National
Redisa waste tyre management plan goes ahead─── 14:16 Thu, 31 Jan 2013
The Redisa waste tyre management plan will be introduced by government after a ruling by the High Court in Pretoria, the organisation said on Wednesday.
It found earlier in the day that Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa was entitled to withdraw Recycling and Economic Development Initiative of SA's (Redisa) previous plan and approve its new one.
An application was brought by the Retail Motor Industry organisation (RMI) seeking to review and set aside Molewa's decision to withdraw the approval of the previous Redisa waste tyre management plan and approve its current plan.
On November 20, RMI was granted a temporary interdict by the same court halting the implementation of the previous plan.
The interdict was granted pending the hearing of RMI's main application for an order reviewing and setting aside the approval of the Redisa plan by Molewa.
However, the High Court in Pretoria disagreed that an interdict should have been granted in November.
Rediso CEO Hermann Erdmann said: "We are of course very pleased... Every challenge thrown at us by the tyre industry has been thrown out by the courts."
Molewa had withdrawn the previous Redisa plan, then approved and gazetted the current Redisa plan for immediate implementation.
RIM had argued that the withdrawal of the previous plan meant members' subscription to that plan had no legal consequence, and tyre producers would need to re-subscribe, and tyre dealers re-register with the current Redisa plan.
In terms of the waste tyre regulations, all relevant parties were required to comply with the new approved plan within 60 days after approval of the plan.
According to Redisa the tyre industry produces more than 10 million waste tyres every year and it is estimated that between 60 and 100 million scrap tyres are currently stockpiled in South Africa.
Waste tyres pose an environmental problem, both as pollutants and as breeding grounds for mosquitoes and vermin.
However, there is as yet no effective technology for disposing of tyres in an environmentally friendly yet economically viable way.
Redisa will remove waste tyres from the environment by charging a levy to the manufacturer, which will effectively subsidise the collection and recycling processes.
It said its current plan would create entrepreneurs through giving the tyres a value for recycling.
The department of environmental affairs said it would issue a statement on the ruling on Thursday.
Sapa
It found earlier in the day that Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa was entitled to withdraw Recycling and Economic Development Initiative of SA's (Redisa) previous plan and approve its new one.
An application was brought by the Retail Motor Industry organisation (RMI) seeking to review and set aside Molewa's decision to withdraw the approval of the previous Redisa waste tyre management plan and approve its current plan.
On November 20, RMI was granted a temporary interdict by the same court halting the implementation of the previous plan.
The interdict was granted pending the hearing of RMI's main application for an order reviewing and setting aside the approval of the Redisa plan by Molewa.
However, the High Court in Pretoria disagreed that an interdict should have been granted in November.
Rediso CEO Hermann Erdmann said: "We are of course very pleased... Every challenge thrown at us by the tyre industry has been thrown out by the courts."
Molewa had withdrawn the previous Redisa plan, then approved and gazetted the current Redisa plan for immediate implementation.
RIM had argued that the withdrawal of the previous plan meant members' subscription to that plan had no legal consequence, and tyre producers would need to re-subscribe, and tyre dealers re-register with the current Redisa plan.
In terms of the waste tyre regulations, all relevant parties were required to comply with the new approved plan within 60 days after approval of the plan.
According to Redisa the tyre industry produces more than 10 million waste tyres every year and it is estimated that between 60 and 100 million scrap tyres are currently stockpiled in South Africa.
Waste tyres pose an environmental problem, both as pollutants and as breeding grounds for mosquitoes and vermin.
However, there is as yet no effective technology for disposing of tyres in an environmentally friendly yet economically viable way.
Redisa will remove waste tyres from the environment by charging a levy to the manufacturer, which will effectively subsidise the collection and recycling processes.
It said its current plan would create entrepreneurs through giving the tyres a value for recycling.
The department of environmental affairs said it would issue a statement on the ruling on Thursday.
Sapa
