Young campaigners win landmark climate case to stop new coal power in South Africa

South Africa’s High Court has overturned government plans to add 1,500MW of new coal-fired power to the nation’s electricity grid.

In a landmark climate case, Judge Cornelius van der Westhuizen said that the plan was unlawful and invalid because the government failed to consider the potential impact on children’s rights.

The ‘Cancel Coal’ case was brought by three youth civil society organisations: the African Climate Alliance (ACA), the Vukani Environmental Justice Movement in Action (VEM), and the Groundwork Trust, represented by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER).

Cancel Coal case was a ‘last resort’

Launched three years ago, the case argued that the government’s energy policy violated several sections of the country’s constitution.

The burning of coal is one of the biggest contributors to climate change and has numerous health impacts from water and air pollution. The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air estimates that coal-fired power stations kill more than 2,200 South Africans every year and cause thousands of cases of bronchitis and asthma in adults and children annually.

“We experience air pollution, water pollution and land pollution – everything is affected by the coal mines. The environment we’re living in is very destructive, so many people are sick,” says Mbali Mathebula, an environmental activist from VEM who lives in the Highveld, an inland region in northeast South Africa.

“Coal is affecting members of the community’s health and comfort, people are living with cancer and respiratory diseases and rely on oxygen and nebulisers just to survive. The Cancel Coal case is a last resort; we are saying there should be no new coal power, it is too destructive,”

South Africa is already the seventh biggest coal producer in the world, relying on this fossil fuel for 80 per cent of its electricity. The country has the most carbon-intensive economy in the G20.

The civil society organisations said the government’s plan to add 1500MW of new coal-fired power was expensive, unnecessary, and a limitation of children’s right to a healthy environment.

Court says coal power plan is ‘unlawful and invalid’

The court ruled in favour of the alliance, saying that the government has failed to properly consider the impact of coal on future generations’ rights.

“The Rule 53 record, as well as the first and second respondents’ evidence, is ominously silent on any considerations given to the effect that the additional 1 500 MW new coal-fired power will have on the environment and health of the nation, in particular, that of children,” the judgement reads.

“A clear indication that the first and second respondents did not comply with their constitutional obligations in that regard.”

The ruling also said that the government's decisions - specifically that of the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Gwede Mantashe, and the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) -were inconsistent with the constitution, and “unlawful and invalid".

Mantashe and NERSA were ordered to pay the legal fees of those who brought about the case.

A precedent for future climate cases

The climate campaigners behind the Cancel Coal case say it sets a precedent for future legal challenges against environmentally harmful projects. It also underscores the people of South Africa’s constitutional right to a healthy environment.

“This High Court ruling is a significant legal victory for ensuring the inclusion of South Africa’s children and youth in decisions shaping our future. It is also a testament to the efforts of CER, as well as the coalition of organisations who’ve been working hard on this case over the past three years,” says Cancel Coal Campaigner at ACA, Sibusiso Mazomba.

Mazomba adds that this is only the first step in securing the constitutional right to a healthy environment for children and youth, who often bear the greatest burden from coal’s harmful impacts.

“True justice will only be achieved when these rights are fully upheld, ensuring the protection of our lives, environment, and futures.”