National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 (Act No. 59 of 2008)Chapter 5 : Licensing of Waste Management Activities49. Decision of licensing authorities on waste management licence applications |
| (1) | The licensing authority may in respect of an application for a waste management licence— |
| (a) | grant the application; |
| (b) | refuse the application; or |
| (c) | reject the application where it does not comply with the requirements of this Act. |
| (2) | A decision to grant a application for a waste management licence in respect of a waste disposal facility is subject to the concurrence of the Minister responsible for mineral resources. |
| (3) | Any decision by a licensing authority to grant an application for a waste management licence must be consistent with— |
| (a) | this Act, including any integrated waste management plans prepared in terms of this Act; |
| (b) | any applicable national environmental management policies and, where the MEC is the licensing authority, any applicable provincial environmental management policies; |
| (c) | the national environmental management principles set out in section 2 of the National Environmental Management Act; |
| (d) | any applicable industry waste management plan; |
| (e) | the objectives of any applicable waste management plan; and |
| (f) | any standards or requirements that have been set in terms of this Act or the waste management licence. |
| (4) | After a licensing authority has reached a decision in respect of an application for a waste management licence, it must within 20 days— |
| (a) | notify the applicant of the decision and give written reasons for the decision; |
| (b) | if the decision is to grant the application, issue a waste management licence; and |
| (c) | in a manner determined by the licensing authority, instruct the applicant to notify any persons who have objected to the application of the decision and the reasons for the decision. |
| (5) | An application which is substantially similar to a previous application that has been refused in terms of subsection (1)(b) may only be resubmitted if— |
| (a) | the new application contains new and material information not previously submitted to the licensing authority; or |
| (b) | a period of three years has elapsed since the application was lodged. |
| (6) | An application which is rejected in terms of subsection (1)(c) may be amended and resubmitted to the licensing authority for reconsideration. |