TSWELOPELE MAKOE
Johannesburg - In the modern era, environmentalism is often overlooked amid flashy topics such as technological and automotive industry advancements.
Renewable energy has only recently become a significant theme in the public discourse. Renewable energy by definition is energy that is derived from replenishable sources that do not run out, such as solar or wind power.
Renewable energy is especially crucial for nations such as South Africa that are predominantly dependent on non-renewable energy sources such as coal, oil, gas, and nuclear power.
The central issue with non-renewable energy sources is that they are being depleted at a faster rate than the rate at which they are produced. But more importantly, non-renewable power sources are having a permanent detrimental effect on our planet, our immediate environment as well as our broader ecological system.
When any fossil fuel such as coal or oil is processed, carbon dioxide is emitted, which contributes to climate change. Further effects of this environmental degradation are acid rain and greenhouse gas emissions when gases such as methane and carbon dioxide enter the earth’s atmosphere and trap heat.
An overview of South Africa’s energy sector by Power Africa shows that coal comprised 80% of the country’s energy in 2019. An Integrated Resource Plan of 2019 states that “by 2030, South Africa will have an energy sector that provides a reliable and efficient energy service at competitive rates; that is socially equitable through expanded access to energy at affordable tariffs; and that is environmentally sustainable through reduced emissions and pollution”.
However, it has been over a decade since the first Integrated Resource Plan of 2010 (enacted in March 2011). As of 2023, extraordinarily, little has changed, and South Africa is still running on 80% coal-powered energy.
Very little has been done to implement renewable power sources and reduce pollution. In July 2022, the Energy Action Plan was unveiled to diversify our energy sources and achieve energy security in the long term.
Ultimately, this plan was encouraging the induction of renewable energy projects to improve Eskom’s troubled operational performance.
We began 2023 with Eskom announcing an 18.65% electricity tariff increase, due to be implemented on April 1.
The reality is that many citizens won’t be able to afford the hike, and many who can afford it are jumping off the grid to renewable energy sources such as solar power.
Methinks the government is not undertaking the power issue with the seriousness it deserves. The previous year was riddled with power outages that have negatively affected food production, businesses plus educational and healthcare institutions, among others.
Government leaders have refused to support renewable energy in the past, and today are laying the blame on Eskom. This crisis cannot be solved by Eskom alone. The government needs to take responsibility for its immense contribution to the energy crisis we are currently facing and begin to act in the best interest of the country, and its ecological future, rather than its enrichment.
Countries such as the UK are currently exporting power from renewable energy sources, showing its value in the larger global arena and its potential to withstand the test of time.
In South Africa, the nation is already plagued by a multitude of societal challenges, many of which affect entire provinces. Yes, it is difficult to contribute to recycling when proper refuse disposal is unavailable, and large dumping sites have been erected as the only alternative.
Transportation is an even larger challenge; although many minimise their carbon footprint by walking, biking, or taking a train, many other citizens are unable to take these routes and rely solely on automotive transportation.
The largest contributors to the degeneration of our environment are large, privately owned corporations and factories that emit dangerous amounts of toxic gases and pollution.
This is especially dangerous for employees of, and communities that live close to, power stations and large manufacturing businesses. In South Africa, privately owned conglomerates and corporations are not obligated to utilise the most environmentally safe methods of operation.
This means that it is an especially difficult battle for environmentalists to overturn these harmful effects. Although many daily challenges in our nation are socio-economic and physical, environmentalism is not an issue that should be side-lined or viewed as removed from our lived reality. Environmentalism is very much a collective problem, not only for our nation, but for the globe at large.
There are many online and physical environmental groups and organisations that are devoted to combatting ecological degradation.
When fossil fuels such as coal and oil are processed, toxic particles such as mercury are dispersed, which ultimately pollute our water, air and land.
This also affects the species that inhabit the area, for example, polluted farms affect our fresh produce and edibles such as spinach, peppers, bread, pap, and other staple products. Similarly, polluted rivers and oceans affect the seafood we consume.
The ramifications of environmental degradation have ripple effects that affect everybody on the globe both directly and indirectly. In the ecological cycle, if one component goes missing the whole chain is affected.
Air, water, and land pollution may be overlooked for so long, but they will surely have dire consequences for us, and future generations if not tackled with seriousness in our present-day society.
The truth of the matter is that we can no longer trust large private corporations who continue to benefit from non-renewable power without concern for the environment.
They most likely will not be held accountable for inedible and mutated foods, or the ailing health of scores of people due to immense air and water pollution. They will continue “business as usual” because their focus is purely on economic extraction laced with powerful political networks.
It is time to wake up to the reality that the future of our country - its survival - and its ecological prosperity is in our hands. We need to undertake the responsibility of protecting our environment with much more desire.
Environmental degradation ultimately leads to the demise of humans. Every single societal facet is affected by the environment. We need to be steadfast in our insistence on implementing and upholding renewable energy sources.
We have plenty of potential for them in the country - from solar, water, and wind - to bio-energy. We have plenty of coastal cities that could use tidal or ocean energy, and many inner land cities that can undertake biomass energy (generated from living organisms) and geothermal energy (heat energy from the earth).
Not only is this is chance for the government to diversify our energy sources, and become less dependent on private organisations and large mining conglomerates. This will also result in an immense development of the biology, mechanical and electrical engineering, and agricultural sectors.
This would lead to long-lasting positive effects for the country, its industries, and most importantly its astronomical unemployment rate.
The way we deal with power sources in South Africa needs to be seriously investigated.
Although we have seen the induction and planning of renewable energy projects in recent years, we need to accelerate and develop these plans into actualised power sources that are making a difference to South African lived realities.
We have natural resources at our disposal, and we have laid too much importance on non-renewable, obstructive sources of energy. Transforming the ways we learn and deal with ecology in the country, especially from the primary schooling level, will not only be vital to our preparation for future environmental challenges, but also the robustness of our economy.
* Tswelopele Makoe is an MA (Ethics) Student at the Desmond Tutu Centre for Religion and Social Justice at UWC. She is also a gender activist.