Environmental Legal Services

Ecolaw (the Environmental Legal Services division of Digby Wells Environmental) represents a synergy between the earth sciences and the legal profession. Environmental law operates to regulate the interaction of humanity and the natural environment, with the purpose of ensuring a sustainable existence for all.Ecolaw operated to pro-actively ensure that all projects take legal considerations into account during project planning by:

Determining project design criteria
Detailing permitting requirements
Guiding professional teams

Environmental Legal Advice and Assistance

Ecolaw is able to offer advice to clients on sustainable development and authorisation requirements, which are relevant throughout the project’s life cycle. This ensures that the project proceeds as planned within the applicable laws.

Legal Compliance Audits

Environmental legal compliance audits which entail an assessment of a company’s environmental legal compliance status against preselected legal audit criteria.

Authorisation Compliance Services (South Africa)

The following audits are undertaken:

Waste Licensing in terms of the National Environmental Management Waste Act (NEMWA).
Prospecting Right Applications
Integrated water use licence applications (IWULA)
Mining Right Applications in South Africa which includes a Mine Works Programme and Social and Labour Plan.
EIAs and EMPs

Environmental Compliance Services

Clients require a range of compliance audits to be done for submission to regulatory authorities, or in order to align with internal controls. The audits undertaken are:

Annual Environmental Assessments for Equator Principle Compliance for Equator Principle Funding Institutions as well as lenders.
EMP Performance Assessments.
Environmental Authorisation compliance reports
Environmental and waste management audits.

Environmental Legal Registers

Ecolaw compiles detailed Legal Registers (environmental and/or health and safety) for all clients. Our Legal Registers assist in compliance with ISO 14001:2004 and/or OHSAS 18001 standards and are and are regularly examined and approved by external auditors. Ecolaw's Legal Registers are customised for each client with regard to a company's activities and aspects. The Legal Register identifies all national, provincial and local legislation and full text of all governing legislation, including by-laws, as well as any company policies, standards, codes of practice and other environmental legal authorisations / permits, and accordingly sets a benchmark of legal compliance against which your company will be audited and monitored. Most importantly the Legal Register will, in addition to legal compliance audits, facilitate the identification of a company’s environmental legal liabilities which, once identified would place your company in the position to institute corrective measures through its non-conformance and corrective action system. Such continual improvement leads to increased environmental performance, thereby avoiding unnecessary legal liability claims.

Legal Updates

In accordance with and as part of both the ISO4001 and OHSA1800 compliance, Ecolaw is able to offer clients comprehensive legal updates on a monthly and annual basis.Legal updates in terms of mining operations and the application thereof can be conducted by Ecolaw team.

Risk Assessments

Assist clients with the identification of environmental legal risks and liabilities during the planning and pre-feasibility, feasibility, operational and closure stages of projects.

Appeal Submissions

Advise clients on appeal submissions and responses to various appeals.

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