On 25 July I attended the Sustainable Energy Seminar at the Sandton Convention Centre that formed part of Sustainability Week 2013.
The seminar stimulated debate and creative thinking among practitioners, consultants and corporations on the subject of sustainable approaches to energy in South Africa.
Large-scale energy consumers in South Africa are the mines(18%), all of industry(48%) and most of commerce (10%), domestics and agriculture making up the remaining. However the available energy for these consumer sectors are 14%, 35% and 10% respectively. There is thus a shortfall, particularly in the mining industry.
The seminar sought to advance common sense steps and explored radical rethinking of approaches that may be taken by large cities, and by industries.
Other interesting questions that were debated were
As we reconvened after the tea break the venue experienced a power outage for 20 minutes. This incident was a light-bulb moment for Renewable Energy detractors and a reminder for many attendees that have been advocating for cleaner energy sources to increase our effort.
I took the Winter 2013 Pledge to cut down on using my heater and to be an energy saving champion.
The seminar stimulated debate and creative thinking among practitioners, consultants and corporations on the subject of sustainable approaches to energy in South Africa.
Large-scale energy consumers in South Africa are the mines(18%), all of industry(48%) and most of commerce (10%), domestics and agriculture making up the remaining. However the available energy for these consumer sectors are 14%, 35% and 10% respectively. There is thus a shortfall, particularly in the mining industry.
The seminar sought to advance common sense steps and explored radical rethinking of approaches that may be taken by large cities, and by industries.
Other interesting questions that were debated were
- Can alternative energy generation onsite contribute meaningfully to reducing dependence on the grid?
- To what extend can renewable energy feed into the distribution network?
- How are we progressing towards innovative concepts such as rooftop solar PV?
A common thread through out the conversation was that the key to fast tracking these developments lies in creative, accessible and packaged finance.
As we reconvened after the tea break the venue experienced a power outage for 20 minutes. This incident was a light-bulb moment for Renewable Energy detractors and a reminder for many attendees that have been advocating for cleaner energy sources to increase our effort.
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| Part of my outfit during the Winter Pledge photo shoot |
I took the Winter 2013 Pledge to cut down on using my heater and to be an energy saving champion.
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