South Africa Makes it Easier to Develop Large-Scale Solar Power
South Africa’s Ministry of Environmental Affairs announced it has simplified the procedure to conduct environmental impact assessment for large-scale PV and wind power projects in the country’s eight Renewable Energy Development Zones (REDZs) or its associated Strategic Transmissions Corridor.
The ministry said in a notice that the procedure of environmental impact assessment (EIA) for utility-scale renewable energy projects, as well as for the related powerlines and substations planned in these areas, has been simplified compared to the full EIA process. Solar and wind project “must follow the basic assessment procedure contemplated in regulation 19 and 20 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations, 2014 in order to obtain environmental Authorization”, said the ministry in the document.
The ministry claims that this will reduce review and decision making time and the level of assessment required for each project, based on the fact that scoping level pre-assessment was already undertaken in those areas
Dana Smillie / World Bank