Climate change and global warming

Introduction

The 13th of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) addresses climate.

Several gases in the atmosphere trap energy from the sun – and warm the earth. Without this “greenhouse effect” life would not be possible on this planet. Our activities over the past two centuries though, especially the burning of fossil fuels like coal and oil, have increased the building up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. More energy from the sun is being trapped and the earth is becoming warmer. “Global warming” refers to this enhanced greenhouse effect.

It is true that our planet goes through natural cycles of change, lasting hundreds of years. In that amount of time, though, plants and animals are able to adapt. The manner in which humanity is developing though has speeded up the changes in climate, leaving less time to adapt and placing our ecosystems in danger.

And so we are seeing more intense rainstorms, a decrease in rainfall frequency, droughts of higher intensity, greater rainwater runoff and thus soil erosion (Du Pisani 2020). These changes present serious challenges to agriculture and forestry, and to the societies and economies that depend on these sectors for food, fibre and livelihoods.

The mainstream climate change/global warming is disputed by a significant minority of scientists. Interested readers can visit http://ecosense.me, or Google Dr Patrick Moore and others and see where the trail leads …

Causes and Effects of Climate Change (National Geographic, 2017), a three-minute video summary

Mitigation: what can we do to slow the process down?

Mitigation entails all human interventions that reduce the sources or enhance the sinks of greenhouse gases.

The enhanced greenhouse effect can be slowed down by following two guidelines:

  • increase sinks
  • decrease sources of greenhouse gases

A sink is a process which removes greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. For example: growing a tree where one did not previously exist provides a sink for carbon dioxide, because the tree “extracts” carbon dioxide for photosynthesis.

The energy sector is the largest single source of greenhouse gases in South Africa. Integrated energy planning at the national level should ensure the optimum overall mix of energy sources, with clean coal technologies expected to be part of such a mix for the medium-term future.

 

Agriculture and climate change

The percentage of Agriculture’s contribution to climate change is disputed, and ranges from 22% down to somewhere between 10% and 5%. The largest portion of this is attributed to livestock (but see the note on the Savory Institute under the “International business environment” heading).

Research shows that agriculture has a huge potential to cost-effectively reduce greenhouse gases through changes in agricultural technologies and management practices, particularly in developed countries. Climate-smart agriculture includes proven practical techniques including mulching, intercropping, conservation agriculture, crop rotation, integrated crop-livestock management, agro-forestry, improved grazing and improved water management.

Climate changes create risks and uncertainty with potentially serious downsides. Without strong adaptation measures, climate change could reduce food crop production by 10 to 20 percent by the 2050s, with more severe losses in Africa. With nine billion people expected to inhabit the world by 2050, food production in Africa alone must be tripled, according to experts.

Climate Change and South African agriculture

Impacts and adaption options
Peter Johnston, Climate Scientist and Researcher at the University of Cape Town makes the following advice for farmers:

  • Reassess marginal crops. If crops have been shown to be very drought sensitive and a combination of temperature increases and variable rainfall are an increased threat, then more appropriate crops should be considered.
  • Select appropriate seed cultivars for the forecasted seasonal climate conditions. (Specific cultivars of a crop type are bred or designed for example for shorter or longer growing seasons, rainfall amounts and temperature.)
  • Diversify, by growing a variety of crops or by pursuing other on-farm activities, such as agro-tourism or intensive high-value crops. This spreads risk and tests the potential of other activities and their income generation.
  • Use conservation agriculture techniques such as minimal or no-till methods, intercropping (mixing crop types in one field) and cover cropping (introducing alternative crops in successive years on the same field). These techniques conserve soil moisture, encourage soil health and reduce dependence on fertiliser and herbicides.
  • Focus on reducing post-harvest losses through heat as well as excessive or unseasonal rainfall.
  • Use an ecologically beneficial combination of crops and livestock to restore soil productivity and balance income and expenditure, especially during times of drought, in a financially sound way.
  • Access and learn about climate information so that seasonal climate forecasts can be used and applied.
  • Liaise with other farmers, academics and agricultural organisations to keep abreast of the latest developments.
Source: https://theconversation.com/farming-in-south-africa-is-under-threat-from-climate-change-heres-how-125984

National strategy and government contact

South Africa’s commitment to climate change interventions is guided by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Millennium Declaration and the Paris Climate Agreement.

South Africa’s Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) was announced at COP26 (2021), and $8.5-billion (R128-billion) in concessional climate financing offered from various developed countries (COP27, 2022). The JETP is an international partnership to help South Africa move away from its dependence on coal.

The Climate Change Act (passed into law in July 2024) “seeks to provide for a just transition away from South Africa’s current carbon-intensive energy system and towards a decarbonised economy and society, while meeting the country’s critical development challenges”. South Africa’s response to climate change had previously been governed by the National Climate Change Response White Paper (approved by Cabinet in 2011), and the National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy (NCCAS) (approved in 2020).

GOVERNMENT ROLE PLAYERS

Presidential Climate Commission www.climatecommission.org.za

Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) www.dffe.gov.za

Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic) www.thedtic.gov.za

Department of Agriculture Directorate: Climate Change and Disaster Management www.nda.gov.za

Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs South African National Disaster Management Centre www.ndmc.gov.za

Department of Electricity and Energy www.dmre.gov.za

  • South Africa’s is a coal-based economy, and as such ranks amongst the highest emitters of greenhouse gases in the world. It needs to explore clean energy initiatives, manage demand, and move towards a low-carbon economy. Read about the various projects and programmes on the website.
  • The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is one of the two project-based flexible mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol. Under the rules of the CDM, each host country must establish a Designated National Authority (DNA).  Find the “Designated National Authority” option on the website.

Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources
www.dmre.gov.za

National Treasury www.treasury.gov.za

  • Find the Carbon Tax Bill on the website.

Department of Water & Sanitation www.dws.gov.za

Role players

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Further reference:

  • Nedbank, in partnership with the Sustainability Institute (Stellenbosch University) launched Carbon footprinting: A practical calculation guide focusing on measuring, monitoring, reporting and verification. Find the free publication on the Internet.
  • Read about the Smart Agriculture for Climate Resilience (SmartAgri) project at www.greenagri.org.za (find “SmartAgri” option). It is a collaboration between the Western Cape Department of Agriculture (DOA) and the Western Cape Department of Environmental Affairs & Development Planning (DEA&DP), and the University of Cape Town’s African Climate and Development Initiative (ACDI). 

International business environment

Websites and publications

Some articles:

Agriculture and climate change

Climate change – general

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