Climate change is one of the biggest challenges of our time. The cumulative effect of anthropogenic activity over the last 200 years is a main contributor to a rapidly changing climate.
Climate change is a pattern of long-term change in the temperature and weather patterns globally or regionally which occur naturally. However due to the rapid increase in anthropogenic activity the change in weather patterns and temperature is being accelerated.
The contribution of greenhouse gas emissions to climate change are too evident to ignore. Average global temperatures are increasing, extreme weather events are becoming more severe, ocean levels are rising, and acidification is occurring.
All of these ecological threats are a result of human activity. Although the impacts of a rapidly changing climate cannot be prevented its intensity can be minimised through changing business as usual and adopting greener ways of operating as a society.
The Paris Agreement, which is a comprehensive framework that guides international efforts to limit greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to meet all the associated challenges posed by climate change, was reached in 2015.
The Paris Agreement sets out a global framework to avoid dangerous climate change by limiting global warming to well below 2°C and pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5°C. It also aims to strengthen countries’ ability to deal with the impacts of climate change and support them in their efforts. To reach these goals, it is important that countries (especially developed countries) adhere to the commitments of the Paris Agreement.
South Africa is a signatory to the Paris Agreement and has committed (in the updated Nationally Determined Contribution) that its GHG emissions will be between 398 – 510 mt co2 eq and 350 – 420 mt co2 for the periods 2021 – 2025 and 2026 – 2030 respectively.
The Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has been mandated by Gauteng Executive Council to provide climate leadership in the Gauteng City Region (GCR).
To this extent, the Department had to develop a Gauteng climate action roadmap and clarify roles and responsibilities for various stakeholders, including Gauteng Provincial Government Departments and the private sector.
The Gauteng City Region Over-Arching Climate Change Response Strategy and Action Plan has been completed and approved by the Gauteng Executive Council on 26 August 2020. Through the implementation of this Strategy, Gauteng Province is contributing its fair of South Africa’s commitment made in the National Determined Contribution (NDC) document.
The Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development has a Green Technology Programme with sub-programmes on solar rooftop, gas conversion and supply in hospitals, installation of smart meters to track the average consumption, water conservation, waste water recycling, and waste to energy. The solar roof top sub-programme is estimated to install 10MWp across all 11 Health Care Facilities for phase 1.
The amount saved as a result of the installation of smart metres amounts to over R300 million on electricity bills.
Transport is the second most greenhouse gas emitting sector after energy in Gauteng City Region. The Gauteng City Region is therefore pursuing investment in public transport systems, especially mass transit (commuter rail, Gautrain and Bus Rapid Transit) along major corridors in urban areas and their integration e.g. Rea Vaya BRT, Harambee BRT, Areyeng BRT. Implementation of green infrastructure for the construction of roads and non-motorised transport systems has also been prioritized.
A new report released by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) shows that the increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather disasters such as floods, droughts and megafires as a result of climate change is having a devastating effect on food security and livelihoods.
In Gauteng, crop and livestock production are expected to reduce due to lower soil fertility, short rains, extreme weather events such as hail and flooding, loss of feed caused by loss of grasslands and heat stress.
In response to these threats, the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is implementing conservation agriculture, urban agriculture and climate resilient programmes.
Metropolitan Municipalities have developed the Cities’ Climate Action Plans whose implementation is putting the cities in the low carbon path and ensure climate resilience.
The City of Johannesburg’s Climate Action Plan has been approved by Council whilst the City of Tshwane Climate Action Plan and City of Ekurhuleni’s Green Cities Action Plan are at advanced stages of approval.
Whilst the provincial and local governments are responsible for development of policy framework and implementation of certain flagship programmes, most of climate change response work lie within the private sector.
The Gauteng Provincial Government, therefore, commends the climate change response initiatives undertaken by different institutions within the private sector and also encourages other institutions to commission similar programmes.
The Gauteng Provincial Government supports South Africa’s position on COP 26 which will be held on 31 October to 12 November 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland and the commitments in the Nationally Determined Contribution Document through its continued implementation of the programmes highlighted above.
The Province further commit to allocate more resources for the expansion of these programmes and commission of new ones to ensure a low carbon footpath and climate resilience within the Gauteng City Region.
This article was first published in the African Mirror by Parks Tau.
About the author
Parks Tau is the Member of the Executive Council (MEC) of the Provincial Government of Gauteng in South Africa