Policies \'inappropriate\' – Sacan

Between 1980 and 2004, SA\'s CO2 emissions had doubled. Sacan was highly critical of SA\'s negligible investment in renewable energy projects, its billion-rands investment in unsustainable nuclear power and its deal to sell huge amounts of electricity to Alcan at Coega, not to mention its rush into biofuel production without an adequate strategy in place, reports The Mercury. Wally Menne of Timberwatch, a Sacan member, said there had been a lack of meaningful consultation and ‘inadequate consideration’ of the impact this kind of large-scale biofuel production might have as opposed to small-scale community-based initiatives. While Maya Aberman, of Earthlife Africa, said that government plans to increase nuclear energy use were not a useful response to climate change, reports The Citizen. Full report in The Mercury Full report in The Citizen

Government is concerned about SA being one of the largest greenhouse gas emitters, due to its dependence on coal-fired power stations, President Thabo Mbeki says. The Cape Argus reports that he said that government was not dragging its feet in dealing with climate change and was focusing on programmes that improved technology and alternative means of generating electricity. Mbeki added that plans were afoot to ensure that some power stations used gas or nuclear technology. He noted a project at the University of Johannesburg used solar energy technology that was much cheaper than existing renewable energy technologies. Full Cape Argus report

In 2004, the Department of Minerals and Energy published a White Paper on Renewable Energy policy that aimed to promote the use of renewable energy sources to a cumulative 10 000 GWh by 2013. In that year, less than 1% of electricity originated from renewable energy sources, Engineering News reports. Cornelis van der Waal, of Frost & Sullivan, which has undertaken a study on renewable energy equipment, said that government encouragement is needed for the development and growth of the market. The two possible points of intervention by government policy include: regulation of the quantity of renewable electricity by, for example, setting targets; and, fixing prices through the regulation of tariffs. Full Engineering News report

If SA is to remain globally competitive and environmentally compliant, it will have to find alternative energy sources to coal, scientists at the SA Institute for Advanced Materials Chemistry have said, reports SABC News. The institute says hydrogen gas is likely to dominate the exploration of future energy sources and could help alleviate Eskom\'s capacity problems during peak usage times. Full SABC News report

SA should concentrate on becoming \'country ready\' to implement carbon capture and storage (CSS) solutions should these become more affordable, meet sustainability aspects and be accepted as a clean development mechanism, says Tony Surridge, of the SA National Energy Research Institute. He said SA needed new legislation to facilitate CSS and called for a redrafting of the energy White Paper. SA will host the 2008 Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum, linked to climate change, where the crucial issue of CSS will be thrashed out, reports Mining Weekly. Full Mining Weekly report