Contents of February 2011

COMMENT
Lead by example

UPFRONT
What is new and happening?

GREEN BUILDINGS
 ‘Green’ – an architect’s perspective
Questioning the way “green” is perceived, an architect takes us through the conversion of the IDC head office in Sandton and shares his strong beliefs on truly going green.

GREEN BUILDINGS BRIEF

CITY VISIT
Town planning turnaround – Return to tradition
The original Mamre was a sustainable town with a strong sense of heritage. It has been regenerated in the interests of sustainability.

ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING & DESIGN
New EIA regulations – Process refined or encumbered?
The new EIA regulations are debated with a clear difference in opinion revealed.

WASTE & POLLUTION MANAGEMENT
The state of waste management
Innovative practices by municipal waste service providers to overcome the challenges facing these

WASTE & POLLUTION MANAGEMENT BRIEFS

INSPIRATION
Practical, effective public facility

INSULT
Military-style security

VIEWPOINT
Landscape matters

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COMMENT

Lead by example
Hosting COP 17 is an honour and responsibility. South Africa must not create great expectations but showcase great examples.
South Africa is set to hold another globally important event: COP 17. The 17th United Nations Conference on Climate Change will take place in Durban from November 28 to December 9 2011. It is expected that the conference will look at a number of critical questions not covered at COP 16 in Cancun, Mexico. These include the future of market-based mechanisms and the Kyoto Protocol as well as design issues.
COP 16 has been seen as rescuing and resuscitating the process and regenerating a willingness to engage in discussions surrounding climate change after COP 15 when little was achieved. Hailed as the “saviour of multilateralism” by Joanne Yawitch, deputy director-general for climate change for the Department of Environmental Affairs, COP 16 has set the process back on the right path. However, it did not answer any of the big political questions. These questions have been left for South Africa to tackle.
It will be a challenge to achieve the compromise sought and it will be wise for South Africa to not oversell the possible outcomes of the event. On the other end of the scale, our country should not undersell and “dumb down” expectations too much; belittling the process again. A balance of optimism and pessimism must be found to establish a realistic outcome.
Of course, a fair amount of criticism of South Africa’s environmental state of affairs will take place during the event. The country has a wealth of good practice and examples to show off but it also has a number of failures. This opportunity to showcase South Africa’s efforts and achievements must not be missed.

Vicky Rae Ellmore
Editor

The best of Jo’burg
Gerald Garner, the previous editor of Urban Green File, has authored a guide to Johannesburg which covers the city’s many urban nodes and village streets, as well as its green heritage and struggle legacy. Entitled Spaces & Places – Johannesburg, the book provides essential insider’s knowledge on the city and reveals tranquil havens and dusty corners worth visiting. It is available at leading retailers and will charm tourists and entrenched “Jo’burgers” alike.

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UPFRONT

Energy-efficiency drive commemorated
The Southern African Association for Energy Efficiency (SAEE) presented AngloGold Ashanti with the 2010 Excellence Award in recognition of outstanding contributions to conserving energy. Between 2005 and 2008, energy savings in the order of 1 044 GWh (subject to independent measurement and verification), resulting in financial savings of more than R180-million, were achieved.
Furthermore, since 2009, the company has started to implement projects which will save an additional 23 MW in electrical demand. Other projects which could result in another 7 MW savings are under investigation.
The award was presented at the SAEE annual banquet on November 10 2010 when the SAEE convention and exhibition was formally opened. The SAEE recognises the outstanding accomplishments of individuals and companies in the energy field through the annual SAEE awards programme.

‘Green’ wine acknowledged
Graham Beck Wines is the winner of the Nedbank Green Wine award for best environmental practice. For every hectare farmed, 4,4 ha are conserved, indigenous biomass has increased by 46% in less than 10 years and erosion has shrunk by 42%. In addition, around 3 Ml of water is cleaned per month for use in irrigation – better quality than the water found in the Breede River which intersects the Robertson farm.
Conservation manager, Mossie Basson speaks eloquently of infrared mapping of soils to determine the rootstocks most likely to prosper on the various sites. The company also uses soil probes which determine moisture and, therefore, irrigation needs while modelling software is used to predict vineyard disease which eliminates damaging “best guess” blanket-spray regimes.
Computer-based systems are also in place to protect scarce resources. “Water is precious, especially in Franschhoek,” Basson says. “We use a dashboard system to record our water use and indicate how close we are to reducing our monthly goals.” The same applies to fuel and electricity while on-site waste is now at a perfect 100% recycling rate.

Precinct plans for SA
Aurecon has been awarded a tender to assist the City of Johannesburg in formulating development portfolios for select BRT and rail-station precincts, and integrated the city’s vision into its growth-and-development strategy. The project presents an opportunity to determine a development strategy for Johannesburg’s BRT and rail precincts, and recommendations to optimise surrounding site usage. “The goal is to stimulate development in the area and to establish and/or upgrade infrastructure to meet this goal,” the City of Johannesburg’s Herman Pienaar notes. The plans revolve around what is termed “transit-oriented development” precincts with mixed-use residential or commercial areas to maximise access to public transport. These precincts incorporate features which encourage transit usage. This principle is supported by the density and mobility policies of the City of Johannesburg’s spatial-development framework.

CEOs back ‘green’ cause
Business leaders from some of South Africa's biggest companies met with the South African government late last year in advance of the international climate-change negotiations in Cancun. They handed over a statement from business leaders across the globe calling for movement and collaboration on the international climate policy agenda.
The statement – known as the Cancun Communiqué – states that it is a renewed call for “an ambitious, robust and equitable global deal on climate change… businesses are ready to work in partnership with government to achieve our joint climate objectives… the risk of inaction on climate change is far greater than the cost of investing today”. The statement has already secured the support of hundreds of CEOs around the world.

7 500 trees distributed
First National Bank and Food & Trees for Africa launched the planting of 10 000 trees on September 15 2010 with help from Lucas Radebe, former captain of Bafana Bafana and a close friend of the bank. Since then, 7 500 trees have been distributed to residents in Soweto, Lehae, Tembisa and Evaton West in Gauteng, Delft in the Western Cape and in Hammarsdale, KwaZulu-Natal. Another 1 000 fruit and indigenous trees will be distributed to residents in Bloemfontein.

First carbon-neutral nursery
Just Trees in Paarl has become the first nursery in South Africa to be certified carbon-neutral. The company conducted an internal assessment and then calculated its carbon footprint under the guidelines set out in the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. This was reviewed by experienced carbon-footprint analysts regulated by the Carbon Protocol of South Africa. It was determined that Just Trees – a nursery of 120 000 indigenous trees – generated 377 t of CO2 for the financial year ending February 28 2010. Initially, taking steps to reduce its emissions by, for example, decreasing  energy use, being waterwise and improving on transport efficiencies, Just Trees offset its remaining carbon footprint through the donation of 1 002 trees to Food & Trees for Africa.

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GREEN BUILDINGS

 ‘Green’– an architect’s perspective
The fact that we need to go “green” cannot be argued but how this is being achieved is debatable. Technology alone is, by no means, the answer – a drastic change in attitude is required.
Efforts by the “green movement” to change mindsets should, undoubtedly, be respected. Of course, we need to “go green” but how? There is no single technology we can apply. There are no fail-safe recipes. “Green” is an attitude. We could be green without any technological innovation if we changed our attitude drastically and became prepared to make do with less.
Should we get high “eco praise” for a building without HVAC, hot water or electricity? Raising our demands for comfort to the highest level and then satisfying them with low energy requirements is certainly an achievement but is it a praiseworthy environmental act?
Many questions arise, even when great efforts are made, such as the carbon footprint resulting from the presence of thousands of people coming together weekly, all over the world, however green the stadium. Think of the passage of hundreds of trucks, motor cars, motorcycles and helicopters in the Dakar rally in order for it to be watched on TV.
I am not advocating throwing the baby out with the bath water. Some technology has changed the world for the good of humanity. For instance, when air-conditioning was introduced on a wide commercial basis in the 1930s, it opened up the latitudes 30°S to 30°N of the globe for commercial activity. These areas were previously considered too hot to sustain any activity other than agriculture. In other words, we must embrace whatever makes life easier and happier but do it wisely.
New trends and attitudes are emerging, notably in Europe and Japan, where energy shortages and the concomitant discomfort increasingly affect mindsets. It is no longer considered clever to do the same as before just in a more energy-efficient way. It is cleverer to do less of it or none. Where populations are aging and shrinking, the draw of travel and the exotic yields to the need for creature comfort while television and camera technology have made travel and nature motion pictures into a virtual substitute for a real journey.

Imperfect implementation recommendations
Snow Consultants is a proud member of the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA) which is a highly commendable initiative which has based its credo on good social, economic and environmental thoughts. My concern is that the way its recommendations are approached by the outside world could endanger its work and cause the recommendation to become the aim in itself rather than the guiding philosophy. Green initiatives are driven, to a great extent, by bad examples and praise is usually given to those who are perceived to be converted “sinners”. Urban Green File published a highly pertinent article in the April 2010 edition: “The Green Lease” which showed that the greenness of a building is just the beginning. Technical solutions can easily be found – except for people.

IDC head office conversion
Human nature was the focus, rather than technical challenges, in the conversion of the Industrial Development Corporation’s offices in Sandton.
This case study focuses more on human nature than technical challenges which are becoming daily currency. As the initial and continuous architects, Snow Consultants was awarded the task of converting a 20 000 m² head-office building of 30 years standing: the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) in Sandton.
The brief required the company to retrofit all technically outdated support systems; to integrate an attached, independent smaller office building into the main building; and, above all, to change from cellular offices into open-plan. The changes would accommodate an increase in personnel numbers from about 600 to close to 1 000.
All this would occur with the bank remaining fully operational throughout –a difficult situation which took 18 months and brought human responses to the fore more strongly than usual.

