Magistrates' Courts "Lower Courts" Act, 1944
R 385
Climate Change Act, 2024 (Act No. 22 of 2024)Chapter 3 : Climate Change Response: Provinces and Municipalities17. Climate change response |
| (1) | An MEC and a mayor of a metropolitan or district municipality, as the case may be, must— |
| (a) | at least within one year of the publication of the National Adaptation Strategy and Plan contemplated in section 21, undertake a climate change needs and response assessment for the province, metropolitan or district municipality, as the case may be; |
| (b) | for the purposes of paragraph (c), assess the extent to which its constitution-ally mandated functions are affected by climate change and formulate steps to address these effects in the performance of its functions; |
| (c) | review and, to the extent necessary, amend and publish in the Gazette the climate change needs and response assessment at least once every five years; |
| (d) | at least within two years of undertaking the climate change needs and response assessment contemplated in paragraph (a), develop, implement and publish in the Gazette a climate change response implementation plan as a component of, and in conjunction with, provincial, metropolitan or district municipal planning instruments, policies and programmes; and |
| (e) | review and, to the extent necessary, amend and publish in the Gazette the climate change response implementation plan at least once every five years. |
| (2) | The climate change needs and response assessment, contemplated in subsection (1)(a), must— |
| (a) | identify climate change response considerations and options; |
| (b) | analyse the nature and characteristics of the province or metropolitan or district municipality, as the case may be, and the particular and unique climate change needs and risks that arise as a result of such nature and characteristics; |
| (c) | identify and spatially map, within the sphere of operations of the province, district or metropolitan municipality, as the case may be, risks, vulnerabilities, areas, ecosystems and communities that will arise, or that are vulnerable to the impacts of climate change; |
| (d) | be based on the best available science, evidence and information; and |
| (e) | identify and determine measures and mechanisms to manage and implement the required climate change response. |
| (3) | A climate change response implementation plan, contemplated in subsection (1)(d), must— |
| (a) | be informed by the climate change needs and response assessment contemplated in subsection (1)(a); |
| (b) | include measures or programmes relating to both adaptation and mitigation in line with the constitutional mandate of the province, or the metropolitan or district municipality; and |
| (c) | comply with any requirements as may be prescribed by the Minister inclusive of the relevant technical guidelines. |
| (4) | A provincial climate change response implementation plan, contemplated in subsection (1)(d), must form a component of the province’s environmental implementation plan developed in terms of section 11(1) of the National Environmental Management Act. |
| (5) | A metropolitan or district municipal climate change response implementation plan, contemplated in subsection (1)(d), must form a component of the relevant municipality’s integrated development plan adopted in terms of section 25 of the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act, 2000 (Act No. 32 of 2000). |
