Zero Emissions Day: Reducing Carbon Emissions in South Africa

There are really three things that we have deemed important in order to cover ground about South Africa’s response to the global challenge of climate change. Firstly, which international policy did countries recently adopt to mitigate the impact and effects of climate change? Secondly, what are South Africa’s commitments as per policy, regarding the mitigation of climate change and lastly, how important is it to consider the socioeconomic demographics of our nation when responding to climate change?

The international policy in which 195 nations have adopted is the Paris Agreement/Paris Accords/ Paris Climate Accords. It was adopted at the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 21) in Paris, on the 15th of December 2015. According to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Paris Agreement aims to limit the global warming mean temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The Agreement requires all signatories to submit their national plans in response to climate change. These plans are called Nationally Determined Contributions(NDC’s). That brings us to the next phase of our discussion: What is written in South Africa’s NDC. To do this, Heather Mahachi used three documents to write her thesis on South African Climate Change Mitigation plans, the National Development Plan (NDP), National Climate Change Response Paper and the NDC’s (National Determined Contributions).

According to the documents labelled above, South Africa has a variety of policies inclined towards objectives, programmes, commitments and priorities to respond to climate change (Mahachi):

1. Eight key objectives of their Integrated Resource Plans (IRP), which speak to the manner in which our resources like water and energy are harnessed and distributed. It also addresses the labour and development of these entities.

• Ensure security of supply

• Minimise the cost of energy

• Promote the creation of jobs and localization

• Minimise negative environmental impacts from the energy sector

• Promote the conservation of water

• Diversify supply sources and primary sources of energy

• Promote energy efficiency in economy

• Increase access to modern energy

2. Climate change mitigation flagship programmes, are the main or most important programmes that address major national concerns in this case environmental and socioeconomic development through climate change mitigation.

• The Renewable Energy Flagship Programme. Driver of renewable energy technologies

• The Transport Flagship Programme. Facilitate development of public transport and electric vehicles

• The Energy Efficiency and Energy Demand Management Flagship Programme. Driver of energy efficiency both industrial and residential

• The Carbon Capture and Sequestration Flagship Programme. Development of carbon capture plant to store process emissions

• The Waste Management Flagship Programme. Establish mitigation potential of waste-energy opportunities

3. Green Economy Accord Commitments are made by one of the most comprehensive social pacts on green jobs in the world, it builds a partnership to create new jobs, in economic activities as diverse as energy generation, manufacturing of products that reduce carbon emissions, farming activities to provide feedstock for biofuels and other environmentally sustainable sectors for the mitigation of inequality and poverty through climate change mitigation

• Roll-out of Solar Water Heaters (funding plan to install 1 million SWH)

• Investment in the Green Economy

• Roll-out of Renewable Energy

• Energy efficiency

• Waste recycling, Re-Use and Recovery

• Biofuels

• Clean-coal initiatives (Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum)

• Retrofitting

• Reducing carbon emission in transport

• Electrification of poor communities

• Economic development in green economy

• International corporation

4. Policy improvements away from coal, are the legislative changes in the country’s dependency on grey energy to make way for a greener society.

• Balance in coal export growth and domestic supply security

• Gas exploration as coal alternative

• Greater mix of energy sources and diversity of independent power producers

• Improved electricity distribution at the municipal level

• Fair electricity pricing and access

• Consideration of desirability of nuclear power

5. Priority Actions to be taken by 2030 are a combination of actions to be taken as per NDC planning in the next 10 years.

• Coal rail capacity match coal export port (Richard’s Bay)

• Commissioning of Kusile coal power station

• Contracting of 7000MW renewable energy

• Pro-poor electricity tariffs

• Electrification coverage of at least 85%

• Natural gas infrastructure put in place to power combined-cycle gas turbines

• Contraction of more than 20 000MW renewable energy and increasing share from imported hydroelectricity

• Further enhanced raid and port capacity to support coal exports

• 10 000MW of Eskom old coal powered stations decommissioned but contraction of 6000MW new coal capacity- these are subject to climate change negotiations

• Promotion of clean coal technologies

• Economy wide carbon tax (sector exemptions) coupled with direct action (such as energy efficiency programmes and building emission standards)

• Grid electricity coverage of 90%

• Wide use of hybrid and electric vehicles

Lastly, Mahachi’s question is relevant: To what extent is reducing poverty integrated into medium term greenhouse-gas-reducing development strategies (Climate change mitigation) and how is climate change mitigation integrated into the socioeconomic development plans of SA’.

These questions have one answer. We just need to ask ourselves truthfully about our government's intentions for what’s written in these documents. Yes, absolutely, South Africa relies on coal power for electricity and thus its policy on improving the variety of renewable energy sources is a huge leap. This will not only mitigate the effects of climate change but the socioeconomic status of the citizens in South Africa. South Africa is currently preparing to present their Nationally Determined Contributions at the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) at Glasgow, Scotland between 31 October and 12 November 2021, under the presidency of the United Kingdom. We have realised that our aims for climate change mitigation have to be ambitious and attainable for us to get funding for the ‘’bankable’’ programmes we’ve included in the NDC. Even Eskom has committed to the plans made by the IRP (Integrated Resource Plans) for the decarbonisation of its coal power stations and the repurposing and green-repowering of their decommissioned plants in the next 10 years.

South Africa’s Presidential Climate Commission (PCC) which was formed in December 2020 has its goal set to ensure that South Africa doesn’t lose sight of its Nationally Determined Contributions. It has made its intentions clear on the country’s electricity transition from grey to green energy. Its efforts to raise international finance through the Paris Agreement for the programmes it has listed in the NDC has gone to the extent of engaging with Eskom about a Just Energy Transition to a green economy. In these engagements, the socioeconomics of a green economy were discussed and a consensus was reached that placed the current and future workforce of the coal powered plants and green plants, respectively, at paramount importance. According to the PCC and NDC, the economy and those who participate and benefit from it must be protected.

SO what’s the take-home message here? It’s that South Africa has its goals in alignment with international efforts of reducing carbon emissions and what is astounding is its priority to address socioeconomic challenges of inequality and poverty through climate-change-mitigating national development strategies. This is the stance we celebrate today, Happy Zero Emissions Day South Africa.

Live green, see green

Linda Mtshali

References

1. Creamer Media. (2021, August 5). South Africa's Plans for COP26. Retrieved from CreamerMedia Youtube Channel: https://youtu.be/jf94OHAbs8U

2. Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment. (2021, September 19). Flagship Programmes. Retrieved from Environmentza: https://twitter.com/environmentza?lang=en

3. ESI Africa. (2019, May 14). Minister of Energy Jeff Radebe discusses South Africa's energy mix. Retrieved from ESI Africa Youtube Channel: https://youtu.be/Q15THJq01Sg

4. Mahachi, H. (n.d.). A comparative analysis of South Africa, India and Mexico’s approach to development and climate change mitigation. (H. Winkler, Ed.) African Climate Development Initiative, 1(1), 70. Retrieved September 15, 2021

5. Mail & Guardian. (2021, February 12). SONA Highlights : Climate Change. Retrieved from Mail & Gaurdian Youtube Channel: https://youtu.be/dOp6DPSReU8’

6. SABC News. (2021, April 23). South Africa's road to COP26: Minister Barbara Creecy. Retrieved from SABC News Youtube Channel: https://youtu.be/sefNoyNDHJg

7. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. (2021, September 18). Conference of the Parties (COP). Retrieved from UNFCC International: https://unfccc.int/process/bodies/supreme-bodies/conference-of-the-parties-cop