Shell South Africa has embarked on the process of applying for environmental authorisation for one of its Port Elizabeth service stations, after it learned the station had been storing fuel unlawfully.
The company held a public meeting for concerned citizens yesterday at the Motherwell NU2 community hall, around the corner from the Kabane Motors service station.
This is part of a lengthy process to rectify the oversight of Kabane not possessing authorisation to store fuel underground when it began operating in 2002.
A report drafted by Mabu Management Solutions – which was appointed as an independent environmental assessment practitioner – said that Shell was required to obtain an environmental authorisation (EA) for storing fuel in tanks larger than 80 cubic metres, in accordance with the National Environmental Management Amendment Act.
“At this moment, Shell does not have any EA records for some of their existing sites and cannot prove that applications were made, or records were lost,” according to the report.
“Shell cannot prove if they ever obtained the required EA from authorities for construction of the Kabane Motors Shell Service Station in terms of environmental legislation or not.”At the meeting, Shell’s country environmental adviser Sinethemba Bolo said that the company had recently discovered the oversight and decided to rectify the problem. “[It is part of] our work to ensure 100% compliance at our sites by 2020,” Bolo said.
As part of the process, Mabu will submit an environmental impact report to the provincial Department of Economic Development, Environmental Affairs and Tourism.
The draft report will be available for comment at the Motherwell NU9 library from tomorrow until July 10. Comments can be sent to mmapula@mamadi.co.za, or made telephonically at (011) 532-8406.