The Notice is issued pursuant to NEMWA’s transitional provisions, which allow for the continued operation of historical waste disposal activities authorised under old environmental legislation, until such time as the Minister calls on these operations to apply for a WML.

The Notice therefore requires historical waste disposal operations be regularised within the current waste licensing framework, marking a decisive policy shift to close out long-standing transitional arrangements and bring legacy waste disposal activities fully within NEMWA’s licensing regime.

The Notice

The Notice sets out the following three categories of persons now required to apply for a WML in terms of NEMWA:

1. Persons operating waste disposal facilities that were established prior to the commencement of the Environment Conservation Act 73 of 1989 (ECA) and which remained operational at the time NEMWA came into force.
2. Holders of permits issued under section 20 of the ECA.
3. Persons who, immediately prior to the commencement of NEMWA, were lawfully operating waste disposal sites under Government Notice 91 of 1 February 2002 (GN 91), being legacy disposal related activities that were lawfully conducted in compliance with GN 91.

In terms of NEMWA’s aforementioned transitional arrangements, these categories of persons have, to date, been allowed to continue their operations in the absence of a NEMWA-issued WML.

Affected persons have two years from the date of publication of the Notice to lodge a WML application, meaning that applications must be submitted by no later than 10 December 2027. Failure to comply within this time frame may result in the lapsing of any historical authorisation and expose operators to enforcement action under NEMWA.

The Regulations

The Regulations largely mirror the standard procedure for applying for a WML under NEMWA, while providing additional clarity for applications submitted pursuant to the Notice. Although the substantive licensing criteria remain unchanged, applicants must ensure that their applications expressly reference the statutory basis for the call-up and the transitional provisions relied upon.

In substance, persons called upon by the Minister are required to submit a full WML application in the prescribed form, supported by a pollution impact assessment report and an environmental management programme prepared by independent specialists, which have been subjected to a 30-day public participation process. These requirements are consistent with those ordinarily applicable to WML applications.

Importantly, the Regulations make it clear that historical lawfulness does not guarantee the granting of a WML, and that incomplete or non-compliant applications may be rejected, posing a material risk to ongoing operations.

Conclusion

For companies operating their own historical waste disposal facilities, the Notice marks a shift away from reliance on historical lawfulness toward formal regulatory alignment under NEMWA. Failure to obtain a WML may result in business interruption, enforcement action, or forced closure of historical disposal operations. Compliance will incur costs and require investment in pollution impact assessments, environmental management programmes and public participation processes.

These developments are of particular importance not only to operators of waste disposal facilities falling within the identified categories of the Notice, but also to generators of waste who rely on such facilities for the lawful disposal of waste and who are under a legal obligation to ensure that the waste they generate is lawfully disposed of.

Once the transitional period expires, the lawfulness of waste disposal activities will be directly linked to whether the receiving facility holds a valid WML under NEMWA, creating potential downstream compliance risks for producers and transporters of waste. Companies relying on third-party disposal sites must therefore ensure those sites obtain licences.

The Notice and Regulations will have material commercial and operational implications that need to be taken into account. Non-compliance by third parties, for example, can disrupt waste management value chains and may render existing waste disposal contracts unenforceable or require renegotiation if facilities cannot secure a WML within the prescribed time frame. Ongoing operations may be jeopardised if waste disposal arrangements are interrupted, and enhanced scrutiny of these arrangements is now essential.

Operating without a WML or disposing of waste unlawfully exposes companies to penalties, including fines or imprisonment, as well as reputational harm.

Affected entities should therefore treat the Notice as a mandatory regulatory directive and not an administrative formality. Early assessment of eligibility, technical feasibility, stakeholder exposure and contractual risk will be essential to ensuring continuity of operations and compliance beyond 10 December 2027.