First step: ‘green’ and client’s expectations clarified
Inevitably, the first discussions concerned the greenness of the building. Snow Consultants believes that past and present are as important as the future. The company questioned the value of being rated “green”: Do we get green points for a favourable history? Should we chase points? As a firm of architects, environmental planners and interior specialists, Snow Consultants safely assumes that it knows the same technical and commercial tricks as the GBCSA. After all, the council’s knowledge comes from consultants so, if consultants do not follow its recommendations in every detail, then there is reason for this behaviour. Any reward other than satisfaction in performance work ethic is incidental – an attitude made clear to the client from the beginning and accepted by that client.
It is not necessarily easy to describe the advice given by Snow Consultants or to deflate misconceptions about green. This initial clarification exercise, which seeks common ground, can take time, depending on the client’s level of trust. This requires a holistic approach – the combination of the best individual solutions rarely adds up to the best overall solution. However, all the expected questions about solar panels, solar water heaters, greywater, groundwater, bicycles, trees and electricity saving, among others, have to be answered with a reason for a “yes” and an explanation for a “no”. The first counter-question from the professional to the various requests is always: Why do you want it? Too often the response is: Isn’t it the done thing? Snow Consultants was very lucky as the client for this particular project had a good understanding of the issues.
There was, naturally, a desire to demonstrate what is generally thought to be greenness as the bank supports industry and wants those who approach it for financing to be faced with an example – “Do as we do”. However, greenness must be adapted in a variety of ways – for example, in the industrial field – so we persuaded the IDC to advocate “Do as we say” instead. 

Intelligent original design eases implementation
The original head-office building was designed, detailed and built according to the best accepted ecological principles and with the best technology available to meet this end at any given moment. The reasons varied over time. For the first phase, built in 1980, the priority was economy. Oil was expensive so costs of air-conditioning, light and heating had to be controlled. A good stable internal environment and low maintenance costs for interior and exterior were logical requests while an image of solidity and reliability were desired to send the right message to clients and debtors. As the user of this building is also the developer and landlord, capital, running and maintenance costs were seen as one and the same package.
The building was surrounded by landscaping with internal gardens under natural daylight. The offices opened onto the gardens with as little direct sunlight as possible. All this was achieved 30 years ago without the help of computers but with painstakingly produced scale models. The properties were examined on the turntables at the CSIR offices for sun control and daylight. A larger than normal number of calculations for k-value and thermal inertia of external façades were done; resulting in up to 1 m-wide external cavity walls. Most of what is now considered sound building design was known in those days but rarely used: roof insulation thick enough to control sound, temperature and humidity fluctuation, and inclined and tinted external glass, internal sound baffles on walls and ceilings, atrium gardens and blinds, for instance. All these were applied as a matter of course.
The IDC building was one of the first large office buildings in Sandton. Soon afterwards, many buildings were built on spec; receiving new façades over the years to suit fashion. Little heed was paid to greenness until recently when alterations began winning high green points. I like to fancy that, for the past 30 years, we have saved more green points than the rest of Sandton could probably achieve now. The IDC did not need clever manipulation. What had been intelligent and right on the original building remains so now. Nevertheless, technology has progressed, machines must be changed as new needs arise and their requirements met with efficiency. The new requirements are created by five factors:
1.blind faith in technology;
2.shortage of water;
3.computer technology;
4.shortage of electricity; and
5.increased population density.

1 Blind faith in technology
Unreliability and important undermine “greenness”
A happy notion prevails that we live in a push-button society and all our thoughtless actions can and will be controlled or corrected by electronic devices. We expect them to do anything and we blame them for everything.
A building like the IDC head office has thousands of electronic and electric control and monitoring devices built into its energy circuits. All these thousands of devices are controlled, monitored and recorded by a state-of-the-art building-management system (BMS). BMSs are being produced and installed in every building worth its salt at a rate of hundreds a year, countrywide, and must be monitored and controlled by a building-management specialist – hundreds are required countrywide but they are not being trained in this quantity. By now, there ought to be a developing industry to ameliorate this shortage.
According to general industrial statistics, up to 3% of all these small controlling devices will be defective at any given time. They are better replaced than repaired. Large machinery for air-conditioning or electricity supply is shipped in from the US or Europe. In the Snow Consultants project for the IDC, a machine showed a defect shortly after installation. Repair would infringe on stipulated guarantee agreements so a new machine was shipped in at the supplier’s expense. But who provides compensation for the carbon footprint? It is less of an environmental aggression to transport coal from Australia to Mozambique by boat than from Witbank to Richards Bay by road. Africa produces only 3% of all its technical requirements. The other 97% has to be imported across the sea. How green is this?

2 Shortage of water
Consumption reduction is only solution
South Africa has an increasing water shortage. No amount of money can buy rain – the only solution is a disciplined reduction in consumption. Water is wasted not by washing hands too often but by running the tap until it is too hot, mixing cold and warm until it is suitable and trying to get rid of the residual soap after washing. To store lukewarm water is a safety hazard and a legal minefield. For the IDC, all the modern standards have been applied: waterless urinals, low-volume dual toilet flush systems with hot water available in kitchens and showers only.
No greywater or blackwater system was applied for at least two reasons. Firstly, the wet rooms are scattered widely throughout the three-storey building – a decision made out of concern for internal human environmental quality which overrides technical green concerns. Secondly, Snow Consultants considers these aspects to be a minor, small-scale technical interference with services which, in an urban set-up, ought to be provided by organised, centralised sewage-treatment plants.

3 Computer technology
Needs multiplied
All that goes with computer technology – data-connection links and temperature control, for instance – creates multiple needs. One computer counts as one person for heat-load calculation but 800 people have over 2 000 computers – that is the reality of today’s technology. At the same time, there is less tolerance of environmental fluctuation.

4 Shortage of electricity
Discomfort of ‘ungreen’ solution
Unreliable electricity is another fact of life which impinges on computers as well as comfort, and must be solved by means of localised standby generators. Sandton, no doubt, has hundreds of these systems. Each one has a diesel tank beside it and the pollution effect of a city bus, and they all start up simultaneously, in a very “ungreen” way as soon as electricity supply ceases.

5 Increased population density
Need for lower expectations and compensation
Greater population density in office areas (people per square metre) questions economy of space and also brings to the fore the needs of the human entity; starting with temperature control. The human race never finds consensus about temperature – one person’s comfort is too chilly for another.
True green is not the physical aspect of a building. You could carry on living in the building you occupy now perfectly well – hot in summer and cold in winter – if you accept the conditions and do not raise your expectations. After all, the greatest philosophical, scientific and literary works of previous centuries were written by geniuses working in winter coats by the light of sooty oil lamps.
This is the first question requiring applied democracy in open-plan areas because the occupied space will not necessarily become warmer when a person is the only one to adjust the thermostat. It will only work when all people in a given area do the same.
And, if 800 people cannot agree on a common temperature, how do you expect agreement on the level of background noise? The interaction between levels of noise, temperature, humidity and light, and the effect on workers’ productivity, is well studied but has, so far, presented inadequate solutions. It is not the answer to create a stronger technical sound like “white noise”.
In the IDC head office, white noise has not been installed as the installation of one speaker per 10 m² over 10 000 m² working space would be required which is hardly green and would only exacerbate a problem which is simply solved by improved behaviour. For someone coming from a cellular office set-up, a fairly radical change of mindset is required to work in an open-plan office and the adaptation can take a while.
Employers – and their buildings – need to provide compensation and fill needs if workers are to be happy and productive. The desire for periodic privacy is met by the introduction of numerous “boudoirs” (fully private restoration rooms with showers, for example). The space missing for coats, umbrellas, even a change of shoes, can be replaced by locker rooms. Flexi-time means canteens must function differently. The provision of many mini kitchens and pause areas, spread over the large building space, requires strict behaviour control.
In a country with little public transport, parking is essential. At the IDC head office, open and underground parking have always been provided adequately. This will be maintained without any increase in area thanks to an intelligent bay-occupation system for the guidance of a workforce which is never 100% present.
For the past 15 years, the IDC has provided a crèche with an outside playground, a well-equipped gymnasium, lecture halls, an auditorium for 1 000 people, and a restaurant with outside eating areas.

Sound technology, economy and life ethics = truly ‘green’
What should be clear from this detail is that a building is not green because it follows green technology. With 800 to 1 000 people coming to work at one spot in town every morning, living there for eight hours and going home in the evening, the whole employment concept is as much a green issue as the bare technicality of the building. This is, above all, why architects insist that the user understands the rationale behind the lifestyle to be accepted emotionally, the support system to be maintained and controlled rationally, and the behaviour to be strictly controlled.
Any modern building which follows sound, honest technology, economy and life ethics is as green as a building can be. The people within it must be willing to do their share but also able to perform.
Green is not a technology but an attitude which must be shared by landlord, employer and employee. The green-lease concept is an ideal tool for guiding human behaviour and is most effective in the rental field. The concept is more difficult to apply to life in the corporate office world where non-commercial aspects, such as internal policy, employment strategies and work protocol, have an influence which overrides strictly commercial aspects. The quality of the idea is self-evident and it will, hopefully, become the norm for all places of work soon.

