MESSAGE

Message from the NACA President

Prof Stuart Piketh

Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom 2520, South Africa, Stuart.Piketh@nwu.ac.za

In 2018 NACA celebrated its 50th anniversary. During this period, NACA has contributed in a significant way to promote clean air in communities around South Africa. This has not always been an easy task. The passing of the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act in 2004 has seen a step change in air quality management. NACA provided insightful inputs to the legislation setting process, subsequent amendments and revisions as well as the implementation of this legislation.

An important function of NACA is to ensure that stakeholders in air quality have access to relevant information, and education and training opportunities. To this end, NACA has five important activities that actively strive to create an environment of informed and engaged dialogue in South Africa. The activities include: 1) the National Association for Clean Air annual conference, 2) on-going workshops and seminars around the country organised by our regional branches and council, 3) outreach programs, 4) training courses in aspects related to air pollution and air quality management, and finally 5) the publication of the Clean Air Journal.

The annual conference was held in Vanderbijlpark in 2018 (30 October - 1 November 2018). As we have come to expect we had a successful conference at which 29 papers of high quality were presented in themes that included air pollution policy and legislation, dust and other related topics, modelling, and emissions and air pollution monitoring. The conference was well supported by delegates from government, industry and academia as well as exhibitors and provided a fabulous forum for discussion and debate. In 2019 the conference will be held in Stellenbosch (3-4 October 2019) in conjunction with the Department of Environmental Affairs annual Lekgotla. It is our objective for this year to ensure that all stakeholders are represented at this conference.

Workshops and seminars remain an important forum for engaging with interested and affected communities. This will continue in 2019. The first seminar was held in Cape Town and a joint workshop with DEA was hosted in Johannesburg on 11 April 2019 - Emission reduction options relevant to South Africa. NACA will embark on an outreach program to schools in South Africa in 2019. The outreach material is in the process of being developed. It is envisaged that NACA members will host information sessions at selected schools in different provinces. Details will be announced on the NACA website ( www.naca.org.za ).

Training air pollution practitioners has been a key focus of the Association over the past decade. In 2019 courses will focus on introduction to air pollution and dispersion modelling courses. Details of these courses can also be found on the website.

The Clean Air Journal is the premier place to publish air pollution-related research in South Africa and is actively expanding its focus to the entire continent. The journal has an independent editorial board which NACA will continue to support to ensure a high-quality publication.