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Environmental Legal Services


Field of Practice

 

Our services currently cover Environmental, Employment as well as Health and Safety Law.  We serve both Mining and Industry and our client base ranges from Multi National Mining Companies to small specialized operations providing products and/or equipment to a niche market.

 

 

General Legal Compliance Audits - Environment , Health & Safety and Employment Law

We undertake Legal Compliance Audits in respect of all the aforesaid disciplines.  In some instances separate legal audits are conducted on Environment or Employment or Health and Safety Legal Compliances.  In other instances clients prefer combined audits in respect of all three disciplines simultaneously to limit costs and the time spent on legal auditing in the course of a year.

To save time and costs, general compliance audits can be combined with any of the external compliance audits referred to below.  


Legal Registers (Environmental, Health & Safety and Employment Law) 

We have implemented a web based system which allows for the development of mine or site specific legal registers.  The registers are also available in Word format should clients prefer that format.  The applicable National, Provincial or Local legislation is reflected in the Registers which are supplemented with a compliance or implementation programme to assist clients in achieving legal compliance.  Subscription fees vary according to the size of the operation, range of applicable legislation and the number of our products or services made use of.

As the same persons are often tasked with Environmental as well as Health & Safety Legal compliance the current trend is to make use of both types of registers as they have the same format.  We have also been requested to include selected Employment legislation (In particular Codes of Good Practice, dismissal procedures, strike rules and Basic Conditions of Employment in our Health & Safety Legal Registers).




Newsletters

Regular newsletters are circulated to allow our clients to stay abreast of developments in the various legal disciplines covered by our services.  Newsletters are also used to advise clients in respect of developments that require urgent attention such as draft legislation published for comment.  New case law is also addressed when available. 

Compliance audits on Environmental Authorisations 

Most Environmental Authorisations such as Environmental Authorizations under the National Environmental Management Act, 1998, Water Use Licences under the National Water Act, 1998, Air Emissions Licences under the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act, 2004 and Waste Management Licences under the National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 require external legal compliance auditing on a regular basis.

These audits can also be conducted simultaneously or separately with general legal compliance audits and/or EMPr performance assessments (see above).

Each of the conditions of an authorization is audited separately for compliance, applicability and practicality.  The Reports do not only reflect the degree of compliance, but also include recommendations on possible amendment applications.  The format of the Report complies with the requirements of the relevant State Department and is provided to the client for comment before providing a final report for submission to the Authorities. 

Performance Assessments (Auditing) and reporting to the Authorities are a legal requirement in respect of Environmental Management Programmes (EMPr's) developed in terms of the National Environmental Management Act,  1998 (previously MPRDA, 2002). We assess the degree of legal compliance against the stated commitments in the EMPr's.  The results of these assessments are then recorded in Performance Assessment Reports for submission to the Authorities.  Performance Assessments of this nature can be conducted as part of a general legal compliance audit or individually or combined with compliance audits on any environmental authorizations issued to the Company, which includes EA's, IWUL's, WML's, AEL's and other. 



Client specific legal training 

Our clients prefer on site legal training that is developed to suit the client's specific needs.  In some instances courses or workshops cover all the relevant legislation requirements.  In other instances our services are retained to address specific aspects and/or the latest legislative developments.  Photographs taken during audits are included in the training modules upon request, to assist employees with the interpretation of their legal responsibilities.  We are also requested to provide briefings on draft or imminent legislation to ensure that strategic planning is in place prior to commencement. 

We have been involved in the development of corporate standards, codes and procedures based on environmental, health & safety and employment law, to assist employers in establishing guidelines for a Company or Group of Companies as a whole.  We are also involved in strategic planning sessions in the course of which challenges and non-conformances are identified, corrective actions and controls are discussed and strategies developed to ensure conformity and legal compliance within the Group or Company.

 Consultation and Legal Opinions 

We are consulted on a wide range of topics in the Environmental, Employment as well as Health & Safety fields and we provide formal legal opinions where interpretation or the manner of compliance is unclear or in dispute.   We are also involved in risk management and the identification of various scenarios and options available to a company in respect of anticipated projects or actions or in respect of existing conditions requiring immediate rectification.  These services are available at an agreed hourly rate.

Consolidated Compliance Programmes

Some companies have been issued with various Environmental Authorizations some of which contain contradictory, overlapping, unreasonable and/or irrelevant conditions.  Our assistance has been required to develop a Consolidated Compliance Programme.  All the legal requirements are consolidated into one document and compliance programmes are developed for each subject in need of attention. Reference is made to the applicable condition in the authorization to ensure that the specific condition is readily available. 

Nature of Audits 

Depending on the needs of clients we are also able to offer legal compliance audits for purposes of certification (ISO 14001:2015 and/or ISO 45001:2018).  In other instances general legal compliance audits are required to establish the level of compliance without any intention of applying for certification.  Lastly we are often approached to conduct a Risk Analysis reflecting any legal non-conformances that may exist together with the risk involved in operating unlawfully,  We are usually required to advise on rectification, condonations or other steps to rectify the situation.

Costs and Fees

Costs and fees are negotiable depending upon the number of products or services required, the size of the operation and the applicable legislation.