Media Release
by the National Cleaner Production Centre of South Africa
Friday, 22 March 2013

The recent NCPC-SA Industrial Resource Efficiency Conference, hosted by the National Cleaner Production Centre of South Africa (NCPC-SA), has shown that the local manufacturing industry is eager to educate itself on how energy, water, materials and other resource efficiencies can add to competitiveness, sustainability and profitability. The NCPC-SA is an industrial sustainability programme of the dti hosted by the CSIR.

The two-day conference was held at Emperor’s Palace in Gauteng on 11 and 12 March and was attended by some 300 delegates from industry, academia and government. The conference was organised to mark “ten years of resource efficiency and cleaner production” as the NCPC-SA ended off its tenth year, and some of the speakers took a retrospective look at what impact has been made in those ten years.

“We are proud to have unlocked potential savings of around R175 million through our RECP activities in the last ten years,” said Ndivhuho Raphulu, Director of the NCPC SA.

The keynote and opening address of the conference was given by Mr Clem Sunter, business leader and vocal spokesperson on the future of the SA economy.  He lauded the efforts of the NCPC-SA and spoke about the possible scenarios that face South Africa in the next ten years. His message: sustainability has to be a focus in order for South Africa to remain competitive.

Competitiveness occupied a large part of the dialogue at the conference and presentations demonstrated the effectiveness of RECP principles in a declining South African manufacturing economy. Global trends are showing that opportunities exist for businesses and countries that formalise these principles.

Good news for industry is that progressive government policies are providing a platform from which key sectors can be positioned for global competitiveness. These issues were brought to light on day two through the keynote address by Mr Gerhard Fourie, Chief Director: Green Industries at the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti).  He touched on governments plans, including finance models, to assist industry to become more competitive, as well as its efforts in moving towards a greener economy.

“South Africa will require a number of incentives over a period of time to move industries away from energy intensive, carbon intensive industries to less energy and carbon intensive labour absorbing industries,” said Mr Fourie.

Feedback from industry delegates as shown that the content of this conference was relevant and helpful.  As such, the NCPC-SA is making available all the talks and presentations via an online streaming site hosted by the CSIR.  All speaker presentations and the video recording of each speaker will soon be available at http://streaming.csir.co.za and a link to the conference content is available on www.ncpc.co.za

More information can be requested from ncpc@csir.co.za

Issued by: Julie Wells, Media Specialist NCPC-SA 074 8999 819 / jwells@csir.co.za

The following is an overview of the speakers and their topics:

1. Make it and wrap it yourself 

1/4 – 1/3 of all domestic waste this time of the year is packaging. The estimated waste from gift-wrap and shopping bags is about 4 million tons

2. Remember to use your own bags

Remember to bring your reusable bags for holiday gift shopping, and tell helpful cashiers that you don’t need one for very small or oversized items

3. Send an eCard

The 2.65 billion Christmas cards sold each year, they could fill a football field 10 stories high, and while we’re still into math, if we each sent one less card, we’d save 50,000 cubic yards of paper – that’s a lot of trees folks! 

4. Try packaging things in glass containers

This can encourage friends and family to use less plastic and eventually get away from plastic containers altogether. You might leave a loving note inside telling them about BPA poisoning from plastic containers, and how it leaches into their food, especially when exposed to heat like in the microwave.

5. When buying a gift, consider it’s lifecycle and footprint

Ask yourself a few questions like: What is the item made of – is it made from recycled materials? Where does it come from – has it traveled very far? It is recyclable or will it sit in a landfill for an extended period of time after its current use? It is durable? Can it be used more than once?

This list was edited by Alive2green

Article source: http://greenlivingideas.com/2012/12/10/5-ways-to-have-an-earth-friendly-and-less-expensive-holiday/

Solar Panels

Solar panels are a great addition to any home. To buy them upfront they are a little expensive to install, but they more than pay you back through their lives (which is typically 25 years or more for a typical system). During particularly sunny periods, they can produce more energy than a home can use. Hows is that for saving money?

To make things even easier, a growing number of companies are offering alternative financing plans that require less, or sometimes even no, money up front. Some plans effectively allow the homeowner to “rent” their roofspace to get paid for energy generated by solar panels. Others offer leasing programs that deduct the equipment fees from money earned by the consumer from the power company .

Fluorescent Lights

Most hardware stores carry energy efficient light bulbs. They cost a few pennies more in most cases but last many times longer than regular light bulbs, so you can start saving money in no time. To ensure the best quality, get Energy Star-certified efficient bulbs, which tests show meet minium quality standards for long life and light quality. Do beware that the cheapest discount bulbs may not last as long as you’ve heard in the commercials.

Today’s major brand CFLs tend to produce very soft, beautiful light, and they don’t buzz the way the old ones did. Do also beware that rapid switching will shorten the life of all fluorescents, so opt for halogens or LEDs for places like closets if you are sensitive to replacement costs.

