In the last 18 months, South Africa has seen several key policy and legal developments relating to environment, sustainability, and climate change.

The developments include (i) domestic developments in climate change law; (ii) emerging jurisprudence in advancing climate action and enforcement of environmental laws; (iii) the final implementation of various provisions of the fourth amendment of national environmental management laws; and (iv) critical developments relating to regulation of waste.

In this legal update, we summarise these legal developments, especially those that are expected to have a bearing on South Africa’s climate response, our collective journey to net-zero by 2050, and those relevant to managing corporate-level risk and liability.

We have organised this legal update into three parts, namely (i) legislative developments; (ii) case law developments; and (iii) the emerging trends including those that relate to greenwashing and green claims.

For more information and to keep up to date with the latest developments, please contact Claire Tucker, Michael Vermaark or Wandisile Mandlana in our Environment, Sustainability and Climate Change Practice.