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DA unveils energy policy
13/01/2009 15:31 - (SA)
Cape Town - The Democratic Alliance has mooted drastic interventions to create a low carbon economy, including restructuring the energy sector.
Briefing the media at Parliament on Tuesday on the party's energy and environment policy, DA spokesmen Gareth Morgan and Hendrik Schmidt proposed a new ministry of energy and climate change.
"Decoupling minerals from energy reverses a perverse relationship that has existed for decades in this country," Morgan said.
Separating energy from mining would ensure that improved integrated energy planning took into account the need to decarbonise the economy.
Schmidt said Eskom's monopoly reduced options for micro-generation and alternative energy usage.
The DA would, among other things, unbundle transmission from generation to create equal access to the grid and make space for energy generated by the private sector and private households.
The DA would aim to generate 15% of energy from renewable sources by 2020.
Increased uptake of renewable energy would be encouraged by means of a feed-in-tariff allowing a fixed price to be paid for decentralised renewable technologies such as wind, photovoltaic, concentrated solar thermal and biomass.
Improved public participation
All energy-generating sources would be subject to rigorous, long-term integrated energy planning with improved public participation.
The DA would also aim to address the skills shortage within Eskom, Schmidt said.
Turning to environmental management, Morgan said remaining natural environments should be preserved.
"The DA will allow no mining in any national or provincial parks or within coastal public property under any circumstances.
"Not all land must be regarded as suitable for development, and arrangements such as land swaps must be arranged for privately-owned sensitive land."
Climate change and pollution were also posing a considerable threat to SA's water security, and immediate response was necessary to avoid a water crisis.
"We need much tighter controls over the exploitation of our water resources. Water is drained from our rivers almost without control.
Serious penalties
"The DA will determine the ecological reserve for all rivers and defend this strongly," Morgan said.
All water users would be strictly licensed, and serious penalties would apply to contraventions.
Planning for future industrial, mining and agricultural expansion would take into account the true capacity of catchment areas.
On pollution from acid mine drainage, the DA would, among other things, hold mines responsible for treating water before it was released into rivers.
Morgan said the DA would radically overhaul Marine and Coastal Management - a management body currently incapable of effectively managing marine resources - by devolving compliance and enforcement to coastal provinces, and devolving management of harbours to municipalities.
Vigorous law enforcement would keep fish stocks intact.
"The DA will do this by placing observers on all domestic and foreign vessels fishing in South African waters, increasing the number of fishery control officers, and establishing a unit within the [police] to concentrate on cracking organised criminal operations that distribute and sell illegally-removed fish," he said.
Waste management would focus on reducing, re-using, recycling and recovering waste.
Special attention would also be directed at the medical waste sector.
- SAPA
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