Notice No. 6202

16 May 2025

GG 52691

Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment

I, Dion Travers George, Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, hereby adopt, in terms of section 24(10)(a)(i) and 24(10)(a)(ii) of the National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (Act No. 107 of 1998), the Sandveld Environmental Management Framework Standard, 2025, and based on compliance with this Standard, exclude, in terms of section 24(2)(d) of the National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (Act No. 107 of 1998) activities identified in the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations Listing Notices 1, 2 and 3 of 2014, from the requirement to obtain an environmental authorisation prior to commencement when undertaken in the geographical area assessed by the Sandveld Environmental Management Framework, included on the map provided as Annexure 1.

The activities which are the subject of this exclusion relate to the clearance of indigenous vegetation for the cultivation of land, where such clearance of indigenous vegetation triggers—

Activity 27 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations Listing Notice 1 of 2014;

Activity 15 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations Listing Notice 2 of 2014; or

Activity 12(i) of the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations Listing Notice 3 of 2014;

and any associated activity necessary for the realisation of such cultivation of land, excluding the development or expansion of dams, electricity generation or distribution and agri-industry facilities.

The Sandveld Environmental Management Framework was adopted by the Western Cape Minister of Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning on 7 June 2019 as a shared vision of sustainable agriculture within the Sandveld Environmental Management Framework geographical area. The Sandveld Environmental Management Framework introduces the concept of farm-level planning which is to be implemented through the Sandveld Environmental Management Framework Standard, 2025.

The Standard identifies the measures for the management and mitigation of environmental impacts associated with the cultivation of land which will be excluded through the implementation of this notice and establishes the processes and procedures for the clearance of indigenous vegetation and other associated activities necessary for the cultivation of land, to be excluded from the environmental authorisation requirement. The Standard furthermore, prescribes procedures and criteria to be used by the competent authority for the monitoring of excluded activities.

The Standard and the Sandveld Environmental Management Framework layers are available at the following links on the following web pages:

https://www.dffe.gov.za/projectprogrammes/environmental_management_instruments

https://www.westerncape.gov.za/eadp/

This Standard comes into operation on the date of publication of this notice in the Government Gazette, subject to the transitional arrangements contained in the Standard.

Dr Dion Travers George

Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment