The government flexed its new anti-pollution muscles on Wednesday when it ordered Thor Chemicals to start cleaning up thousands of tons of toxic mercury waste - or be saddled with a R60-million government clean-up bill.

The order, made under the "polluter-pays" provisions of the National Environmental Management Act of 1998, directs the owners of the chemical plant in Cato Ridge, KwaZulu-Natal, to begin a major clean-up operation of an estimated 8 000 tons of toxic sludge stored in warehouses and waste ponds.

It is the first time the government has invoked the provisions of the act, which imposes a strict duty on industries to avoid pollution or to bear the costs of cleaning up their mess.

Carrying a thick sheaf of documents, deputy environment minister Rejoice Mabudafhasi drove to Cato Ridge on Wednesday to make a "courtesy call" on factory officials, before returning to Durban to hand over the clean-up directive to a legal representative of Guernica Chemicals (a new name for Thor's chemical operations in South Africa).

'People come first, because no country can survive without people'

Durban attorney Roy Monk, who is acting for Guernica Chemicals, said he had not studied the lengthy directive yet but said the company had been given 30 days to prepare a formal response.

Mabudafhasi, who addressed media and members of the surrounding Inchanga community at the factory gates, said all companies investing in this country had to observe the law and protect the health of workers and neighbours.

"We are saying that people come first, because no country can survive without people," she said.

The government had estimated it would cost about R60-million to clean up the legacy of actual and potential ground and water pollution at the factory and outside its gates.

Asked to comment on whether Thor/Guernica could afford to foot the bill following reports of a major restructuring and reshuffling of assets, Mabudafhasi said: "We are determined to fight this war... and we will certainly want our money back."

The company has already agreed to pay almost R12-million in out-of-court settlements

She would also contact British environment minister Michael Meacher to urge him to intervene and provide assistance. Thor/Guernica's parent company is based in Britain, where it has also faced a series of civil damages claims for allegedly killing or poisoning workers in Kwa-Zulu Natal.

The company has already agreed to pay almost R12-million in out-of-court settlements after damages claims brought by more than 30 former Thor workers and their relatives.

Buti Mathebula, government director of chemicals and hazardous waste management, said there was at least 3 500 tons of mercury sludge which would have to be transferred into newer storage vessels.

However, the most immediate concern was to prevent mercury leaking into the soil and groundwater around the factory. Several thousand tons of sludge was sitting in leachate dams and there was evidence that some of this had started to leak out.

Mathebula did not spell out the eventual fate of imported toxic wastes, which Thor had hoped to burn in an incinerator.

Guernica attorney Monk said his clients had been waiting for several years for a formal government response on how to deal with the stored mercury waste.

A state-appointed commission had recommended incineration as the best way of dealing with the stockpile, but this option "did not seem to find favour" with the government.

He would not comment on his client's ability to pay the clean-up bill, but said a more detailed statement would be issued in a fortnight.