'Some of SA's top companies are quietly breaking the law', 8 Sep 2015: Some of the top companies on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange are flouting environmental laws and not telling their shareholders, according to a study by the Centre for Environmental Rights. The CER assessed 20 companies…and found that between 2008 and 2014 many…violated their permits and licences or flouted the law. Examples of violations included toxic spills, unauthorised disposal of hazardous waste, contamination of soil…ground and surface water, and air pollution…[A]ll the companies had regularly been listed on the JSE’s Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) index…intended to identify companies which “integrate…environmental, social and economic sustainability…The CER study, Full Disclosure, is based on…annual National Environmental Compliance and Enforcement Reports…material from affected communities and civil society and on the companies’ own annual reports…Tracey Davies…of…CER…said…no-one…expect[s]…companies to have a perfect record, but shareholders and the public should be told about violations…the consequences of…violations…and…what…compan[ies]…[are] doing to correct the situation…