THE South Durban Community Environmental Alliance (SDCEA), together with almost 400 people from around the province, took to the streets of the Durban CBD last week, calling for the end to an era of fossil fuels.
They marched from City Hall to the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy offices, where a memorandum was handed over.
Janeira Reddy, SDCEA’s oil, gas and livelihoods project officer, said the aim of the march was to call for a phasing out of fossil fuels which were devastating the climate and worsening inequality.
Also read: Hundreds march against oil and gas exploration
“We are calling for the phasing out of fossil fuels to protect our health, our climate and ultimately our existence. The harms caused by the negative impacts of fossil fuels fall hardest on the poor and the marginalised people along the entire value chain from extraction to combustion,” she said.
Reddy said the global fight to end fossil fuels calls for nations to renew and enhance their commitments for a rapid, just and equitable phase-out from fossil fuels in favour of sustainable renewables.
“The campaign opposes the fossil fuel industry, which has made obscene profits at the expense of the world’s people, biodiversity and a safe and livable climate. It calls on governments and companies to immediately end fossil fuel expansion and subsidies.
“Furthermore, we took to the streets to demand a just transition to bring a rapid and equitable end to coal, oil and gas. An equitable transition must respect nature and the sovereign rights of indigenous people and local communities.
“We need transformative action now – a rapid and just transition to a socially owned, renewable-energy-powered economy, providing clean, safe and affordable energy for all, with no worker and community left behind in the transition. We need our government to support socially owned renewable energy systems at a local level,” she said.
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