved in time for scheduled construction start. As a result, an Initial Works EMP was conceptualised and developed, and submitted to GDACE, together with an amendment application, for consideration. The Initial Works EMP governs construction activities that are principally, but not exclusively, site establishment activities.
• The RoD further stipulated that once comments had been received from GDACE on the Revision 2 EMP, that a Draft Final EMP be developed. The Draft Final EMP will then govern design, construction and ultimately operations and maintenance of the Gautrain Rapid Rail Link.
• Only once the Draft Final EMP has been approved by GDACE can full-scale construction commence.
• The final step in this process is then to implement the EMP. The EMP contains considerable detail on how implementation will be effected, and what will be done to ensure that the implementation is effective.

Click here to view Gautrain’s Environmental Plan.