Thank you, hon Chairperson. The question number 74 relates to kriel in Mpumalanga with sulfur dioxide emissions. Our response, the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries is a custodian of the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act. Apart from regulating the facilities that emit sulfur dioxide and other gases has developed a strategy for air pollution on dense low income settlement.
The National Department of Health is part of the stakeholders in this regard. The strategy identifies each sector department and roles. The Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries also has air quality monitoring stations which showcase areas of non-compliance. Apart of the strategy of the National Department of Health sees the following structures, highveld priority areas authorities meetings chaired by Environment, Forestry and Fisheries and National Co-ordinating Committee on Residential Air Pollution. These are platforms for engaging with sector department on how communities can be protected from air pollution and strategies to reduce exposure.
The Department of Health has developed a guideline on domestic indoor air quality as a way of reducing indoor pollution within the households. A guideline has been developed to guide municipal health services in addressing indoor air quality. It's in the process of being approved. Some of the activities are as follows: to create awareness on the indoor air quality risks, provide guidance in undertaking indoor air pollutants, assessments in domestic environment, support indoor air quality monitoring as part of the management plans and programmes, support air quality research studies and also to incorporate behavioural change strategies as potential to reduce indoor air pollution.
Provinces also have a role in this particular act. The Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries is currently conducting a scoping study to establish the vulnerability of communities.
The Nkangala District Municipality has the following programmes: the awareness campaigns pollution as a result of sulfur dioxide SO2 and also focus on open cast mines together with the
Department of Mineral Resources and Energy which as well contributes to domestic fuel burning.
The common effect of sulfur dioxide is dioxide toxicity to foetal wellbeing is low birth weight. The Nkangala health District keeps record of birth weight of children. In the past years, there has not been a noticeable increase in the incidents of low birth weight amongst the children born in that area. Thank you.