SA must do something about climate change and stop waffling

In case you missed it, World Earth Day ended yesterday.

There were all kinds of summits and events, one of which our very own President Cyril Ramaphosa took part in.

It was the Leaders’ Summit on Climate, the “first high-level meeting to be convened by the United States of America since its return to the multilateral climate discussions under the Paris Agreement”, according to the press release.

“South Africa views the summit as an opportunity for all countries to exercise leadership in climate change mitigation and just transitions in accordance with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and its Paris Agreement,” it exclaims.

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Give me a break.

We are one of the worst offenders.

Need power?

Sure, let’s build multibillion-rand, badly designed mega coal stations because they are a temporary fix and someone needs votes because our employment is mind-numbingly high.

The temporary fix brought temporary power – and temporary jobs. Instead of using solar and wind, we’re now scrambling to provide power by fixing our ailing, elderly, decrepit coal stations by running massive diesel generators day and night.

Give me a break.

Yes, yes, someone just pointed out that “solar panels also pollute the atmosphere during production”.

You’re right.

And according to gvecsolarservice.com: “Accounting for the amount of CO2 produced during solar panel manufacturing, solar panels generate, in effect, around 50g of CO2 per kilowatt hour during their initial years of operation. This is about 20 times less than the carbon output of coal-powered electricity sources.”

It goes on to say the “panels will require about three years of operation to pay off their carbon debt and become carbon neutral”.

Seen in the context of a coal-fired power station, not even considering its carbon footprint when it was under construction, I would say it is a pretty good deal, for now.

Of course, it must improve. Especially when it comes to electric car batteries, for instance, which have a massive impact on the environment.

They’re really not as friendly to ol’ Mother Earth as their designers would have you believe.

Every single thing we do has to stop impacting the earth so our grandchildren will have a planet to pass on. It’s an abomination the mines want to dig up our river headwaters – and in a water-scarce country?

But, hey. Let the men with stern faces and long promises sign yet another piece of paper industrialists can moan about when they push their product prices higher.

“Central to the political understanding among Member States that led to the successful adoption of the landmark Paris Agreement in 2015, is that all countries will contribute their best mitigation effort to reduce emissions of harmful greenhouse gases to keep the global temperature rise to under two degrees centigrade, as well as to develop a multilateral response to help all countries to adapt to the reality of an already changing climate,” the statement goes on to say about the president talking yesterday.

Seriously?

Either do it, or stop waffling on and on ad nauseam, ad infinitum with the accompanying wringing of hands about how governments are doing their best but it’s not easy.

Give me a break.