Desmond D’Sa, fearless champion of environmental justice, dies in crash

Veteran environmental justice activist Desmond D’Sa, who spent decades holding major industries accountable for pollution in south Durban, has died in a car accident alongside his son, Rodney D’Sa, and his sister-in-law.

The department of forestry, fisheries and the environment announced the deaths on Thursday, expressing its condolences to the D’Sa family, friends, colleagues and the South Durban community.

“The loss of Dr D’Sa is a great loss for the entire environmental movement. His dedication to defending communities and environmental justice will live on,” said deputy environment minister Narend Singh.

D’Sa was the founder and coordinator of the South Durban Community Environmental Alliance (SDCEA), which brought together community organisations to fight pollution and defend the environmental and human rights of residents living alongside some of the country’s major industrial operations.

For more than three decades, he campaigned against industrial pollution, particularly from oil refineries, challenging companies over the health risks faced by nearby communities.

His fight for environmental justice was rooted in his own experience of apartheid and industrial work.

Born in Cato Manor in 1956, D’Sa was forcibly removed with his family during apartheid. The family eventually settled in Wentworth, where residential communities live alongside refineries, factories and other major industrial facilities.

In a 2020 interview with the Mail & Guardian, D’Sa recalled watching homes, trees and crops being destroyed during the forced removals.

“It taught me never to be quiet again. It taught me to work together with people,” he said.

Before becoming a community activist, D’Sa worked in the textile and chemical industries, including at Sasol’s Isipingo plant. His experience as a worker and trade unionist exposed him to the dangers posed by chemicals to workers and surrounding communities.

His involvement in community organising grew from efforts to address social problems in Wentworth. He helped establish the Wentworth Development Forum, creating public meetings where residents could raise concerns and work collectively towards solutions.

In 1995, SDCEA was formed as an alliance of 21 community organisations representing areas including the Bluff, Isipingo, Umlazi, Wentworth and Merebank.

The alliance gave residents a collective voice in challenging industrial pollution and decisions that threatened their health and environment.

D’Sa took the fight beyond South Africa’s borders. Armed with shares in multinational companies, he challenged corporate leaders at shareholder meetings and joined protests against Shell in London and The Hague. SDCEA’s account of his work credits the campaign with helping to force changes to ageing pipelines in south Durban.

His campaigning came at a personal cost. In the 2020 M&G interview, D’Sa spoke about the petrol-bombing of his home in 2008 while he was attending a government meeting in Pretoria. The attack traumatised his family, but he continued his work.

He insisted that development did not have to come at the expense of public health. “We are not anti-development, but we are anti-air-pollution. We welcome sustainable development,” he said, according to SDCEA’s website.

His work extended beyond pollution to housing, community development and the rights of marginalised groups. He worked alongside grassroots organisations and supported communities whose livelihoods and health were threatened by decisions made by government and industry.

His contribution was recognised with the Diakonia Human Rights Award in 2013 and the Goldman Environmental Prize in 2014. He also received an honorary doctorate from the Durban University of Technology.

KwaZulu-Natal premier Thamsanqa Ntuli paid tribute to D’Sa’s decades of campaigning for communities affected by industrial pollution, saying the province had lost “a courageous son”.

“For over thirty years, he stood with the communities of the South Durban Basin, fighting industrial pollution and demanding that every person be able to breathe clean air and raise their children in safety,” Ntuli said.

“His cause was human lives and social justice, and he believed that no community should sacrifice its health for economic gain.”

Ntuli said he had honoured D’Sa with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2025 KwaZulu-Natal Premier’s Excellence Awards in recognition of his contribution to environmental justice.

“It was my privilege to honour him with the Lifetime Achievement Award … I will always carry that moment with me,” he said.

Ntuli described D’Sa’s death as a profound loss to the environmental movement and to everyone who believed development should not come at the expense of human dignity.

He also said D’Sa’s life challenged the government to turn words into action and build a province that protected both its people and its environment.

In a statement released on Thursday, the SDCEA expressed profound sadness at the sudden death of its founder and coordinator.

“Desmond was a fearless champion for environmental justice, an unwavering voice for the marginalised and a true hero of our community. For decades, his relentless passion and courage forced the powerful to look at the communities they impacted, bringing hope and dignity to countless lives,” the alliance said.

“His loss is an immeasurable blow not only to South Durban but to the global environmental movement.”

The alliance said it was struggling to process the tragedy and asked the media and public to respect the family’s privacy and give them time and space to grieve.

“Thank you for your love and support and for honouring Desmond’s incredible legacy. Let us carry forward the torch of justice he carried so bravely for us all,” it said.

The Climate Justice Charter Movement also paid tribute to D’Sa, describing him as “a force of nature as an environmental activist” and saying his death was a great loss to activists globally.

The Centre for Environmental Rights mourned D’Sa as “a courageous champion of environmental justice who stood with communities fighting for clean air and dignity”.

The organisation extended its condolences to his loved ones and SDCEA colleagues, adding: “Rest in power. Your courage and legacy live on.”

The department also extended its condolences to the D’Sa family, SDCEA and their colleagues, saying his dedication to defending communities and ensuring their voices were heard had made a significant contribution to environmental advocacy.

The SDCEA said details of funeral and memorial arrangements would be shared once finalised. Attempts to reach the SDCEA for further comment were unsuccessful on Thursday.

This is a developing story