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GREEN BUILDINGS BRIEFS

Growing demand for walling panels met
Ikhaya Future House Systems, specialist in environment-friendly building systems, is about to open a new factory in Centurion, Gauteng, to meet growing demand for thermally insulating walling panels. According to Craig Paton-Ash of Ikhaya Future House Systems, the Future House building system has gained popularity for use in projects which include industrial buildings, security walls and residential construction.
“The Future House system uses expanded polystyrene systems which, with the promulgation of new energy-efficient legislation (SANS 204), play a much greater role in the South African building environment,” he notes.
The new manufacturing plant will enable fabrication of panels of up to 6 m in length. Quick and easy to install, the lightweight panels are flat-packed for transportation and, when enhanced with wall plaster, the system has the appearance of a solid concrete wall. It has been approved by Agrément and the National Home Builders Registration Council.
Ikhaya Future House offers support services which include panelisation and costing of building designs, on-site tuition, training manuals and access to builders who are proficient with this system. Ancillary plaster products and components are available, as well as spray-plastering technology to accelerate the building process.

Another ‘green’ cement drive
Lafarge South Africa has formed a local JV with NPC-Cimpor to develop alternative energy sources. The JV company, ECO2, is occupied in the development of alternative fuels and raw materials to power furnaces.
It includes the recycling of motor-vehicle tyres, municipal solid waste and agricultural waste to produce biofuels. Once processed at a central point, the alternative fuels will form the basis of plant processes at Lafarge’s Lichtenburg Cement Works.

Modular blockwork experiment
A new housing pilot project at Kleinmond in the Western Cape is exploring potential improvements to the sustainability of low-income housing within the cost constraints of government subsidies. Adéle de Lange, technical marketing consultant: human settlements for the Cement & Concrete Institute, recently visited the site of the new project which involves CSIR input and is being developed by M5 Developments Cape.
The CSIR aims to use conventional building materials innovatively and to optimise the use of energy- and water-efficient principles.
De Lange says that the dimensions of the houses adhere to the modular dimensions of the concrete masonry blocks with window and door openings positioned to match the modules of the blocks. “This modular approach reduces the need for cutting blocks on site which reduces time, waste and transport costs.”
She says that roof overhangs, as well as window and door openings, are designed to enhance the passive thermal qualities of the houses. The overall design also allows for later extensions to the dwellings with minimal impact on the original structures. Solar water geysers and photovoltaic panels are fitted to the dwellings and large water-storage tanks are installed for rainwater harvesting. The shower is unique in that it features a deeper shower tray than usual to allow for bathing of children and washing of clothes without using excessive amounts of water. “The CSIR will return to the project a year after completion to monitor performance of the units and evaluate the long-term benefits,” De Lange points out. “These innovations have the potential to be included on a larger scale in future subsidised projects.”

Timber housing the future?
The designer of the Wood Foundation home, Jacques Cronje, a recognised expert in timber home design, predicts that, as the pressure on resources increases and efforts to slow down global warming escalate, there will be a greater shift towards the use of timber in housing construction locally.
Werner Slabbert, Institute of Timber Frame Builders (ITFB) vice-president and chairman of the SANS 10-082 advisory committee to the SABS SC 59D committee, points out that the use of timber in construction is strictly regulated under SANS 10-082. All ITFB members are compelled to build in accordance with this regulation and other SANS-related building codes and practices.
“Timber-frame construction requires a minimum standard,” he says. “Many years ago, it was a free-for-all in terms of building practice for timber structures but today the required legislation is in place.” He points out that the standard in this respect is constantly being updated as timber and building technologies keep changing and the ITFB is a key player in this constant change; serving on the committee which reviews the regulations.

A ‘green’ ready-mix
AfriSam has launched a range of “greener” ready-mix concrete products in the greater Gauteng market. The products are application-branded, fit-for-purpose ready-mix concretes which are specific to the needs of various construction requirements, including foundations, surface beds, suspended slabs, columns and retaining walls. The company claims that the Eco Readymix carbon footprint is roughly half the world average.

Lead-free paint mystery
Some major paint retailers are continuing to refuse to support a campaign to remove all paints containing lead from shops. The campaign is being run under the banner of South African Paint Manufacturers Association (SAPMA).
Deryck Spence, executive director of SAPMA, says he finds this “not-our-problem” attitude mystifying. “South African paint contractors and specifiers seek assurance that they are choosing harmless products and will support paint stores where there are SAPMA lead-free stickers.” The lead-free paint campaign is being supported by three large retail groups: Mica, the DIY Depot and Build it.

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CITY VISIT

Town planning turnaround – Return tradition
The typical model of Moravian villages holds a fascinating blueprint for a sustainable settlement. The Mamre Heritage Revitalisation Project was established to foster a sustainable community which can maintain its own heritage.
Mamre, located about 50 km north of Cape Town, was established as a Moravian mission station which served Khoikhoi soldiers of the Cape Corps and their families in the early 1800s. In 1854, the town was renamed from Groenekloof to Mamre. It experienced an influx shortly after the slave emancipation in 1839 and has had steady growth since the 1930s. Andy Horn of Eco Design Architects (EDA) says that Mamre, which followed the typical model of Moravian villages, such as Genadendal and Wuppertal, holds a fascinating blueprint for a sustainable settlement. “Allotment gardens are found in the middle of town along a fertile riverbed and the buildings are located along contours around it,” he notes.
However, the organic growth of the town around the allotment gardens was brought to a halt in the apartheid era after a period of forced removals. Then, during the 1970s, authorities expanded the town significantly to the south-west but along modern town-planning paradigms with a suburban character. In addition, Atlantis was developed 5 km south of Mamre to house people removed from District Six.
After 1994, the town was again extended by authorities, this time to the north-west, with the addition of an RDP settlement. Today, Mamre consists of three disparate areas – each with a character of its own. In the late 20th century, the labour force of Mamre became absorbed into Atlantis and Cape Town; creating a void in local skills. Few of the historic buildings are still intact and the urban form has degraded extensively.
Sjanel Buchel, of the City of Cape Town Heritage Resources Section, points out to Urban Green File that only the Moravian Church Werf and Mamre Water Mill have been declared provincial heritage sites. The Mamre Heritage Revitalisation Project was established in order to rectify this situation and to protect the historic buildings which remain in the town and on the Werf.
The project also aims to empower the local community by entrenching lost traditional building skills; ensuring a sustainable community which can be proud of and maintain its own heritage.

Rekindling traditional techniques – Historic fabric retained
The typical focus of heritage practice is usually on the final expression of character and not the process of making. The Mamre Heritage Revitalisation Project placed people at the forefront; making the inhabitants the custodians of the town’s heritage.
Occasionally, neophytes will enter an arena with an atypical approach which enriches and reaffirms the value of that field’s established conventions. In these cases, it challenges the newcomer and veterans to have the maturity to learn from each other.
EDA’s involvement in the Mamre Heritage Revitalisation Project did not constitute a typical approach to a heritage project. EDA placed focus on preserving and rekindling an appreciation of traditional building techniques and practice in order to ensure that the knowledge of how a community can create its own built form is retained within people rather than in books or museums. The focus fell more on how people create cultural resources than the character of the outcome.
In the absence of the usual heritage-resource tools to conserve the historic urban fabric, this is a resourceful approach. It shifts emphasis to Mamre’s inhabitants acting as custodians of their heritage. Most heritage practitioners sympathise with this line of thought yet seldom pursue it. The typical focus of heritage practice is usually on the final expression of character and not the process of making. Nevertheless, there is merit in the conventional stance and drawbacks to the approach pursued at Mamre.

Strategic advantage embedded
Buchel states that, for the revitalisation project, the City of Cape Town formulated an initiative to build a traditional structure in Mamre as a vehicle to rekindle traditional construction skills. Once acquired, these skills would also create employment opportunities for the local community and develop an appreciation of the historic built form. Importantly, this focus on rekindling traditional building skills possessed a strategic advantage. Many of the town's historic buildings are deteriorating rapidly due to a lack of appropriate skills in traditional building methods needed to maintain and repair structures.
Typically, authorities proclaim areas of historic significance as urban conservation areas to overview and guide the proposed changes and improvements to the built form. Mamre has no such status, and it is difficult for the city to compel owners to ensure that proposed alterations and additions acknowledge and harmonise with the town’s historic fabric. To create awareness of traditional building techniques was a proactive approach in sensitising owners to a preferred attitude when engaging with the town’s historic core while the process of declaring an urban conservation area in Mamre is still under way.

Skills revived, town conserved
The City of Cape Town has started with the process of declaring parts of Mamre as urban conservation areas. The town has completed an inventory of historically significant buildings which form the basis of identifying which areas should fall within the urban conservation area.
Once the city’s integrated zoning scheme comes into place early in 2011, the declaration of an urban conservation area can follow. To complement this, the town will also need to prepare a policy document which indicates guidelines on how development and restoration should take place.
Margot van Heerden, of the Heritage Resources Section, Central City District A, comments that a City of Cape Town Heritage Advice Pamphlet No 15 has been produced but may not be familiar with local residents. She adds that a big problem is people building without approvals and demolishing structures older than 60 years which are protected. The ideal mechanisms for managing Mamre’s historic townscape, therefore, have not yet been clearly formulated and made known in the community.
Nevertheless, it would be a mistake to view the focus on traditional building techniques as an interim measure. Knowledge of appropriate building technology empowers owners and residents to interact with their environment and ensures that they identify with it; preventing the intellectual alienation or gentrification of urban-restoration projects which occur when left solely to professionals. Too many restoration projects turn into shells of the past rather than enduring envelopes of contemporary life. Van Heerden believes that the recently completed Mamre Visitor’s Centre is an excellent example of the integration of contemporary building needs and materials with traditional building techniques.
The heritage dimension to the revitalisation project’s approach is not the only empowering aspect. Trainees also learned new skills which they can use for future projects in Mamre or can export beyond the town. The improved urban fabric will encourage tourism in Mamre and will acknowledge the town’s cultural value as well as the roles played by its residents.
EDA was appointed by the City of Cape Town to perform the task of training and revitalising Mamre’s community in traditional building techniques. The nature of Mamre’s historic fabric has its roots in vernacular architecture and EDA’s knowledge of sustainable building practice resonates strongly with this.

