Legalising the Hemp plant?

Last year whilst visiting a friend in the Cape Town CBD I bumped into the Cape Town Global Cannabis March. Then and there, amongst the cars hooting, joints being passed left right and center, smiles and laughter all around- I promised myself that I would participate in 2013 activities.

However, I had a compulsory training on Saturday, the same day that the annual cannabis protest rolled through the streets of Cape Town.

I, like most people, grow up with a misunderstanding of the hemp plant and was only told of the damage that it does to users and their family loves.

However after a couple of my close relatives and friends turn to the rastafarian religion I decided to do my own research on the heb. I came across 'The Hemp Handbook' that outline many of the uses of the plant today.

Cannabis hemp used for medicine, food, fuel, paper, rope, maps, bricks, oil, paint, furniture and much more snd is the most versatile, efficacious plant on earth according to many.

 

The'hemp house'  is a project to showcase industrial hemp and its
potential as an eco-construction material. The house, recently completed in Noordhoek, Cape Town, uses hempcrete, hemp insulation, and hemp particle board. The hemp aspect of the building, which accounts for up to 50% of the walls, was grown in 4-5 months without the need for agro-chemicals, and results in a breathable, natural, sustainable and carbon-friendly building.

So why not legalise the plant to build eco-friendly houses in South Africa?

How to give your house a green makeover and save money

 

Endangered African Blackfooted Penguin

I arrived at Muizenberg beach around 09h10 only to find that the group of over 150 waddlers have started the final leg of the 4 day long walk. I caught up with them in no time and had a great time helping to spread awareness about the plight of the African Penguin.

In 1910 there were an estimated 1.5 million birds and at last count less than 60 000 birds remain. Between the years 2005 - 2010 the African Blackfooted Penguin population halved. Since June 2010 the African Blackfooted penguin has been listed as an endangered.

CONSERVATION FACTS
Given an annual rate of decline of about 2% per year, there is considerable concern about the long-term viability of African Penguins in the wild. Presently more than ever before, zoos and aquariums are the Noah’s ark for this species.
The African penguin population is currently less than 5% of the original population and still declining rapidly, with an 80% decline since the 1950s, and a 60% decline in the past decade. As a result, it has been classified as ENDANGERED by the IUCN, and is listed in Appendix II of CITES and the Bonn Convention for the conservation of migratory species.
The Minimum Viable Global Population is estimated to be 50 000 pairs; the current population is less than half of this critical threshold.
Statistics are frightening. On Dassen Island, averaged over the last 100 years, the collapse of the African Penguin population represents the equivalent of losing 1600 birds a week, or more than 2 birds per hour.
The causes of this precipitous decline are numerous, and mainly human-induced.

Working my way to Simon's Town with some of my colleagues

 The highlight was the penguin pictures drawn by Grade 1 pupils from Fish Hoek Primary School that was exhibited on Main Road in Simon's Town. It was such a refreshing way to realise that everyone no matter age can play a part in raising awareness about issues that they are passionate about.

Save the Arctic

I recently represented Greenpeace Africa at a Save the Arctic photoshoot at the Waldorf School campus in Stellenbosch.

We could not have asked for a better day as the weather played along perfectly. I was amazed to see that the learner, all from Sisonke Circus group, took great interest in the future of the Arctic environment.

Listening to some of the intriguing questions from the learners I couldn't help but be reminded of the following quote: "We can't match Shell's enormous financial muscle, but we have creativity and millions of people behind us. This is the defining environmental battle of our time and we have only just begun."
-Kumi Naidoo, Greenpeace International Executive Director

Sisonke Circus group at Waldorf School that is situated on the Spier wine estate

Not only does the Arctic work to regulate the global climate, it's also home to a rich ecosystem and indigenous people who depend on that ecosystem. Polar bears, seals, walruses and whales are just some of the species that call the Arctic home. And it's all in danger.

Oil companies are eager to profit from the melting sea ice by drilling in the Arctic. While the entire oil industry is looking to move into the Arctic, Shell is leading the way. Yet they have proven several times that there are in no way Arctic ready with various mishaps including a rig on the loose and a fire aboard their drill ship The Noble Discoverer. 

