A revised Planning and Development Act will be introduced in the Western Cape to achieve "meaningful reform" of the apartheid-style land use patterns that are still the legacy of the province, Environment and Planning MEC Tasneem Essop has announced.
Presenting her budget speech in the provincial legislature on Thursday, Essop said the poor had to be brought closer to economic and social opportunities which had been denied during apartheid.
An Amended Planning and Development Act would achieve meaningful spatial reform and social land use goals in the short term and would replace the "dreaded" Land Use Planning Ordinance.
"We are looking at giving us the power to issue socio-economic and climate change conditions in authorisations - for example, social housing, renewable energy, energy and water efficiency, and so on."
One of the "biggest disappointments" of her four-year tenure had been a High Court decision that had blocked her attempt to insist on social housing in a planned "elite development" on a farm near Stellenbosch, she said.
"That was an unfortunate ruling of the court - I hope the precedent will be overturned."
Essop said the total budget for the department, including both the environmental affairs and planning branches, was R198,8-million for the 2008/9 financial year - an increase of just 0,8 percent.
Of this, R87,8-million would go to the conservation agency CapeNature.
Essop pointed out that the Western Cape had been the first province to undertake scientific research into the local impacts of climate change.
"The science was clear and confirmed national research that this province will be one of the most vulnerable to climate change," she warned.
The province had now finalised its climate change adaptation and mitigation strategy - also a first in the country - which was premised on the understanding that climate change was a poverty issue.
She quoted from the seminal work, The Hot Topic by Gabrielle Walker and Sir David King which states: "It's a nasty irony that the people least responsible for the problem (of climate change) will also be the ones that suffer first and most."
Essop also said that she was now more convinced than ever that her 2006 decision to emphasise the importance of unlocking the Western Cape's "environment economy" had been correct: "The future economy is green!"
Referring to previous criticism of long delays and red-tape in approving planning and development applications, Essop said the department had - "despite very serious capacity constraints" - managed to finalise and approve 8 707 development applications from a total of 11 191 in the past four years.
"This represents a R50-billion investment injection into the economy of the Western Cape and has facilitated the creation of more than 20,000 permanent employment opportunities and more than 50,000 temporary employment opportunities."
- Cape Argus
Presenting her budget speech in the provincial legislature on Thursday, Essop said the poor had to be brought closer to economic and social opportunities which had been denied during apartheid.
An Amended Planning and Development Act would achieve meaningful spatial reform and social land use goals in the short term and would replace the "dreaded" Land Use Planning Ordinance.
"We are looking at giving us the power to issue socio-economic and climate change conditions in authorisations - for example, social housing, renewable energy, energy and water efficiency, and so on."
| 'That was an unfortunate ruling of the court' |
"That was an unfortunate ruling of the court - I hope the precedent will be overturned."
Essop said the total budget for the department, including both the environmental affairs and planning branches, was R198,8-million for the 2008/9 financial year - an increase of just 0,8 percent.
Of this, R87,8-million would go to the conservation agency CapeNature.
Essop pointed out that the Western Cape had been the first province to undertake scientific research into the local impacts of climate change.
"The science was clear and confirmed national research that this province will be one of the most vulnerable to climate change," she warned.
The province had now finalised its climate change adaptation and mitigation strategy - also a first in the country - which was premised on the understanding that climate change was a poverty issue.
She quoted from the seminal work, The Hot Topic by Gabrielle Walker and Sir David King which states: "It's a nasty irony that the people least responsible for the problem (of climate change) will also be the ones that suffer first and most."
Essop also said that she was now more convinced than ever that her 2006 decision to emphasise the importance of unlocking the Western Cape's "environment economy" had been correct: "The future economy is green!"
Referring to previous criticism of long delays and red-tape in approving planning and development applications, Essop said the department had - "despite very serious capacity constraints" - managed to finalise and approve 8 707 development applications from a total of 11 191 in the past four years.
"This represents a R50-billion investment injection into the economy of the Western Cape and has facilitated the creation of more than 20,000 permanent employment opportunities and more than 50,000 temporary employment opportunities."
The provincial government was setting an example by employing energy-efficient technologies and construction methods in all public buildings and part of its "green procurement" strategy could involve a requirement that all tenders for provincial government projects complied strictly with environmentally friendly technologies, she said.
- Cape Argus
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