Community-chosen, community-built
Public participation was a starting point to ensure relevance and a backdrop for the initiatives which were subsequently identified as pertinent – one has been implemented.
A PUBLIC PARTICIPATION – Establishing ideas and securing support
To achieve the aim of embedding traditional building techniques in the community, a public-participation exercise was necessary. The nature of public participation changed with each phase of the project but remained integral throughout it.
As a first phase, the city stipulated the investigation of a number of aspects through public participation. The first was to establish the nature of the project, and the needs and skills base of the community. The involvement of the community was also necessary to establish ideas for the use of the building and a site for the project. Further, the process kept the community abreast of developments.
The investigation phase ran over a six-month period where EDA spent time interviewing individuals, meeting community leaders, attending local meetings, participating in local events, and generally advertising its presence and objectives. According to Horn, EDA gained the most knowledge of the town from the inhabitants. “We obtained a first-hand account of what happened in Mamre. For example, we would never have realised that there had been a whole gravity-fed system of dams, tanks and leiwater channels irrigating all the allotments which was purposely destroyed under the apartheid government on account of a typhoid outbreak.”
The first six months established mutual awareness and a relationship which made it easier to proceed to the next stage with the community’s trust in EDA. It also helped identify parties whose knowledge and resources EDA could use at later stages, and sensitised the community to the matter at hand.

B IDENTIFYING AND STRUCTURING IDEAS – Master plan produced
The next stage of the project involved identifying relevant heritage issues which EDA could address through a building project. EDA organised two full-day charrettes, as well as a follow-up meeting. Representation at these charrettes was good, Andy Horn of EDA notes. EDA presented the City of Cape Town’s ideas and intentions, and members of the community could comment. In addition, the community could also voice its own ideas for potential building projects. To ensure that the event ran democratically, participants had to write their ideas on separate cards provided by the organisers. This ensured that all voices were represented and that strong public speakers didn’t dominate the charrettes.
The organisers collected the cards, pinned them up and grouped the ideas into families. This process clearly revealed ideas which concerned the community the most and would receive its support. The ideas varied so much that, to structure the range and produce priorities, EDA created a master plan which identified potential heritage and infrastructure initiatives for the town.

1 INFRASTRUCTURE INITIATIVES
Enhancement of traditional structuring elements
The ideas with the strongest support from the community did not have an architectural nature but involved infrastructure; represented in infrastructure initiatives, identified by the community, which centre around the nature of the structuring elements of the urban fabric:
* restore leiwater and dams;
* reinstate allotment gardens;
* upgrading of roads;
* establishing and formalising walking trails; and
*amphitheatre.
The re-establishment of the leiwater system will allow reinstatement of the allotment gardens to their full possible potential which, in turn, will support the livelihood of the community. The community only uses 25% of these gardens.
The road upgrades involve changing the character of roads to acknowledge the town’s rural heritage. The tarred roads with standard concrete curbs disturb the community’s memory of street life. The trails established will lead to and link various significant sites, and the amphitheatre will give local brass bands adequate space for performances and festivals.
It is revealing that the community identified its heritage in elements which were not artefacts, or built structures, but customs and their support base.

2 HERITAGE INITIATIVES 
Knowledge preservation and tourism creation
The master plan also identified a number of heritage initiatives:
* information centre;
* gardening and education centre;
*multi-skills training and craft centre;
*guest houses; and
*environmental centre and endemic nursery.
These ideas were not only supported by the community but also spoke to the city’s intention to build a traditional structure to rekindle the associated building skills. The focus falls on creating centres to preserve the knowledge base of the town’s heritage.
The initiative for tourist accommodation identified a number of house ruins in Berg Street which the community could restore and run as guest houses; creating tourism in the town by allowing visitors to spend time there and learn about its history, contemporary life and environment.
The gardening and education centre, as well as skills and craft training centre could also be accommodated in existing ruins while two new buildings were proposed to accommodate the information centre and a facility for Custodians of Rare & Endangered Wildflowers with an associated nursery.

Local expertise and material – pros and cons
From this range of potential projects, it was decided that the construction of a new information centre best satisfied the needs of the community and the City of Cape Town. This initiative was identified as an ideal project to boost tourism interest in the area and was scheduled for completion in December 2010. It includes an exhibition of Mamre’s history and the Moravian Church Werf, and offers tourists information on scenic walks, the donkey trail, picnic spots and the annual flower festival.
The community identified the site it felt was most suited to construction. “The site was not identified by the City of Cape Town and we would never have considered it without the charrettes,” Horn states. There are no plans to implement other identified initiatives but EDA feels that the project has succeeded in its primary goal.
Horn states that follow-up looks good as a local initiative has taken up the ideas of the master planning into its project ideas and the newly trained local team has been booked for further natural building projects.

Natural materials advantageous
Most of the building material came from the local area; ensuring that the community has access to resources to complete any future building or restoration work. These materials are cheap, have low embodied energy and are accessible. Using traditional and natural materials also meant that repair or restoration work to the older buildings is married sensitively to the original material and doesn’t exacerbate damage as some modern materials do.
Mud bricks, roof timber and dung-lime plastering were used, and stone for the foundations. The trees felled for the roof structure were local poplars and gum trees. Participants in the project cut the trees down using the “age-old” moon-phase harvesting system which reduces the requirement for rot treatment and insect repellant.

Logistics and tendering issues overcome
During the construction of the information centre, craft master Herbert Arendse trained builders in the local vernacular. The training of the builders slowed down the building process but ensured that the project met the intention of the public-participation process. “One has to remember that this kind of project is not typical and one needs to motivate for a longer implementation stage,” Horn     points out.
Another challenge was that, despite having the skills and materials to thatch the building, the City of Cape Town’s tender requirements to qualify for the work on the project meant that no locals qualified to tender for the roofing contract.
“Under the general tender conditions of government, a contractor which was not a local Mamre thatch cutter, won the local thatch-cutting tender as it had tendered at the lowest price,” Horn notes. “The awarded contractor took shortcuts like tying thinner bundles and failed to properly cure the thatch before bundling it. As a result 80% of what was harvested subsequently rotted.” The community stepped in and local craft masters solved the problem. Curiously, the city’s institutional requirements still frustrate the desired involvement of local skills.
A delay between the production of the mud bricks and the beginning of construction presented some issues with regard to storage. EDA initially stored the bricks in a building provided by the Moravian Church but had to remove them when the church wanted to resume use of the space. In addition, in the moving process, some of the bricks were lost or damaged. Fortunately, the community had the skills and resources to replace them by making more bricks for the new information centre.
The use of local materials still presents challenges. With conventional building, suppliers address issues such as storage and adequate supply. One, therefore, has to quantify the required local materials carefully and arrange transport and storage on site. “We collected and prepared the materials separate from the building contract,” Horn notes. “This ensured that potential contractors were not disqualified from tendering for the project because they didn’t have the relevant knowledge to produce traditional materials.”

Resource conservation included
The design of the information centre incorporates a number of energy- and water-conservation features. The L-shaped plan provides protection from the western sun and a pergola will be planted with deciduous grape vines on the north-facing walls to provide shade in the summer and allow sun through in winter. The walls of the building are 340 mm-thick mud brick with natural lime-dung plasters. Together with the thatch roof, these provide excellent thermal performance with good thermal mass and humidity modification.
The roof ridge has a thin skylight to illuminate the interior without overheating it. All electrical illumination comprises LEDs and is controlled by sensors. Interruptible flushing toilets and a waterless urinal were installed, and it is hoped that enough money will remain in the landscape budget to include a rainwater tank.

Lessons to be learned
Too few conservation projects look at culture and techniques, especially when it comes to the built environment. This focus requires public participation and EDA’s methodology is a model in this regard. It also demonstrates how to reveal historic resources in terms of re-establishing knowledge and skills which foster a common appreciation of heritage.
Conversely, engagement with typical heritage practice reveals the need to look at the range of issues and contesting ideas which occupy conservation projects. Conservation looks at the broad range of cultural expression. To understand how to build in the local vernacular is just as important as understanding how the outcome is manifested in terms of typology or contemporary extension.
In this regard, many conservation practitioners are guilty of squaring-off turf to favour their own strengths; dismissing differing attitudes. They lack the maturity to identify views which will supplement their own and the intellectual courage to assimilate or incorporate unfamiliar ideas.

Holistic approach lacking?
There are limitations to the Mamre master plan of heritage and infrastructure initiatives. As it stands, one should consider it as a record of ideas the community would support rather than a conventional heritage or urban-design master plan. To be fair, the City of Cape Town did not intend that EDA should prepare the plans and limited the project to a few goals. However, the revitalisation project reveals a need for a holistic approach, and EDA’s work has only dealt with one aspect of the whole.
A future master plan or development policy ought to look beyond the historic core of the town and attempt to integrate the character of its disparate parts. It could look at the potential of reinstating the leiwater system to original areas as well as beyond the historic core. Extending the allotment gardens along the valley to accommodate future settlement around it also needs investigation. The design of a streetscape appropriate to Mamre’s rural character is another device which could extend to the town in its entirety.
EDA’s master plan doesn’t show a holistic approach but focuses on preservation and reinstatement of a few areas in an array of heritage considerations. It lacks participation by a variety of professionals which will reveal priority areas where public participation cannot do this. In addition, it did not spend time creating awareness of building typologies and characteristics of location, local horticulture or streetscape.
Conservation has a retrospective and prospective view and aims to integrate or harmonise the past with the present. One, therefore, can’t reduce heritage to a few issues and future conservation projects need to be integrated with broader town planning and development projects to prove their relevance and value.
Andy Horn of EDA states that the city was specific in its brief that it must stick to the area of old town Mamre and ignore the Moravian Church Werf ground, which has its own master action plan, and the newer parts of town. “We were told to focus specifically on ideas that enforce heritage. As such the heritage-revitalisation master plan is more like a concept mapping of the ideas which came out of the public participation for the old town area of Mamre and nothing more. It was never intended to portraying a holistic master plan.”

