South Africa's policy and legislative framework for biodiversity

South Africa's policy and legislative framework for biodiversity is well developed, providing a strong basis for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. South Africa is one of the few countries in the world to have a Biodiversity Act and a National Biodiversity Institute.
Key components of the national policy and legislative framework for biodiversity include:

1.The White Paper on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of South Africa's Biological Diversity (1997)

2.The National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act (Act 10 of 2004)

3.The National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act (Act 57 of 2003)

4.The National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) (2005)

5.The National Spatial Biodiversity Assessment (NSBA) (2004, currently being reviewed and updated)

6.The National Biodiversity Framework (NBF) (2008)

7.The National Protected Area Expansion Strategy (NPAES) (2008)

In addition to national legislation, some of South Africa's nine provinces have their own provincial biodiversity legislation, as nature conservation is a concurrent function of national and provincial government in terms of the Constitution (Act 108 of 1996).
The various elements of South Africa's biodiversity policy and legislative framework described above are relatively new. Although much progress has been made, challenges remain in ensuring effective implementation and enforcement of policy and legislation as well as monitoring of policy outcomes.

NB!!! The list below is a guideline and legislation can be amended or updated, so if you need copies for legal purposes, make sure you find the most updated version possible.

Below is a list of legislation pertaining to conservation and the environment. Please note that some of the PDF documents may be large and downloads may take some time.

National Environmental Management Act, Click Here

National Environmental Management Act: Biodiversity Act, Click Here

National Environmental Management Act: Protected Areas Act, Click Here

Threatened or Protected Species Act (TOPS), Click Here

National Environmental Management Act: Air Quality Act, Click Here

National Forest Act, Click Here

National Veldt and Forest Fire Act, Click Here

National Water Act, Click Here

Water Services Act, Click Here

Conservation of Agricultural Resources Act, Click Here

Genetically Modified Organisms Act, Click Here

Animal Protection Act, Click Here

Sea Birds and Seals Protection Act, Click Here

Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, Click Here

Animal Improvement Act, Click Here

Animal Identification Act, Click Here

Animal Health Act, Click Here

Abolition of the Fisheries Development Corporation of South Africa Limited Act

Marine Living Resources Act, Click Here

Lake Areas Development Act, Click Here

Environmental Conservation Act, Click Here

Environmental Conservation Act Extention Act, Click Here

Environmental Laws Rationalisation Act, Click Here

Hazardous Substances Act, Click Here

Foodstuffs, Cosmetic and Disinfectant Act, Click Here

Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, Click Here

Nuclear Energy Act, Click Here

Nuclear Regulator Act, Click Here

Fertilizers, Farm Feeds Act, Click Here

Agricultural Pests Act, Click Here

The Aviation Act, Click Here

Marine Pollution (Intervention) Act, Click Here

Wreck and Salvage Act, Click Here

Dumping at Sea Control Act, Click Here

Occupational Health and Safety Act, Click Here

Electricity Act, Click Here

Gas Act

Liquid Fuels and Oil Act - Repeal Act