Nevermind that Shell's plans to drill for oil contribute to the vicious cycle of global warming.  The climate in the Arctic can be severe and unpredictable making an oil spill likely-and catastrophic.

Some learners found it more fascinating to take pictures with me while I was presenting.

The concepts that I had to bring across to the participants on the day was to be conscious of where the products that we use come from and the damage that was done to get it to us.

It was a great way to end off a working week by spreading environmental awareness in the Boland.

Seven tips for making your organisation more energy efficient

Making an organisation energy efficient can be a daunting task.  This article outlines seven key tips to help you make your organisation energy efficient.
Tip One: Monitor your energy use
“You can’t manage what you don’t measure.” This oft-repeated phrase is particularly applicable to energy.  If you don’t know how much energy you are using and what is using that energy it is very difficult to identify ways of making savings.
You can track your use manually by taking an electricity meter reading at the same time every day or on the last day of the month. However a more effective solution is installing an energy monitor that can track your usage every hour.  Energy monitors can cost as little as R800, however organisations which use a lot of energy will probably need to spend a lot more.  Go to our article on energy monitoring options in South Africa for more information.
Tip Two: Look for energy savings opportunities in your base load
Base load refers to energy consumption of an office, factory, organisation or house when it is not in use. For example the base load of a factory would be the amount of energy used at night after all the factory staff leave for home.
Theoretically most organisations should have a very low base load. But in reality many organisations are shocked to find out how much energy is being wasted after hours as well as on weekends when they review the data from their energy monitoring system referred to in Tip One. Fortunately this is often a very easy opportunity for energy savings and typically involves identifying a list of items that can be switched off by the last person to leave the premises. Read our article on calculating base load for more information.
Example of energy consumption of building as measured by a monitoring device. The base load of the building refers to those periods when the building is not in use, in this case after 17:00 and before 06:00.
Tip Three: Identify your significant energy users
Significant energy users (SEUs) are the main energy consumers in an organisation. Most organisations find that their energy use is dominated by one or two areas. For instance common SEUs for office buildings are air-conditioning systems and lighting. Knowing what your significant SEUs are help direct energy efficiency effort into areas where you are likely to make the most gains.  For instance you could spend a lot of time and money getting more energy efficient computers, however if computers only use 10% of your electricity and lights use 40% then your effort is much better spent in bringing in energy efficient lights.  
Heating and cooling is usually one of the significant energy users (SEUs) in office buildings (Image credit: Lee Serenethos, www.123rf.com)
Tip Four: Favour energy efficient products in procurement
Many organisations find that they simply can’t afford to implement a complete energy efficient replacement of their lights, computers and other equipment at a single time. However it is important to remember that lights and equipment are being replaced all the time as items age. Ensuring that energy efficiency is a procurement consideration means that over time you can slowly phase out inefficient equipment.
Tip Five: Allocate responsibility for making your organisation energy efficient
Single interventions to make an organisation more energy efficient often fail because there is no on-going commitment to efficiency. To institutionalise energy efficiency in your organisation make a staff member responsible for implementing and managing your programme to become and stay energy efficient. That staff member will be responsible for checking your energy monitoring system, setting energy monitoring targets, overseeing energy efficiency interventions and communicating with the rest of your staff.
Tip Six: Involve the rest of your staff in the process of becoming energy efficient
Staff behaviour can have a significant impact on your energy use. For instance they are the people who either do or don’t switch off equipment at the end of the day. Inform staff about your energy efficiency targets and the roles they can play in helping to achieve these targets. Give them regular feedback on energy use from your monitoring system and let everyone know when targets are or aren’t being achieved. Introduce energy savings as a key performance indicator for staff that have the most direct role to play in savings. Go to our article on how to conduct a successful energy efficiency campaign at work.
Tip Seven: Keep checking your energy use
After the initial success of implementing energy efficiency measures many organisations stop checking the energy use data on their energy monitoring system. It is essential to continue reading this data even if you aren’t planning any future interventions. Continual monitoring will ensure that you know about any unexpected increases in use. Perhaps you have taken on new staff and they haven’t been sufficiently well trained on turning off equipment at the end of the day. Perhaps a key piece of equipment has developed a fault and starts to draw unusually high amounts of energy. Continual monitoring will help you identify when these problems arise.