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ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING & DESIGN

New EIA regulations – Process refined or encumbered?
Opinions differ on whether or not the recent changes to EIA regulations have achieved the intended goal.
According to press statements released by the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA), the new environment impact assessment (EIA) regulations, which came into effect on August 2 2010, signify an important step towards a more efficient and effective EIA system. Apart from aligning the 2006 regulations with the new and improved National Environmental Management Amendment Act of 2008, the 2010 EIA regulations seek to streamline the EIA process.
The DEA revised the list of activities which require environmental authorisation prior to commencement of a range of projects. As a result, some of the activities which required assessment were delisted; minimising the number of activities requiring assessment and, therefore, the number of applications in the 2010 regime. Some activities now only require assessment if they occur in specific and sensitive receiving environments. Previously, regardless of the sensitivity of an area, an assessment would have been required if the listed activity was triggered. A dedicated listing notice (No 3) now indicates that activities contained therein will only require assessment if they fall within predefined identified areas.
This was a major focus of the amendment process as the EIA system was overburdened by large numbers of applications associated with insignificant activities. It meant that the comprehensive scoping and environmental impact report process, with its associated costs, was, in some instances, unjustifiable, considering that the impacts were known from the outset. The DEA states that, in some cases, it led to the exclusion of potential entrepreneurs from the economy in the past.
According to Nicholas Smith, environmental lawyer and managing partner of Smith Ndlovu & Summers Attorneys, the previous specification-driven activities either had insignificant impact on the environment or excluded certain activities which do have a significant impact on the environment simply by virtue of that activity falling below regulated thresholds.
An example of a procedural improvement is in the new defined time frames for the appeals process as past regulations had no clear measure for determining deadlines. Now, within two days of making a decision, authorities need to communicate the decision to environmental assessment practitioners (EAPs) or applicants. In turn, any party seeking to appeal has to give notice of the intention to appeal within 20 days of the date of decision if they believe it is necessary.
Smith notes: “The most significant difference in the new regulations is the proper and more careful listing of activities which could have significant environmental, social and economic impacts, as well as careful attention to the processes to be followed and the substance required of the necessary reports.” He considers the changes as a modernisation of past EIA regulations, thereby bringing them in line with First World standards.
Another example of a positive change is the move from the past requirements of obtaining an owner’s consent to undertake listed activities on that person’s property to the new notification process. Previously, a development applicant had to obtain written consent from a property owner to undertake listed activities on land which doesn’t belong to the developer prior to even submitting the EIA application. Examples include linear developments like power or pipelines. The obstacle an applicant faced was that, if a single letter of consent was outstanding, the EIA process could not begin; halting the application process in total. The 2010 NEMA EIA regulations have replaced the requirement for landowner consent with a notification requirement to ensure that infrastructure development is not hamstrung unnecessarily.

Comparison between NEMA 2006 and 2010 EIA regulations
2006
No obligatory time frames for authority decisions.
No exclusion of certain time frames for public participation and lodging of applications.
EAPs are required to be independent but not yet registered. Suspected non-compliance accommodated.
Notification of decisions only to registered interested and affected parties (I&APs). Time frame of 10 days for notification by competent authority to the applicant, and competent authority to prescribe the time within which registered I&APs must be notified on a case-by-case basis.
Report content not consistent between basic assessment and scoping, and Environmental Impact Report.
Alternatives: one of many NEMA requirements.
Landowner consent required.
Organs of state are automatically regarded as I&APs. No reference to state departments made.
Neighbours within 100 m of the proposed development activity to be notified.
Set public-participation process with only possibility to apply for exemption from specific requirements
Possibility to require scoping and EIA for activity listed in the basic assessment list accommodated.
Mining activities listed but not in effect.
The term “environmental management plan” is used and is only required for S&EIR applications.
Amendment of environmental authorisation: no time frame for decision-making.
Suspension and withdrawal of environmental authorisation are possible.
Exemption process accommodated.
Appeals time frames linked to the date of notification of the decision. No time frame for decision-making. Time frame of 10 days from notification for lodging notice of intent to appeal.
Transitional provisions: provides for Environment Conservation Act (ECA) and NEMA applications.
Environmental Management Framework (EMF) regulations form part of the EIA regulations.

2010
Time frames expanded by automatic extension for decision-making. A decision must be made. Consequences for not making decisions within set time frames added.
Set time frames for authority decision-making are not applicable between December 15 and January 2. Provision for extension of time frame in public holidays by the number of public holidays. Public participation not to be conducted between December 15 and January 2 unless exceptional circumstances exist.
Provision is made for reference to the term “environmental assessment practitioner” (EAP) to refer to a registered EAP in future when registration becomes compulsory. Provision for competent authority to be notified of suspected non-compliance.
Notification of decision also to be done in a newspaper. Time frames changed to two days for competent authority to notify applicant and 12 days from applicant to notify registered I&APs. Time frames are calculated from the date of the decision; making the cut-off date for appeals clear.
Consistency in report content now accommodated by the amendments. Provision is made for mining-related matters – for example, rehabilitation and financial provisions, as mining should fall within the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA) environmental impact assessment (EIA) regime once the relevant departments have reached an agreement on this.
Alternatives: remains a NEMA requirement. Proof of investigation of alternatives to be provided, indicating that no reasonable or feasible alternatives can be identified, may be provided and this will satisfy the NEMA requirements of investigation of alternatives.
Landowner notification required with notice stipulating that further participation in the process by the landowner is accommodated.
State departments included by specific reference to that term. Required as this is used in mining applications in the Minerals & Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA) and will be used when mining becomes listed in NEMA. State departments have 40 days to comment on reports. This required further changes to the public-participation process as 40 days will be provided for comment on draft reports.
100 m requirement deleted as this has been shown in practice not to be realistic.
Still a set public-participation process with only possibility to apply for exemption from specific requirements but not from public participation per se. Provision for any other appropriate public-participation process in specific cases to ensure that the target audience’s needs are taken into account and the purpose of public participation can be achieved.
Possibility to “downscale” from Scoping & Environmental Impact Reporting (S&EIR) to basic assessment also added.
Mining activities listed but not yet in effect. Provision made in NEMA and the 2010 EIA regulations for the Department of Mineral Resources as competent authority. Alignment of processes accommodated in NEMA. Mining activities listed and work to be done for the single environmental system which will include mining. Provision for the objection process by Regional Mining Development & Environmental Committee by extension of time frames if such an objection is lodged. Environmental Management Programme Report (EMPR) and environmental authorisation content now provides for mining-related matters.
Term changed to environmental-management programme to avoid confusion with the term EMP already accommodated in NEMA. Also provision for mining EMPRs to form part of the EIA regime in future. EMPRs also required for basic assessment.
Provision for time frame for decision-making added. Provision is also made for only issuing an addendum to an environmental authorisation and not an entirely new environmental authorisation. Provision for amendment of MPRDA EMPRs added.
Suspension retained but withdrawal no longer possible. Withdrawal will weaken the position of the authority and alternative enforcement action is possible. Provision for suspension of MPRDA EMPRs added.
Reference is added to Section 24M of NEMA as this is a new provision regulating exemptions. Process changes include the publication of a notice in a newspaper to ensure potential I&APs are informed of the exemption application. No exemption is possible for Section 24(4)(a) matters – these include public participation and cooperative governance. A time frame of 30 days is provided for decision-making. Where possible, an exemption decision may be issued together with the decision on the application for environmental authorisation (only if the outcome of the exemption application is not required to inform the application for environmental authorisation).
Time frames linked to the date of the decision to provide certainty. A combination of several appeal decisions is accommodated. Time frame of 90 days for decision set from date when all information is received. Time frame for notice of intent to appeal now 20 days (to provide for notification of decision to take place and give reasonable time to persons to appeal if they wish to do so).
Provides for ECA, NEMA 2006 and NEMA 2010 regulations. Automatic withdrawal of a pending application if a previously listed activity is no longer listed in the 2010 regime. The possibility to approve a newly listed activity if properly assessed in the pending application is accommodated in the 2010 regulations.
EMF regulations are stand-alone regulations as this is a separate environmental tool.

Effectiveness of alterations questioned
However, according to Karen Shippey of Aurecon, when the various successive ministers involved with the changes to the regulations announced the improvements being introduced, few in the profession believed it. “None of the prepared drafts looked as if they would make the EIA process easier,” she states.
Shippey is not alone in this view and feels that not much EAP input in the consultation process, held during the formulation of the changes, reached the final version of the new regulations. EAPs have noticed some improvements in new regulations but also note new grey areas have developed and there is perpetuation of the problem which the changes sought to remove.
Aubrey Withers, of Withers Environmental Consultants, points to an inherent weakness in what authorities assume regulations can achieve. “The regulation supposes that an exhaustive checklist can substitute scientific and professional discretion in identifying all potential impacts on the environment. They are trying to capture all events with detail and legal regulations which, ironically, create even more opportunity for loopholes and abuse.” The same applies to regulations which other acts impose on EIAs such as the Waste Act regulations and the new regulations in terms of the Air Quality Act. 

