Resources On-Demand

Environmental Law & Corporate (ESG) Compliance

Overview 

Environmental compliance has evolved beyond a legal obligation to become a critical component of corporate governance, enterprise risk management and sustainable business practices. As environmental legislation continues to expand and ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) expectations increase, organisations must understand how environmental risks influence financial performance, regulatory compliance and corporate accountability. 

Join Sandra Ramaite as she explores the South African environmental legal framework and its growing relationship with ESG governance, financial reporting and organisational risk management. This practical webinar will equip accounting and finance professionals with the knowledge to identify environmental compliance obligations, understand the financial implications of environmental risks and strengthen internal controls to support effective ESG governance and sustainable business practices. 

Learning objectives 

Attending this webinar will equip you with the following skills: 

• Understand South Africa's environmental legal and regulatory framework and identify key environmental compliance obligations. 

• Explain the relationship between environmental law, ESG governance and corporate accountability. 

• Identify environmental risks with potential financial implications, including remediation costs, carbon-related costs and contingent liabilities. 

• Apply sound governance principles to strengthen ESG reporting, risk management and sustainability-related financial information. 

• Implement practical environmental compliance controls, monitoring systems and management reporting processes. 

Content 

The webinar will cover the following topics: 

• Introduction to Environmental Law and ESG Compliance 

• Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) 

• Corporate environmental accountability 

• Environmental risk as enterprise risk 

• ESG governance structures 

• Sustainability-related risks and opportunities 

• Environmental compliance obligations 

• South African Environmental Legislative Framework 

• National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998 (NEMA) 

• Environmental management principles 

• Section 28 Duty of Care 

• Polluter Pays Principle 

• Precautionary Principle 

• Environmental authorisations 

• Environmental Management Programmes (EMPr) 

• Environmental Management Inspectors (Green Scorpions) 

• Compliance notices and enforcement 

• Waste Management Compliance 

• National Environmental Management: Waste Act 59 of 2008 (NEMWA) 

• Waste classification and waste hierarchy 

• General and hazardous waste management 

• Waste storage, transport and disposal 

• Waste manifests and traceability 

• Waste management licences 

• Record keeping and contractor due diligence 

• Pollution, Environmental Incidents and Corporate Liability 

• Pollution prevention and environmental degradation 

• Section 30 environmental incidents 

• Incident notification and reporting 

• Environmental remediation and rehabilitation liabilities 

• Director accountability and enforcement measures 

• Climate Change, Carbon and Corporate Risk 

• Climate Change Act 22 of 2024 

• Greenhouse gas emissions and carbon budgets 

• Carbon Tax Act 15 of 2019 

• Physical and transition climate risks 

• Climate-related financial risks 

• ESG and Sustainability-Related Financial Disclosures 

• IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 requirements 

• International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) 

• Governance, strategy and risk management 

• Sustainability data integrity 

• ESG reporting controls and greenwashing risk 

• The Accountant's Role in Environmental and ESG Compliance 

• Environmental risk identification 

• Financial impact assessments 

• Environmental provisions and contingent liabilities 

• ESG budgeting and sustainability data controls 

• Internal controls, audit trails and management reporting 

• Practical Environmental Compliance Management 

• Environmental legal and compliance registers 

• Environmental risk assessments 

• ESG risk registers 

• Compliance monitoring and environmental audits 

• Corrective and preventive actions (CAPA) 

• Contractor compliance verification 

• Environmental KPI monitoring 

• Compliance evidence and document control