Environmental policy provides the foundation upon which a country protects its natural resources, ensures the health and well-being of its people, and builds the conditions for long-term socio-economic development. In an era of accelerating climate change, ecological degradation, and resource scarcity, a clear, coherent and forward-looking environmental policy is a necessity.
This policy sets out the Democratic Alliance’s approach to environmental governance. Grounded in evidence-based scientific consensus, proactive and accountable governance, and taking climate change seriously, the DA’s Environmental Policy is built on the belief that an environmentally sustainable future will enhance, not sacrifice, economic growth.
In pursuit of the DA’s vision to build a robust green economy and a sustainable future for all, the environmental policy has the following six objectives:
1. Climate change mitigation and adaptation: to reduce South Africa’s contributions to climate change while preparing for its harmful effects.
2. Water: to ensure clean water for all through effective and efficient water resource management.
3. Waste: to establish functional and sustainable waste management systems.
4. Air: to ensure clean air for all South Africans.
5. Biodiversity: to preserve South Africa’s natural resources and biodiversity.
6. Awareness: to raise environmental awareness across our society.
Our climate objective with this policy is climate change mitigation and adaptation. We aimto reduce South Africa’s contributions to climate change while preparing for its harmful effects. The DA will reduce South Africa’s contribution to climate change by ensuring that energy is produced sustainably at the lowest possible cost and with the least emissions, while ensuring a ‘Clean Jobs Transition’. This transition will be managed through a gradual move to a low-carbon economy that protects jobs, strengthens climate resilience, and supports adaptation to future risks. We prioritise practical climate readiness by adopting climate strategies across all DA administrations, investing in disaster-resilient infrastructure, strengthening early response capacity, and rolling out public awareness and locally tailored adaptation plans to protect communities from the growing impacts of climate change.
The DA believes that the environment is to be enjoyed and shared by all its people. Many aspects of our environment that directly affect people suffer from poor management and a lack of infrastructure investment and maintenance, which negatively affect health, well-being, and dignity. The three key ones are water, air quality, and waste management.
The DA will restore water security by fixing and maintaining infrastructure, reducing leaks and non-revenue water losses, and protecting strategic water source areas. This includes diversifying supply through reuse and alternative sources, strengthening conservation, adopting new technology, and ringfencing funding for water projects in municipalities with the capacity to deliver. The focus is on practical investment, better management, and building long-term resilience to drought and climate pressures.
The DA will rebuild waste systems by restoring reliable municipal services, strengthening funding models, and enabling municipalities to invest in infrastructure that diverts waste away from landfills. This includes reforming performance and budgeting frameworks to prioritise waste reduction, introducing funding and pricing mechanisms that incentivise recycling and responsible disposal, and establishing municipal waste forums to share best practices. The DA will expand recycling and composting, support private-sector investment and partnerships in waste infrastructure, integrate small businesses into recycling value chains, and promote community-led projects that shift behaviour away from landfill dependence and towards a circular economy that creates jobs
The DA will improve air quality by reducing reliance on coal and high-emissions energy, expanding renewable energy, and strengthening emissions monitoring and enforcement. This includes supporting electric vehicles and cleaner transport systems, improving public transport, reducing household pollution, and promoting greener urban spaces. Clean air interventions will be aligned with broader decarbonisation and public health strategies to protect communities and reduce disease burdens.
The broader environment is also in need of proactive sustainability. Various issues threaten South Africa’s biodiversity: invasive species, poaching, deforestation, and wildfires. Invasive species are responsible for 25% of all biodiversity loss in South Africa, making them the third most significant impact on South Africa’s biodiversity loss after cultivation and habitat degradation. They outcompete native species for resources. We suffer from the poaching of several species: Africa is one of the world’s leading suppliers in the illegal wildlife trade, and South Africa acts as both a source and transit country for the trafficking of illegal wildlife products. Popular illegal products from South Africa include rhino horn, abalone, pangolin, succulents, and elephant ivory. Poverty, joblessness and organised crime have all been identified as causes of poaching. South Africa has abundant natural forests, which are being wiped out at an alarming rate. About 13% of forests were lost in 2021. Wildfires occur regularly in South Africa and often cause significant social, economic, and environmental harm. Effective prevention and suppression of wildfires is crucial to protect the most vulnerable South Africans and the areas in which they live. Rural populations, as well as rural economic assets like plantation forests, grazing pasture, crops, and ecotourism areas, are at the greatest risk.
The DA will support sustainable fisheries management that protects marine ecosystems while safeguarding livelihoods. This includes strengthening monitoring and enforcement, supporting the reinstatement and growth of responsible commercial fishing, improving management of fish stocks, and ensuring that coastal communities benefit economically from marine resources while preserving them for future generations.
A well-informed public is essential for driving environmentally responsible behavioural change and ensuring that vulnerable communities are equipped to adapt to climate risks. However, entrenched educational inequalities, digital access, and geographic location have created uneven environmental awareness levels, leaving many South Africans underprepared for increasing environmental risks. South Africa’s entrenched economic inequalities are reflected in climate awareness gaps.
The DA will raise environmental awareness by embedding climate and environmental education in communities, supporting public campaigns in multiple languages, and equipping local leaders and organisations to act as trusted messengers. This includes using local evidence and testimonies to counter climate denial, supporting community projects, and ensuring that environmental literacy becomes part of economic and social development so that citizens can actively respond to environmental issues.
With the right reforms, South Africa can chart a new course – one which sustainably uses natural resources, supports livelihoods, and protects the environment for future generations. The successful implementation of this policy will reposition South Africa as a leader in sustainable development. It will unlock new economic opportunities in renewable energy, green technology, sustainable agriculture, and eco-tourism and ensure a more resilient nation, better prepared to withstand the effects of climate change and resource scarcity.
Most importantly, our Environmental Policy protects our constitutional right to a clean and healthy environment and fulfils our moral obligation to pass down a liveable, prosperous, and sustainable environment for generations to come.