Need for exceptions and insight
For EAPs, the need for EIA regulations is not problematic yet they note that they are contained in legislation which renders them inflexible to the extent that they discriminate insensitively and inaccurately.
They recognise that matching the required process with the potential level of impact of a development was the intention in changes to the regulations. This explains the introduction of the sensitive environment-activities schedule. Although EAPs feel that the principle doesn’t readily extend to the rest of the law and there is limited provision for making exceptions. Once a proposal triggers a legal process, an applicant will have to follow it. There are exemptions for subsequent steps in a process but not for the process itself. “I don’t think the regulation comes from a negative intention at all but, unfortunately, authorities want to protect the environment by legislating every single aspect of the EIA process – down to the size of posters and exact wording of adverts announcing public-participation processes,” Shippey notes. “Every aspect is so highly regulated that manoeuvring an inch out of it means potentially contravening the law.”
An example which shows how the new EIA regulations can inhibit a project is Aurecon’s traffic-circle project in Woodstock, Cape Town. The city wanted to replace an intersection with a traffic circle. The proposed road verge for the circle would encroach marginally onto an area zoned as public open space. The proposal now requires an entire EIA which will cost about R60 000 and could delay the project by six months to reach a conclusion which was obvious from the outset.
The regulations don’t allow for the flexibility to identify that this case is not an environmental matter and could be handled through other structures of authority. The city’s options: take on the cost and delays to prepare an EIA or challenge the regulation in court or shelve the project. Aurecon has noticed similar scenarios in bigger projects and believes this could lead to failure in service delivery.
EAPs want to see professional discretion playing a larger role in environmental management. There will still be a need for bodies of authority but professional discretion will ensure that they are approachable and much more responsive to recognising and rewarding responsible environmental assessment at ground level. The focus should fall on complementing the intention of the law by providing necessary scientific insight which legislation cannot reveal. Shippey says: “It is about professionalism rather than over-legislating. If we had a more regulated profession with better practice standards, a lot of issues, which have been legislated for purposes of quality control, will not be necessary.” Shippey believes that a regulating body, which overlooks members and disciplines those stepping out of line, similar to the engineering and medical professions, is required. Practitioners need to have a specific degree of professionalism and integrity in order to function, and society has to be able to trust that.
Withers echoes this sentiment. “If you have competent EAPs, who are registered, a lot of requirements in the Act will not be necessary.” It is almost as if existing legislation questions the integrity of EAPs, he adds. The DEA states that government is aware of this viewpoint but also had to consider comments, especially by NGOs, that did not want to see any discretion accommodated in the legislation.

Lack of admin staff and sufficient planning
Gerhard Gerber, of the Department of Environmental Affairs & Development Planning of the Western Cape, sees the reason for the frustration of EAPs elsewhere. He says that, if municipalities developed credible integrated development plans, spatial environmental-planning frameworks and maintenance-management plans, the need for many EIAs would be circumscribed. Credible planning would provide an enabling framework to consider project-level EIAs; aiding the identification of relevant considerations which should appear in an EIA.
The problem, therefore, doesn’t lie with the system but its implementation. Indeed, the development of environmental-management laws created the need for the profession to implement the laws. 
Gerber draws attention to the fact that the changes in recent and past regulations and legislation created the requirement for officials to administer and oversee the changes to the system. Although the requirements appeared nearly overnight, staffing the positions to administer them didn’t. This places a lot of strain on running the system optimally.
Due to the void in manpower and the lack of experience, frustration creeps in. Gerber states that the new EIA regulations provide for mechanisms to aid the EIA process. The sector must make effective use of these mechanisms. The department adds that improving efficiency and effectiveness, however, calls for improved practice. 

Professional registration body the solution?
Due to the route which has been taken by environmental management, the environmental-assessment profession in South Africa is still young and it does not regulate itself sufficiently.
“The concerns of competency and ethics are at the heart of any quality-assurance system,” says Marlene Laros, coordinator of the working group for the establishment of a registration authority for EAPs.
As long as EAPs are not sanctioned by a regulating body, there is little impetus to grant them the level of responsibility they seek.
To address lack of professional acknowledgement of EAPs, Laros coordinates a consultative process on the establishment of a registration authority for EAPs in terms of a memorandum of understanding between the Interim Certification Board of Environmental Assessment Practitioners of South Africa and the DEA. The working group has concluded a final draft proposal for the establishment of the Environmental Assessment Practitioners Association of South Africa (EAPASA).
The EAPASA registration authority will aim to provide relevant authorities, development proponents and the public in general with quality assurance regarding EAPs appointed to conduct and regulate environmental assessments. EAPs which will require registration include practitioners in consulting, those undertaking EIAs and the relevant authorities in parastatal organisations, managing or reviewing EIA processes. “The aim of registration is not to exclude individuals but to confirm or encourage professionals to acquire the necessary competencies and experience to fulfil the requirements for ethical practice,” Laros notes.
In order to establish the EAPASA, an application must be lodged with the Minister of Environmental Affairs for it to be recognised as a registration authority. The date for this launch was set for February 2011. The DEA supports this initiative. Once the minister formally accepts the application, it is likely that a three-year phase-in period will allow for EAPs to register with the body. It will then be illegal to practice as an EAP in terms of NEMA without being registered with the association.
The purpose of the association is to promote the public interest through advancing the quality of environmental-assessment practice in South Africa by establishing, promoting and maintaining registration of Environmental Assessment Practitioners in terms of Section 24H of the National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998.

Due diligence vital
“Many clients don’t follow a due-diligence process when planning developments and expect an EIA to merely confirm the intention of a project,” says Withers. It is in developers’ best interests to do their homework and consult with experts before taking on a project. In his opinion, not enough town planners take cognisance of EIA regulations in their planning but he believes that there are signs of improvement.
Shippey also encourages those who are planning a development to obtain written comment from authorities and experts on whether or not activities trigger the need for an EIA. This is clear proof of a practitioner performing due diligence and one can use it to canvass additional comment to confirm or challenge a view. “It sounds onerous but, when it comes to addressing the rectification of illegal activities, the penalties are harsh.”

Too soon to tell
According to Smith, it is too early to comment on the full likely effect of the most recent changes to the EIA regulatory regime. Many current applications fail to be governed by the transitional arrangements. With regard to the transitional arrangements, Smith states: “There are areas of concern in the consistency of interpretation between the DEA nationally and its provincial counterparts.” The correction notices issued in early December 2010 should address a number of issues in the new regulations, he adds.
Smith says that one has to allow for the natural processes of administration and the legal process which might follow the exercise of decision-making discretion by competent environmental authorities to iron out problems associated with the implementation of the new regulations before one can truly comment on its results. Gerber agrees that criticism of the changes is premature and adds that many are resistant to or uncomfortable with change. He is confident that improvements effected by the new regulations will become apparent during 2011 and is excited to see how the changes will play out.

Two unrelenting approaches – both necessary
It seems as if there is a division within the camp which recognises and supports the aim of having an environmental impact-assessment system. This difference in opinion broadly falls into two groups: the one seeks to refine the existing system and implement it in full; the other aims for an extension of the mandate of those who can act as custodians of environmental management and the associated level of authority.
To an extent, the difference has led to a noticeable undercurrent of enmity between the two sides. To an outsider, it appears perplexing as both groups support a common goal in protecting the environment yet the way they comment on each other at times creates the impression that they stand in diametric opposition. Perhaps this is due to the fact that the matter lies so close to humans’ territorial nature or the instinctive protection of territory – be it real or professional territory.
It is, however, encouraging that those who seek to refine the existing system can point to recent success in preventing blatant disregard for environmental management. Simultaneously, it is also encouraging that EAPs can identify a shortcoming in their own profession and independently create a regulating body. Collectively, both sides galvanise the prevention of environmental degradation and pursue the creation of routes to sustainable development.
It will also be encouraging to see the two parties settling in positions where they perform best. The scientific approach of EAPs towards probing environmental management is, undeniably, a credible approach for an overview of what constitutes an acceptable environmental outcome. To negotiate environmental management in the halls of government and industry requires a different skill set – one needs political savvy and a firm knowledge of the legal intricacies required to keep a grip on those who have the resources to challenge or attempt to ignore the principles of environmental management.

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WASTE & POLLUTION MANAGEMENT

Waste management challenges overcome
Certain South African municipalities have managed to overcome the challenges of providing waste-management services through innovative practices, a CSIR study has found.
Amid growing concerns about the standard of service delivery in the country, a recent CSIR study proves that certain municipalities might cause the prophets of doom and gloom to rethink their forecasts as there is light at the end of the tunnel. For many years, municipalities in South Africa were happy to treat waste at landfills in contrast to the internationally accepted trend to minimise waste through reuse, recycling and cleaner production.
Three years ago, the former Department of Environmental Affairs & Tourism found that 87% of local municipalities failed to pursue waste-minimisation activities due to a lack of infrastructure and capacity. The Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) General Household Survey of 2009 reported that 32,4% of households felt that there were problems with littering and waste removal in their areas. In addition, waste-removal services provided by municipalities throughout the country were being used increasingly by households from 2002 to 2007 (57,8% in 2002 to 62,1% in 2007) but then dropped drastically to below 2002 levels in 2009 (53,1%).
Recycling moved up a notch on municipal agendas after the introduction of the National Waste Act which came into effect on July 1 2009. According to the Act, municipalities must exercise their executive authority to deliver waste-management services by drafting the necessary by-laws to introduce the different waste-collection strategies and aid recycling. According to Dr Suzan Oelofse of the CSIR’s Natural & Environmental Operating Unit, national government’s initiative to develop a turnaround strategy for municipalities is the first step in the right direction. She believes that challenges will be overcome if municipalities focus on innovative solutions which will result in services being delivered where they are most needed.

