By Faith Jemosop
In the Highveld of South Africa, coal powers the economy and poisons the air. But as residents gasp for relief, the world looks away. This is the story of a silent emergency unfolding in real-time.
The Sky in Mpumalanga Is Not Blue
At first glance, Mpumalanga appears idyllic sprawling fields, modest townships, and hazy sunrises. But look again. That haze? It’s not morning dew. It’s pollution. And it’s killing people.
South Africa’s Highveld region, which includes parts of Mpumalanga and Gauteng, is one of the most polluted areas on Earth. In fact, recent 2025 satellite imagery from the European Space Agency shows alarming levels of nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide, two deadly gases released by coal-fired power plants.
Yet this is not a headline you’ll see often. Why? Because pollution doesn’t scream. It doesn’t explode. It lingers quietly. It seeps into lungs, poisons the bloodstream, and kills slowly.
The Cost of Powering a Nation
South Africa depends on coal. Over 80% of its electricity comes from coal-fired power plants. Many of them are clustered tightly in the Highveld, forming a belt of soot and smoke.
Twelve of these plants surround the town of eMalahleni, which ironically means “the place of coal.” It’s ground zero for toxic air in Mpumalanga. Residents here are exposed daily to levels of air pollution far above the World Health Organization’s safety limits.
“People are being sacrificed for energy,” says Thandeka Mahlangu, a nurse in the nearby town of Middelburg. “We treat so many patients with asthma, bronchitis, and heart problems. And the worst part? We can’t treat the air they breathe.”
Pollution in South Africa’s Highveld region is not just a local inconvenience. It is a health emergency.
In 2023, a study by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) found that emissions from South Africa’s coal plants cause:
- 2,200 premature deaths annually
- 9,500 asthma-related hospital admissions
- 14,000 cases of bronchitis in children
- A growing number of strokes and heart attacks
One of the worst culprits is particulate matter (PM2.5) microscopic dust particles that burrow deep into the lungs. These particles are small enough to enter the bloodstream, triggering inflammation, cancer, and even neurological damage.
In Gauteng, where Johannesburg and Pretoria lie downwind of the Highveld, the air pollution isn’t much better. Residents here are also at risk and many don’t even realize it.
Life Beneath the Smoke
Maria Dlamini is 72. She’s lived her entire life in Ogies, a small town surrounded by coal mines. When asked what her biggest fear is, she doesn’t say crime. She doesn’t say poverty.
She says: “Breathing.”
“I used to walk to church. Now I can’t walk two blocks without coughing,” she says, pulling out an old inhaler. “My grandson was born with asthma. He’s only four.”
Her story is not rare. Across the Highveld, stories like Maria’s repeat each one a quiet cry for help.
Broken Promises and Failing Policies
South Africa is not without laws. The Air Quality Act and the Minimum Emission Standards (MES) were supposed to protect citizens from toxic air. But they’ve failed.
Eskom, the country’s power utility, routinely applies for postponements or exemptions from these standards. The result? Power stations like Kendal and Matla continue to emit pollutants far above legal limits.
In 2022, a landmark court ruling declared that the government had violated the constitutional right to a healthy environment by failing to enforce these laws. But little has changed on the ground.
“Coal still rules. And as long as it does, the people here will suffer,” says Naledi Mokoena, an environmental lawyer with the Centre for Environmental Rights.
The Economic Trap
Some argue that shutting down coal will hurt the economy. And they’re not wrong. Mpumalanga relies heavily on coal for jobs and revenue. Thousands of workers support their families through mining and power station employment.
But this dependence has become a trap where people are forced to choose between jobs and their health.
South Africa’s Just Energy Transition plan offers hope. It promises investment in renewables and reskilling of workers. But delays and bureaucratic obstacles have slowed implementation. Many still wonder: Will change come before more lives are lost?
A Crisis Hidden in Plain Sight
The air in Mpumalanga may be invisible, but the evidence is clear. Pollution in South Africa’s Highveld region is shortening lives, destroying ecosystems, and deepening inequality.
Air pollution is not just an environmental issue. It’s a human rights crisis.
The question is not whether we can afford to transition. It’s whether we can afford not to.
Also read: How Air Pollution Is Silently Killing 42,000 South Africans a Year, And Why It’s Not Just Eskom’s Fault
The people of Mpumalanga do not need sympathy. They need action.
- The South African government must enforce emission standards without exceptions.
- Eskom and Sasol must invest in pollution control technologies or decommission the most harmful plants.
- The international community must support South Africa’s energy transition not just with promises, but with funding and urgency.
Above all, we must stop treating clean air as a luxury. It is a fundamental right, as sacred as water, food, and freedom.
What Will It Take?
You can’t see every particle. You can’t smell every toxin. But every breath tells a story of coal, of politics, of injustice.
In Mpumalanga, those stories are still being written. The question is whether anyone is listening.