The Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries says amendments to the Integrated Environmental Management Plan required to manage the impacts associated with the development of the first phase of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), in the Northern Cape, have been published.
No further environmental approval will be required.
The Adoption of Amended Chapter 2 and Chapter 5 of the Integrated Environmental Management Plan for Phase 1 of the SKA and Amendment to the Conditions of Exclusion were published by Environment, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Barbara Creecy in the Government Gazette on March 25.
An amendment was requested by the National Research Foundation, which is responsible for the development of the SKA.
The amendments are necessary as the proposed construction camps would pose a risk to the optimal functioning of the Meerkat radio telescopes that are currently in operation.
The amendments include acknowledgement of the declaration of portions of the SKA site as the Meerkat National Park; the increase in the size of the land core area; the development of a perimeter road along the boundary fence; and the development of a solar farm to contribute to the electricity needs of the facility.
To support the request for amendments, additional environmental assessments were undertaken
.