Innovative methods researched, toolkit for good practice provided
Previous research undertaken by the CSIR identified four broad challenges to waste service delivery at municipal level. These include financial management, equipment management, labour management and institutional behaviour. The identified challenges result in ineffective utilisation of municipal resources (financial, equipment and capacity), non-compliance with environmental legislation, no or poor levels of service delivery, and potential environmental and human-health impacts.
In further research, it became clear that, despite the fact that all municipalities face similar challenges, some manage to provide a service in innovative ways. The study, therefore, set out to identify relevant case studies which could be shared between municipalities.
CSIR researchers visited 23 municipalities to produce a toolkit for good practice on different aspects of waste management. The research project attempted to cover the entire waste-management cycle, including waste collection and transport, waste storage, reducing, reusing and recycling, landfill sites and some aspects around governance. It took the CSIR about two years to complete the research, and the bulk of the data was collected between September and October 2009 with additional data collected from July to September last year.
Dr Oelofse, who was appointed as the research-group leader, elaborates on the choice of municipalities which participated in the survey: “During the stakeholder interactions, while unpacking the challenges faced by municipalities, we asked the stakeholders to identify municipalities which had good initiatives. In addition, we looked at the results of the Cleanest Town competitions over a five-year period and identified the municipalities which were doing well constantly.”
The project team also added some names to the list from previous interactions with municipalities.

3 beneficial, duplicable initiatives
A number of innovative projects caught the eye but it is difficult to single out any specific initiative.
Oelofse says that each municipality operates under different circumstances and it is, therefore, difficult to single out any specific initiative. “The positive attitude of municipal officials, regardless of the challenges they face, impressed me.”
Municipalities such as uMhlathuze, George, Hermanus and Overstrand have pursued a waste-minimisation and recycling programme by introducing a double-bag system – one colour for general waste and another for recyclables.
Whereas AbaQulusi Municipality introduced an initiative which requires waste pickers to obtain a permit from the municipality to be allowed onto the landfill site to conduct salvaging activities. This permit system controls the number of people on the site, time slots and what they are allowed to recover. The pickers have to wear protective clothing, and children and animals are restricted from the sites.
Among these initiatives, Urban Green File found three promising enterprises which could serve as examples of solutions for other troubled municipalities with waste-management woes:
1. Hibiscus Coast Municipality’s Siyazenzela food-for-waste programme.
2. Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality and the City of Cape Town’s Web-based waste-exchange programmes (IWEX).
3. The City of Tshwane’s walk-in bin concept.

1. Food-for-waste programme
Hibiscus Coast Municipality has implemented a food-for-waste programme which has enhanced service delivery although funding remains a challenge.
The Siyazenzela, which means “we do it for ourselves” in Zulu, food-for-waste programme was initiated by then MEC Bheki Cele following a visit to Brazil. Hibiscus Coast Municipality was selected to pilot the project which was launched on April 12 2007. The programme was designed to render services to the informal areas of Mkholombe/Boboyi, Masinenge and Louisiana.
Xolani Dlangalala, manager of communications and governance support at Hibiscus Coast Municipality, comments: “By implementing the programme we wanted to ensure a clean and healthy environment, and assist the unemployed to feed their families. But, most of all, we wanted to get the community directly involved in the cleaning and maintenance of these areas, and ensure reasonable, healthy living standards.”
A budget of R1,4-million was set aside to purchase the food and vegetable parcels which are distributed to the beneficiaries in return for the waste they collect. This excludes the cost of a truck which was donated by the Department of Transport to assist in the day-to-day running of the programme, and the truck’s R10 000 annual maintenance and running costs.
According to Dlangalala, the community welcomed the programme but it also presented challenges. “Certain individuals will litter intentionally knowing that there are dedicated people who will collect the waste. This contradicts the overall aim of the programme – to teach the community to maintain a healthy and clean environment,” he says.
When the programme was launched, it had 200 beneficiaries. Mkholombe/Boboyi had 100 and Masinenge and Louisiana had 50 each. The initial intent was to rotate the beneficiaries annually. However, many households became so dependent on the programme for food that, instead of discarding the old group, the numbers per area had to be doubled in 2010.
With the same budget since 2007, the municipality is forced to rotate these two groups on a monthly basis. Each Thursday, approximately 20 t to 36 t of household refuse from Masinenge and Louisiana, and 40 t to 60 t from Mkholombe/Boboyi, is exchanged for food parcels. These food parcels contain 10 kg rice, 10 kg maize meal, tea, 5 kg sugar, 5 l sunflower oil and a 10 kg parcel of vegetables including butternut, cabbages, onions and potatoes.
Any metal and bottles which land up in the household waste-refuse bags are taken out and sorted on site by Waste Dudz, a local BEE recycling contractor. Whatever is not recyclable is collected by the compacter truck and taken to the waste dump. The waste is brought to a collection point, weighed and counted as it is expected that each beneficiary will bring no less than five black refuse bags filled with household refuse. When the refuse is dropped off, a register is ticked off after weighing and recording the number of bags and weight.
The municipality provides wheelie bins for easy hauling of refuse bags but there are not enough for all three sites and for every beneficiary. Health-and-safety issues are also a concern. More protective clothing is needed as beneficiaries work in potentially dangerous conditions.
“On collection days, few beneficiaries wear protective clothing,” Dlangalala imparts. “Those beneficiaries who still have some form of clothing from the date the programme was launched make use of the protective clothing but most do not have protective clothing or wear other types of protection.”
According to Dlangalala, the programme has been effective and it has had regular visits by other municipalities, as well as national departments of neighbouring countries, to learn from Hibiscus Coast Municipality with the intention of duplicating the concept. The municipality benefits in that the programme enhances service delivery and creates opportunities for synergies with private partners, as well as national and other provincial as well as local governments.

2. Walk-in bin concept
The City of Tshwane has replaced skips with walk-in bins which has resulted in financial savings and a decrease in illegal dumping.
The City of Tshwane introduced a walk-in bin concept in Mabopane as an alternative to using skips. According to Dikeledi Phiri, director of communication for the City of Tshwane, the main reason that the city decided to embark on this project was to save funds after realising that people were not using bulk containers effectively or for the intended purpose.
The introduction of the bulk containers was initially rolled out as a trial run for two purposes: to determine if residents would use them and to address accessibility for all users as some might be high and prevent residents with equipment such as wheelbarrows from using them. However, illegal dumping outside the containers continued despite the availability of the containers, according to Phiri.
The pilot project was initiated by the city’s Agriculture & Environmental Management Department, specifically the Waste Management Division, which is tasked with the responsibility of ensuring a cleaner city.
Research was conducted and it revealed that a walk-in bin could be purchased for an amount of R57 000 which was the same amount spent on one 12 m³ container.
The introduction of the walk-in-bins has been a huge success as they are used optimally by residents, Phiri points out. She notes that there has been a remarkable decrease in illegal dumping, particularly since the introduction of walk-in bins.
The walk-in-bin programme is monitored regularly by waste-management inspectors. The monitoring aspect is very important to track progress, to check whether or not implementation is going accordingly and to make adjustments as and when needed.
The programme has had many benefits. The city has enjoyed financial savings – by introducing the bins, it has saved money which would be spent on equipment hire to remove waste dumped illegally. Another important benefit is public participation. The programme affords the involvement of residents.
“We envisage rolling out the same walk-in bins in other areas where mini dump facilities are not available once we have funds,” Phiri imparts. The city does not have the necessary funds to advertise the concept but a project plan, outlining how the programme is being implemented, can be made available.
Other positive initiatives undertaken by the City of Tshwane are buy-back centres, Adopt-a-Spot and the roll-out of 240 l containers to previously disadvantaged communities towards effective waste collection.

3. Web-based waste-exchange programme
From November 2008 to August 31 2010, the City of Cape Town’s IWEX business community has grown to over 322 members and has facilitated more than 1 262 contacts between potential buyers and sellers.
The Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality and the City of Cape Town have both initiated effective Web-based waste-exchange programmes (IWEX). The City of Cape Town’s IWEX was relaunched in November 2008.
Alison Davison, head of waste management for the City of Cape Town, states that it was created in-house by the City of Cape Town’s IT department at a ballpark figure of between R50 000 and R100 000. From November 2008 to August 31 2010, the IWEX business community has grown to over 322 members and has facilitated more than 1 262 contacts between potential buyers and sellers, Davison informs Urban Green File. The waste which has been most available and most wanted includes paper/cardboard and plastics/composite packaging such as Tetra Pak, wood and glass.
“The main paradigm shift still lacking is that many people look at the website, browse waste items and make contact with waste providers but do not actually carry through with a physical exchange of the waste item,” says Davison. The programme is mainly orientated towards business and industry, as well as people who have Web access. Customers could save money by donating their waste on a monthly basis instead of paying per tonne to have it transported to landfill. Another benefit is networking and connections within the recycling industry which can have long-term indirect benefits as well.
According to Davison, the City of Cape Town monitors the exchange of waste items and their use. If waste items are not appropriate or valid, they are not approved by the administrator.
Davison believes that the programme could be highly successful in South Africa as it has been in America and Europe if effective exchange stories are continuously profiled by the media and if the marketing campaign is successful. Many large corporate companies are making use of the programme but have not become involved in sponsorships. Davison believes that this might be a good marketing idea for the future. The IWEX programme is not the only initiative undertaken by the City of Cape Town in terms of waste and waste collection. Over the past few years, it has introduced separate collection of recyclables from households, set up a database of recyclers for public information purposes, established community-based collection and cleaning contracts for informal settlements, placed split street bins for recycling and general waste in the CBD area, and developed and upgraded 19 drop-off sites – some include chipping and the sale of green waste for the composting industry. In addition, builders’ rubble is crushed on the city’s landfill sites and, subsequently, sold into the construction market.

