Conservationists may take legal action if environmental laws are broken in the building of 2010 Soccer World Cup stadiums, the SABC reported on Monday.

Conservationists may take legal action if environmental laws are broken in the building of 2010 Soccer World Cup stadiums, the SABC reported on Monday.

Should the groups go forward with their legal action, the construction of the stadiums could face even further delays.

Various wetlands have reportedly already been damaged to make way for some stadiums.

Nicole Barlow, chairperson of the Environment and Conservation Association, said: "The very specific one is a stadium in Nelspruit which, through its extension, pushed out a school and relevant environmental legislation wasn't followed ... the school ended up being built in a wetland.

"Now what we need to look at is how the building and the extension of the stadium actually impacted on the community ... for us not only is education more important, but a wetland that would have been there for another 100 years after 2010 is now being irreversibly destroyed." - Sapa