NGOs fired up over greenhouse target failure

A GROUP of 13 environmental and civil society organisations have lodged a complaint with Public Protector Thuli Madonsela over the gover nment’s three-year failure to set greenhouse gas-emission targets.

The complaint by the NGOs, including the Centre for Environmental Rights, Greenpeace Africa and the SA Climate Action Network, has been laid against the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change.

It is tasked with ensuring implementation and interdepartmental co-ordination and is chaired by Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa.

They lament its failure to implement provisions on mitigation in the National Climate Change Response White Paper, adopted by the cabinet in October 2011, especially the setting of “desired emission reduction outcomes” for 2030 and 2050, which was supposed to be completed within two years.

“It follows the disclosure that consideration of the emissions’ reductions required beyond 2020 is being held hostage to the finalisation of an Integrated Resource Plan for electricity supply, which has been subject to serial delays by the Department of Energy,” they note. They seek an instruction to the government to elaborate climate change mitigation aims. This is to allow for “integrated development planning and coherent public investment strategy”.

The organisations maintain the enduring lack of clear climate-change mitigation policy objectives “to 2030 and beyond” causes financial risks and uncertainty, precludes integrateddevelopment planning and undermines the prospects for sustainable development and eradicating poverty.

“Particularly problematic is that the Department of Energy is proceeding with procurement and long-ter m investment planning in the absence of a low-carbon energy proposition or coherent transition strategy, or any transparent process to consider mitigation requirements beyond 2020.”

Brian Ashe, the director of the Alternative Infor mation and Development Centre, the NGO leading the submission of the complaint, says South Africa should already have clear targets for greenhouse gas emissions that could guide development planning and public investment strategy for the medium and long term.

“It is irresponsible for the government to proceed with energy development plans that are six years old and not compatible with our international commitment to keeping global warming well below two degrees,” Ashe said.