Ideas sharing and public participation vital
The CSIR toolkit for good practice will certainly be handy when it is published in March 2011. It will be presented to municipalities during their provincial meetings and be made available on the CSIR website. Printed versions will also be made available to interested parties.
Oelofse is quick to point out that the toolkit presents good practices but not best practices. “It is possible that better solutions are available but not included in the toolkit,” she says. The CSIR plans to do a similar exercise in a few years’ time to compare and document innovation.
“We hope that the toolkit will be instrumental in sharing ideas between municipalities, and the general public and municipalities,” Oelofse states. The general public can support good service delivery by, for example, simply changing attitudes towards waste and being proactive in recycling at home. According to Oelofse, there is information within the toolkit which the general public could apply equally within their communities to support municipalities in addressing waste challenges.
The White Paper on Integrated Pollution & Waste Management highlights the point that waste management is not the exclusive preserve of government – the private sector and civil society also have important roles to play. Partnerships between government and the private sector are crucial for sustainable and effective pollution and waste management to take place.
Oelofse hopes that corporate companies will identify information within the toolkit which they can use to support municipalities in the management of waste. The initiatives introduced by a number of municipalities are encouraging and should be supported. However, lack of funds was a recurrent theme in most replies by municipalities asked to identify major problems. For instance, the Hibiscus Coast Municipality’s Siyazenzela food-for-waste programme faces a bleak future as a result of inadequate funding. Without the necessary funds, the sustainability of innovative programmes is hampered or they die before they have been born. 

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WASTE & POLLUTION MANAGEMENT BRIEFS

Glass recycling doubles
According to CEO of The Glass Recycling Company, Shabeer Jhetam, a staggering 295 879 t of glass has been recycled for the period from July 2009 to June 2010 – a marked increase on last year’s 244 845 t collected over the same period. An exceptional achievement is the fact that glass volumes recycled have grown in excess of 100% in the past four years. In other words, the amount of glass recycled has effectively doubled since 2006.  
“To make glass recycling as hassle-free as possible, we have launched an SMS line which gives consumers direct access to glass bank lists at the touch of a button,” Jhetam imparts. “Finding the location of the nearest glass bank in any given area is as simple as sending an SMS with the word ‘GLASS’ and the name of the suburb to 32310. Our goal has been to show South Africa that glass recycling is a fundamental part of protecting the environment, and that everyone can do their bit to give back and help the planet one glass container at a time.”

Billboards recycled
Out of Home Media South Africa (OHMSA) is recycling the materials used to make billboards into sustainable products. Billboard skins are not traditionally recyclable – many discarded faces end up in landfills – which, ultimately, harms the Earth. OHMSA members, such as ADreach Group, for example, have donated Supalite skins to the Bloomin’ Bag initiative which recycles them into a high-quality range of unique bags.
The company has also introduced the use of reflective vinyl in the production of street-pole ads; further reducing its carbon footprint. “By making use of reflective vinyl in the production of street-pole ads, the need for backlighting is eliminated,” Barbara Cooke, executive director of OHMSA, states. “This is because of the metallic, reflective base which causes it to reflect light.” Reflective vinyl is the better option for many reasons: it does not consume electricity, it does not require electrical connections and it only reflects towards a direct light source so that it is not a distraction to residents. OHMSA clients are increasing their involvement with ‘greener’ offerings.”

Efficient paper production
Double A has found a new way to improve the process of paper production, and the quality and properties of paper through its starch-coated precipitated calcium carbonate (SCPCC) project. The process improves resources as it uses less precipitated calcium carbonate, which is an important mineral for paper production, and reduces raw materials as it requires less fibre compared to current paper production.
SCPCC improves the quality and strengthens the surface of the final paper product.
Furthermore, it also reduces energy consumption in the paper-      drying process. The process reduces steam use by 25% which cuts approximately 95 t CO2e per year.
“SCPCC uses less resources and less energy and, therefore, less carbon-dioxide emission without sacrificing the paper quality,” says Thirawit Leetavorn, senior executive vice-president of Double A. “Double A and NIA are working together to improve paper production and reduce the resulting CO2 emission. Double A works responsibly to ensure that its activities have minimal or no impact on the environment. Every individual and corporate has the responsibility to reduce these emissions.”

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INSPIRATION

Practical, effective public structure provided
Well-maintained public facilities help create a functional urban environment which meets the needs of the public.
A spotless municipal restroom at a taxi stop on an arterial thoroughfare in Sandton? Cynically, it seems impossible. However, beside the Morning Glen Shopping Centre on Bowling Road, this lesser-spotted specimen was found. Just cleaned when Urban Green File visited – a passerby also saw a cleaner sweeping its entranceway months before – and restocked with essential items, the interior of this impeccable restroom even smells fresh.
Management of the shopping centre told Urban Green File that it had nothing to do with the public facility but that responsibility for its construction and maintenance was in the hands of the City of Johannesburg. What makes the state of this pit stop more inspiring is the fact that it is not a new installation and that it is used regularly – judging by the number of taxis on standby in its vicinity.
A simple brick structure, the façade of the building was designed for easy maintenance with a small landscaped area on one side – a simple solution of scattered rocks and indigenous plants. The building is secured behind a fence with a gate which is locked to deter misuse and vandalism.
Some may view this as rather mundane inspiration but the provision of structures like this in public space shows an attempt to create a functional urban environment where the needs of the public are met. The taxis have been given space off the road where they can be parked out of the way of pedestrians and motorists. And the taxis do park neatly. The respect shown by the city council towards the public has been returned by the users of this well-maintained building; proving that a public facility which upholds the dignity of its users, and is maintained to a high standard, engenders public respect. Certainly, if the standard drops, the facility will be abused and litter will be strewn around it. Hopefully, more of the same restrooms will mushroom around greater Johannesburg and other cities throughout the country!

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INSULT

Open, accessible space slaughtered
Military-style security solutions multiply exclusion, create spaces of avoidance and restrict movement.
A prominent new business estate being built in Lanseria is implementing a military-style solution for its perimeter security. The estate will be surrounded by a dual perimeter fence line comprising a buffer zone in order to ensure that, in the event that the outer perimeter is breached, security guards can respond before there is access to the inner perimeter. This buffer zone being created by the developer will consist of 2,5 m of no-man’s land.
This goes against all urban-planning principles as the ultimate goal of urban planning is to foster the integration of functional parts into an evolving organic whole. This business estate is fragmenting the urban landscape by creating a disconnected “micro world” which is cut off from the urban landscape. A fortified estate, without public access away from the conventional urban landscape, is under construction.
By imposing this partition and barriers, exclusion is multiplied, spaces of avoidance are created and movement is restricted. The accessibility of this estate is one of its marketing points but it is clearly not geared towards pedestrians or users of public transport.
Military-style security in the urban context, due to anxiety about safety, transforms the built environment into sequestered cells of prosperity which contribute to spatial fragmentation of the urban landscape rather than create open, accessible public space.
The developer believes that this security measure is worth the loss of developable land but is it worth the implications for the future of the urban landscape in which it is placed?

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VIEWPOINT

Landscape matters
Successful urban-regeneration projects depend on investment in the public environment.  
A concerted effort has been made to regenerate the inner city of Johannesburg in the past decade. What started off as a step-by-step attempt to repair widespread urban decay has progressed to an avalanche of urban-renewal projects. Indeed the fortunes of Jo’burg’s inner city have turned around for the better, especially in the case of the numerous office-to-residential conversion projects. But why are certain projects phenomenally successful while others fail? Apart from the obvious financial considerations, I believe that the attitude towards the public environment determines the ultimate success or failure of individual building-refurbishment projects.
A walk through the inner city shows some remarkably successful examples of urban regeneration yet pockets of the city remain derelict, grimy and depressed. The secret to success, it seems, lies in the precinct approach. Alternatively, as the Johannesburg Development Agency (JDA) refers to it, “area-based regeneration projects” which involves upgrading the urban landscape and not just the buildings.
Urban-design theory dictates that urban regeneration cannot be achieved in isolation. Massive investment in upgrading a single building (think of the recent attempt to refurbish Ponte) is almost sure to fail unless the surrounding landscape is upgraded first. The opposite is as true: by upgrading the public environment, investor confidence in an entire precinct is boosted and this, invariably, leads to massive-scale redevelopment of properties (granted that sufficient and ongoing urban-management and maintenance practices are implemented at the same time).
Examples of the precinct approach in Johannesburg’s inner city abound. A good example is the work initiated by Olitizki Property Holdings. It started off with the upgrading of Gandhi Square in 2003 and the signing of a lease for the public space to ensure management and maintenance over a 45-year period. The energy then spread through the surrounding area with many buildings upgraded since then. The entire precinct surrounding the square is now experiencing significant property investment and upgrading. But it would not have happened without a clean and functioning public environment as a prerequisite.
Just down the road, the same has happened along Main Street. A semi-pedestrianised street with public art and sidewalk cafés has changed the perception of “Jozi” as an unfriendly and crime-ridden city. As people have started enjoying the public environment, the buildings surrounding this area have been upgraded.
There are countless more examples – the Fashion District and Braamfontein come to mind. Recent research, commissioned by the JDA, indicates a significant increase in rental returns on buildings in areas where the public environment has been upgraded. Another, newer and successful precinct-based regeneration project is Maboneng where a private property developer is overhauling a set of street blocks; starting with Arts on Main and Main Street Life.
Yet, in spite of widespread evidence that the landscape matters, I still meet property developers who invest all they have in interior refurbishment of their buildings and then lament the lack of suitable tenants. My advice to them is to forget about their buildings and rather invest in the public environment. Appoint a landscape architect and urban designer to change the face of the surrounding area. By changing people’s perceptions of the precinct, the developer will certainly attract tenants.
The bottom line: the best investment any property developer could make is to invest in the upgrading and upkeep of the environment.