South Africa's air quality crisis: Only 44 monitoring stations meet standards

In a stark reminder of South Africa's ongoing battle with air pollution, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and Environmental Affairs (DFFE) has revealed concerning statistics regarding the country's air quality monitoring stations.

As per the latest report from July 2025, just 44 out of 130 government-controlled monitoring stations are meeting minimum data requirements, raising alarms among environmental advocates and health campaigners alike.

Department spokesperson Thobile Zulu-Molobi said 43 remain operational but did not achieve minimum data requirements, and 47 are not operational.

“Though the number of stations meeting minimum requirements has increased significantly from 21 to 44 stations since 2023, some station owners continue to face complexities of limited resources, faulty equipment, and ageing infrastructure,” she said.

The department has declared three priority areas, including Mpumalanga, Vaal Triangle, and Limpopo, which are the most polluted based on the air quality monitoring stations.

However, a Breathe Cities survey in June showed that 92% of Johannesburg residents are concerned about air pollution, with 78% of those experiencing health symptoms attributing them to pollution.

The global initiative found that only 5% of 3,000 respondents know about local air quality initiatives, despite concerns.

Gauteng DA MPL Leanne de Jager said Gauteng faces health risks as only 42% of its air quality monitoring stations are fully operational.

She said the DA in Gauteng recently discovered that out of the 31 air quality monitoring stations, only 13 are fully operational.

“The lack of proper air monitoring leaves residents unprotected, placing them at risk of developing breathing issues and other health problems, which violates legal mandates,” she said.

“The numbers paint a damning picture of systemic failure. Eight stations are limping along, producing raw, unprocessed data that offers little meaningful protection to communities, while a staggering 10 stations remain completely non-operational, with some lying dormant since 2015,” said De Jager.

She noted that Ekurhuleni's 10 air monitoring stations are largely defunct, and five of Tshwane's eight stations are failing.

“Without functioning monitoring networks, authorities cannot issue timely health warnings, assess compliance with air quality standards, or take urgent action when pollution reaches dangerous levels.” 

She highlighted that residents across Gauteng are effectively playing Russian roulette with their health every time they step outside, and warned that if the department does not urgently do something about the lethal levels of air pollution, it will have a negative impact not only on the health of residents but also on the economy if workers fall ill.

Rico Euripidou, an environmental health campaigner at groundWork, Friends of the Earth South Africa, stated that all government levels must fulfil their Air Quality Act obligations by monitoring air quality and regulating polluting industries.

Euripidou stated that accurate Air Quality (AQ) data collection is essential for effectively protecting public health and mitigating climate change.

Air pollution and climate change are two sides of the same coin, he said, adding that we need improved air quality monitoring and more effective environmental governance to safeguard the health and well-being of residents.

On October 29, 2024, Dr Patience Gwaze, the National AQO, presented to the DFFE Portfolio Committee on the country's air quality, monitoring stations, and enforcement of the Air Quality Act.

Commenting on the report, Euripidou said: “The majority of the monitoring stations in our air pollution hotspots (Gauteng 24/31, Free State 2/3, and Mpumalanga 5/7) are not meeting our national requirements and, therefore, not reporting adequate data.”

He emphasised that the continuous, effective operation of air quality monitoring stations is crucial.

Their data ensures compliance, aids reporting, informs policy, provides public SAAQIS information, counters negative reports, and offers current data for research and investment.

Euripidou said the World Health Organization (WHO) links various diseases to air pollution, including stroke, ischaemic heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, pneumonia, and cataracts (from household pollution).

Potential connections also exist with adverse pregnancy outcomes, certain cancers, diabetes, and neurological/cognitive impairments.

He said South Africa ranks fourth among the 10 countries across Africa with the highest number of deaths linked to particle pollution (PM2.5).

“Gauteng, North West, Free State, and Mpumalanga are the provinces with the highest concentrations and exposures to PM2.5 pollution,” he said, adding that these provinces accommodate almost 50% of SA’s total population.

groundWork is well aware that people are getting ill from air pollution, he stated.

“A 2017 groundWork study of the health impacts of coal-fired power plants in South Africa reported a broad spectrum of consequences, including mortality and cardiovascular and respiratory illness.

“It estimated that 2,239 human deaths per year, and more than 9,500 cases of bronchitis among children aged 6-12 years, could be attributable to coal-related air pollution,” he said.

Euripidou estimates that Eskom's PM2.5 pollution costs approximately R30 billion annually in health issues and lost productivity, a figure that significantly surpasses the cost of mitigation.

He said that, as the country’s main power utility, Eskom has been granted exemptions and postponements from meeting the Minimum Emission Standards (MES) for some of its ageing coal plants, leading to ongoing debate and legal challenges.

A recent South African Medical Research Council study revealed a 6% increase in deaths in areas near coal-fired power plants compared to areas without them, he highlighted.

“This increase is attributed to air pollution, particularly respiratory illnesses and cardiovascular diseases. Children under five are particularly vulnerable, experiencing a rise in pneumonia cases with increased levels of nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide,” he said.

Euripidou further explained that a recent report by Greenpeace Africa and the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air revealed a similar public health crisis linked to air pollution.

“They found that in 2023 alone, 42,000 South Africans lost their lives due to exposure to fine particle pollution (PM2.5), including over 1,300 children under the age of five,” he stated.

Euripidou stated that groundWork has consistently monitored the eThekwini Municipality's air quality management in Durban.

He said at one stage Durban's AQ monitoring system, funded by the Norwegian government (NILU) in the early to mid-2000s, offered real-time public data.

“However, following deliberate and wilful neglect by the city leadership, this led to the demise of this system, and since then it has never recovered,” stated Euripidou.

The success of an air quality monitoring system is a political decision; if politicians want it to fail, it will,” he added.

The department said that due to the significant costs of traditional air quality monitoring stations, the government is introducing alternative air quality monitoring technologies, such as sensor monitoring, to address some of the complexities in the existing air quality monitoring infrastructure.

“This approach is in line with a growing practice internationally to supplement traditional monitoring,” said Zulu-Molobi.

Zulu-Molobi said the department is taking steps to enforce the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act in highly polluted regions.

The department put regulations in place for the enforcement of priority area air quality management plans during August 2024, she said.

“These regulations include provisions not only for enforcement, but to ensure that all polluters contribute to improving air quality through measurable and targeted emission reduction interventions,” she said.

During March 2025, Zulu-Molobi said the department emplaced the Highveld Priority Area Air Quality Management Plan with stringent targets for all polluters to reduce pollution.

In addition, she said the Vaal Triangle Airshed and Waterberg-Bojanala priority area air quality management plans are currently under review in partnership with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) to ensure that targeted interventions are established for polluters in line with priority area regulations.

“In all the priority areas, the department is strengthening capacity across the three spheres of government and coordination through multiple forums with affected stakeholders,” stated Zulu-Molobi.

The major causes of environmental air pollution in these priority areas are large-scale industrial activities, including power generation and vehicular emissions, according to the department.

Other sources contributing to the air pollution here include wildfires, open burning, mining operations, residential cooking/heating, and waste burning.

karen.singh@inl.co.za