Smarter Electronics

Even in standby mode, most electronics use some electricity, in what is often called the “vampire effect” or “low power mode.” The best way to cut down on this is to unplug them when they aren’t in use. A piece of equipment that makes this easier is a power strip. You can plug all of your electronics into this and easily flip a switch to cut them off when you don’t need them. If you get one with a surge protector built in, you can also help protect your expensive gadgets from shock damage.

Better Insulation

There are lots of different kinds of eco-friendly insulation on the market today, and boosting what you have in your home often provides the biggest bang for your buck in terms of energy savings. Buildings lose a lot of heat through their walls, but insulation made of things like recycled jeans can make a big difference.

There are multiple benefits to making your home more Green, including cutting down on energy bills, boosting your home’s value, and helping out the environment. Use these steps to get started on making your home a happier and healthier place to live.

This article has been edited by Alive2green

Article Source: http://newswatch.nationalgeographic.com/2012/10/04/5-best-ways-to-make-your-home-more-eco-friendly/

Source: http://fe57.com/luxury-green-home-design/

Article Source: http://fe57.com/luxury-green-home-design/

These conferences seem to produce more hot air than tangible results and even if you follow environmental issues in the news with interest, climate change always seems to be happening somewhere else, far away – in the atmosphere, where average global temperatures are rising, on the US East Coast, where storms are getting more vicious, and in the thawing Arctic.

But what about us, here on the southern tip of Africa? There’s a real shortage of news about exactly how climate change is going to affect our lives. Which is why I was quite excited to come across a report that analyses what’s in store for an area loved by many South Africans, the Garden Route. It was actually published last year, but it’s still very relevant now.

The study, a collaboration between the WWF, the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative, researchers from UCT and the CSIR, and Santam, was motivated by the fact that the insurance industry is having to deal with a growing number of damage claims resulting from natural disasters. It considers the impact of climate change in the Western Cape’s Eden District Municipality which includes Gouritsmond, Mossel Bay, George, Sedgefield, Knysna and Plettenberg Bay.

Here are the findings in a nutshell:

- Winter and spring temperatures in the region have risen by about 1.4 degrees Celsius over the past hundred years and are predicted to increase by a further 1 degree Celsius by 2040.

- The number of high fire risk periods, particularly during winter, is forecast to increase by around 41% for the period between 2020 and 2050 when compared to 1960 to 1990.

- There are expected to be significantly more intense rainfall days (more than 20mm) between 2020 and 2050 compared to 1960 to 1990. For the winter months, a 36% increase is predicted.

- With a sea level rise of a metre expected by 2100, extreme wave run-up events are predicted to increase by six times (wave run-up, which refers to the maximum vertical level above the still water line reached by wave uprush on the shoreline, can cause significant erosion).

Interestingly, the report highlights the fact that the impacts of humans on the natural environment in the region are of equal or greater importance than the expected effects of climate change itself. The authors point out that:

- the introduction of invasive alien trees has increased the number of fire risk areas by over 30%;

- the degradation of wetlands and  riparian zones along rivers, large fires in commercial forest plantations, as well as the clear-felling of such plantations without active rehabilitation, have all diminished the environment’s natural capacity to effectively deal with major rainfall events; and

- the destruction of foredunes has reduced natural protection against storm surges and sea level rise.

Good news

While this may all be rather depressing, there’s good news, too: “proactive management and restoration of these ecological systems has the potential to offset most of the future increases in risk related to climatic changes.”

In other words, if fire-prone invasive trees in the area are eradicated or managed more effectively, if wetlands and riparian zones are rehabilitated and if foredunes are repaired and protected, we’ll go a long way towards offsetting the expected effects of climate change.

That doesn’t sound very hard to accomplish. And while you and I have no chance of influencing the multilateral talks at COP 18, we are much more likely to make an impression locally. If we live on the Garden Route or go on holiday there, we can talk to others about these protective measures, get actively involved with organisations which are already working to implement them and raise awareness about their importance among public servants and representatives on the municipal level.

This article has been edited by Alive2Green

Article source: http://www.news24.com/Columnists/AndreasSpath/Climate-change-and-the-Garden-Route-20121126

Keith Anderson, a 2012 IT Personality Award finalist, was presented with the ICT Social Responsibility Award for his outstanding pro bono work to promote responsible disposal and recycling of electronic waste in SA. The award is presented by the Computer Society of SA (CSSA), in association with ITWeb, Gartner Africa and GIBS, and was handed to Anderson at the CSSA President’s event, in Johannesburg, yesterday. Speaking on behalf of the judging panel, ITWeb editorial director Ranka Jovanovic, said: “This year, the judges felt that one of the finalists deserved special recognition for doing selfless, tireless, and unpaid work – having made it his life’s mission to fight for responsible disposal and recycling of all the stuff that our industry trades in.

“Keith Anderson has made it his life’s mission to worry about what happens with all that ‘stuff’ when it reaches its end of life. He watches us, tech consumers, tech businesses, the country – and encourages us to make an effort to recycle. He keeps reminding us that we’d be not only protecting the environment, but also creating jobs in the process.” This award was introduced in 2005 and first presented to Kobus van Wyk, who at the time headed up the Khanya Project - a best-practice model of bringing computers to schools, by involving the community.

