Case Decision - 349915

Interim Comments

SAHRA Development Applications Unit (DAU) notes the submitted HIA for the case.

Since the development is located in an area of Very High palaeontological sensitivity a PIA is required. The assessment must be undertaken by a qualified palaeontologist and the report must comply with the 2012 Minimum Standards: Palaeontological Components of Heritage Impact Assessments. Further comments will be issued upon the submission of the revised HIA and the desktop-based PIA. 

Additionally, the .kml file does not include the tracks of the field survey or the GPS locations of the recorded historical sites. Since the proposed development spans both Free State Province and KwaZulu-Natal Province, the absence of these locations prevents SAHRA from determining which sites fall under its jurisdiction. Moreover, the coordinates of the grave site in Corridor 2 (the preferred option) provided in the HIA do not correspond to any location within the study area. As a result, we are unable to assess the potential impacts based on the current mapping provided.

The applicant is advised to extend the EA process in terms of section 19(1) of the NEMA EIA regulations in order to address these comments.