On the back of a number of natural disasters over the past decade, University of Cape Town (UCT) climate scientist Dr Peter Johnston says it is vital that individuals and governments shift their focus to climate change and the projected impacts.
“Whenever we have a catastrophe whether it's bushfires, floods or tropical cyclones and people die, then a lot of people sit up and notice. I think this is the decade when politicians are going to realise that these natural disasters are not just coincidental, there definitely is some sort of signal,” he said.
Dr Johnston’s research focuses on climate information, climate variability, climate change, and the impacts of climate on agriculture, water and other sectors of human activity.
He says that carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have been shown to contribute to factors of climate change. While South Africa’s CO2 emissions hardly compare with the top emitters such as China, the US and India, the country is in the top 14 emitters worldwide.
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"South Africa produces a significant amount of a lot of greenhouse gases. We have a lot of coal and we've burnt that coal to make electricity and we've exported that coal to other countries," he said.
While it would be difficult, Dr Johnston says the country should be weaned off coal and focus on alternative energy sources.
“Coal is a very big part of our economy, there are a lot of people working in coal mines and there are political interests in coal,” he said.
Dr Johnston holds that citizens are stronger together and should collectively advocate for alternative and sustainable energy sources. “If the majority of citizens turns to the government and says we don't want coal fired power anymore, the government is going to have to sit up and notice.”
Dr Johnston presented a three day course, Climate change and South Africa: Impacts and Responses during the UCT Summer School earlier this month.
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