The e-Waste Association of SA (eWasa), an industry-accredited body for dealing with all e-waste matters, was established in 2008. It receives no government funding and Anderson works pro bono, from his home in Durban. “It’s been a slow journey for the brand of eWasa to be understood,” according to Anderson.

Years of working in the computer distribution sector made Anderson concerned about the quantum of tech products entering the country and its end-of-life treatment. With no official or concerted electronic waste plan in the country, he had his work cut out for him. “I’m passionate about it; I’ve made it my life’s mission.”

Anderson says e-waste is growing three to four times faster than conventional waste, and yet SA is recycling only about 12% of it. He wants to get SA to 55-60%.

A key part of that mission is to advocate for a national e-waste management policy – a grand plan that will involve the Department of Environmental Affairs, municipalities, and captains of technology industry sectors. “We need a champion at a national level, industry involvement and constant advocacy.”

Technology exists to deal with e-waste, he says, and people generally have the will to do it, “but we need legislation – possibly introduction of ‘green tax’ – to make responsible e-waste disposal mandatory rather than voluntary”.

“The ICT sector is innovative, constantly changing, keeps us reinventing ourselves. It’s an exciting industry to be in, and I want to make sure each and every device we use gets disposed of responsibly.”

Christopher Hopson, London

This article has been edited by Alive2Green

Article Source: http://www.rechargenews.com/business_area/politics/article326445.ece

South Africa is taking a continental lead in the integration and implementation of a green economy, as well as in putting initiatives in place to achieve the targets set out in the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) to ensure environmental , Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) Resource-based Sustainable Development competency area manager Dr Doug Trotter said during a presentation at the CSIR’s fourth biennial Science, Engineering and Technology conference last month.

GREEN ECONOMY South Africa needs to ensure that new initiatives and technologies are in place to improve economic growth and protect the environment

“South Africa was faster off the starting blocks than other countries in Africa in terms of responding to the emergence of a green economy as a concept.

“Initiatives to achieve the environmental sustainability MDG are already in place. This is a new emerging area within the CSIR and within South Africa as a whole,” he said.

Trotter explained that, as a country that was heavily dependent on natural resources for economic development, South Africa had no choice but to take the initiatives geared towards a green economy seriously.

He added that natural resources had ecological limits and the country needed to consider ways of decoupling the meeting of economic growth targets from increasing natural resources extraction.

“A green economy is one that results in improved wellbeing and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities.

“The underlying principle is to reduce the reliance of economic development on the increased consumption of, and damage to, natural resources and the environment, while meeting social needs and understanding inequities.

“To achieve this, we need to try to decouple the use of natural resources from the economy, while still maintaining economic growth,” stated Trotter.

He added that research was being done to find the most appropriate way to reduce the country’s reliance on coal and invest more in renewable-energy sources.

“If we reduce the use of our natural resources, we will reduce the environmental impact on the country,” he said. Trotter further noted that the country needed to ensure that new initiatives and technologies were in place to improve economic growth and environmental protection.“South Africa has started developing strategies to implement a green economy,” he stated. He explained that the transition towards a green economy was seen as a means to drive and implement sustainability; however, both were relatively new concepts and there were significant capacity and knowledge gaps in both these fields.

“Both concepts are complex and require the integration of the complicated relationships between environmental, social and economic considerations.

“The capacity, tools and methods to address these complexities and understand previously unforeseen relationship effects are still in their relative infancy, but are significantly needed now,” he said.

Further, Trotter noted that growing global pressure was driving accelerated research and development in this area.

“The availability of improvements on existing methods and the ongoing development of new approaches, guidelines and decision support tools are helping to unpack the complex issues.

“South Africa, along with the international community, needs to enable legal and regulatory context reform in terms of how to drive and enable funding and investment frameworks moving forward in that domain.

“We also need to enable international partners and global trade conditions
and set up new indicators for monitoring and reporting,” he stated.

Trotter stressed that green growth had to contribute to poverty reduction and socioeconomic development in the short to medium term, if it was going to gain traction in Africa.

“Comprehensive use of integrative review and planning, coupled with appropriately and purpose-designed decision-support tools, are crucial in unpacking the complexity of the path ahead,” he said.

Source: http://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/sa-leading-in-implementation-of-green-economy-2012-11-02

This article has been edited by Alive2green

Click here for the Preliminary Agenda 15th IBF Pretoria 2012 

Click here for the IBF Background Paper 

Cabinet on Friday announced that it would lift the moratorium on shale gas drilling by means of hydraulic fracturing, also known as “fracking”. Exploration permits can now be issued to the petroleum companies interested in going after the Karoo’s potentially vast natural gas reserves. This is good news.

Source: http://dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2012-09-11-fracking-gets-green-light-but-heres-the-risk