3 News Stories Keeping Some South Africans Out of The Water
Jan/100
Three stories in the press over the last few weeks, have given South African’s unusual concerns about swimming off Cape Town’s beaches, surfing around the estuaries of Eastern Cape Rivers and canoeing in the Umgeni River.
Sharks Around Cape Town Beaches
A Zimbabwean man holidaying in Cape Town was killed, when he was attacked by what is believed to be a great white shark at Fish Hoek beach in Cape Town.
Ninety three shark attacks, 12 fatal, were reported in the Eastern and Western Cape beaches in the last 18 years compared to only 19, with one death, on KwaZulu-Natal’s beaches. The shark nets installed there have reduced attacks by 99%, since the 1960s, when attacks were a frequent occurrence. But nets are not suitable for Cape beaches because of rough seas, the presence of whales and seals and the type of sharks.
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3 News Stories Keeping Some South Africans Out of The Water
Elephant Culling Reflects the Complexity of Managing Wildlife Populations
Dec/090
African Elephant Bull Photographed in Kruger Park on 20 June 2009.
The author’s last two posts have shown that culling is often used as a “solution” to limit the growth in animal numbers in a particular situations. At the extremes, some animal rights lobbyists oppose the killing of animals on the basis of principle alone ignoring environmental or wildlife issues while some legislators look for a fast fix without a long term view and justify killing by the need to protect the remaining.
There are always a range of opinions and solutions which can be considered in these cases. There is normally neither enough time nor enough information to allow the development of a solution that is acceptable to all and guarantees a longterm solution to the problem. In this context, it is instructive to look at the elephant as an example of the difficulties in finding solutions even in very well studied cases.
Please note that this is a layman’s understanding based on a quick “reading” of two recent major reports and is clearly open to much discussion. The author is simply trying to get a simple overall understanding of managing elephant populations and to also present some interesting information contained in the two reports.
Controlling an Over Abundance of Elephants
Although many press reports focus on the threats to elephants through capture, poaching and commercial hunting, the African Elephant in South Africa is probably more threatened by their successful adaption to protected ranges than directly by man.
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Elephant Culling Reflects the Complexity of Managing Wildlife Populations
Dried Vulture Brains Rolled Into Cigarettes, Then Smoked for ‘Good Luck’
Dec/090
Another human superstition driving a protected species closer to extinction: Vulture brains are believed to increase luck in the lottery and at the race track.
Africa’s protected vultures are becoming the victims of a growing trend: According to a popular superstition, smoking dried vulture brains will result in “visionary” powers.
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Dried Vulture Brains Rolled Into Cigarettes, Then Smoked for ‘Good Luck’
Reminder: Enter to win Joystiq’s ‘Naughty or Nice’ holiday bundles
Dec/090
We sure hope you’ve entered to win the eight holiday gaming bundles we’re offering as prizes in our “Naughty or Nice” sweepstakes — which, by the way, you can submit entries into once every day. If ludicrous piles of free games (or South Africa-based alien romps) aren’t really up your alley, that’s just fine. However, you need to appreciate the fact that we could have easily just wrapped this stuff up, placed it undertree, and given it to friends and family as Christmas presents. The money we would’ve saved as a result could’ve financed a personal spa tour of Cabo San Lucas.
Check out our giveaway hub to see all the highly giftable loot, as well as the rules, regulations and obligatory legal mumbo-jumbo.
What is Joyswag? Since we don’t keep the games and merchandise we receive for review or promotional purposes, it becomes “Joyswag,” which is passed along to our readers. Please note that Joyswag may be in “used” condition. For more info on our policy, click here.
Reminder: Enter to win Joystiq’s ‘Naughty or Nice’ holiday bundles originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 19 Dec 2009 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Reminder: Enter to win Joystiq’s ‘Naughty or Nice’ holiday bundles
South Africa Plans to Establish an Industry That Will Sell One Million Solar Water Heaters by 2014
Nov/090
A renewed effort at increasing the uptake of domestic solar water heater (SWH) systems looks to replace 620 MW of electricity, to reduce carbon emissions by 2,7 million tons carbon dioxide and create jobs and develop skills and manufacturing capacity.
Personal Experience
After recently having a domestic hot water geyser fail and investigating the potential of replacing it with a solar unit, I definitely saw the need for something different to advance the penetration of solar water heating in South Africa. While replacing my electric geyser costs R 5,500, an equivalent solar installation costs around R 25,000. Eskom, the state electricity generator, provides a subsidy of around R 3,000 and indicates a payback period is 5 to 8 years.
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South Africa Plans to Establish an Industry That Will Sell One Million Solar Water Heaters by 2014
Clinton Climate Initiative Focusses on the South African Sun
Oct/090
The South African government and the Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI) have signed an Memorandum Of Understanding to develop a plan, before year end, to establishment a Solar Park in the Northern Cape.
If the black areas above were covered with PV panels, it would provide all the world’s energy needs.
The Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI) is convinced that the contribution of solar energy to the world’s energy needs is about to boom. It is already developing projects in India, Australia and in the South Western States of the US. Now it is co-operating with the Department of Minerals and Energy (DME) to develop a Solar Park in the Northern Cape that would speed up South Africa’s uptake of renewable energy.
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Clinton Climate Initiative Focusses on the South African Sun
South African Company to Import Waste Vegetable Oil to Produce Biodiesel
Sep/090
Another renewable energy business that could get South Africa moving towards its goals is taking shape in Richards Bay in KwaZulu Natal.
The History
After South Africa speedily set up a renewable energy strategy the focus moved to ethanol and biodiesel with the involvement of large companies including SASOL.
First to falter was ethanol, where Ethanol Africa had actually started site works for its plant in Bothaville, when government got cold feet about using maize, the staple food of the poor of South Africa, to power cars.
Later the world food crisis lead to the Food for Fuel debate and an effective halt to the promotion of biofuels from agricultural production. There were also other smaller and less legitimate operations such as a franchise scheme based on low cost imported palm oil and even algal processing that turned out to have been “demonstrated” using scum from the farm dam!
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South African Company to Import Waste Vegetable Oil to Produce Biodiesel
Big Opportunity in Renewable Energy Identified in South Africa – Start of a Series of Posts
Sep/090
Massive untapped solar radiation advantage of Africa – click for numbers
This positive report on the opportunities for Renewable Energy in South Africa is a starting point for a series of posts that will report on developments in and linked to the use of Renewable Energy in South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa.
Where is Renewable Energy Going in South Africa?
An almost ten fold growth in revenue from renewable energy is predicted by business research and consulting firm Frost and Sullivan’s. This emerges from their Southern African Renewable Energy Equipment Market analysis, which sees the current renewable industry in South Africa having revenues of only $28.4 million in 2008 but projects a growth to over $250 million by 2015.
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Big Opportunity in Renewable Energy Identified in South Africa – Start of a Series of Posts
First Black Rhino Calf Born in Baviaanskloof Nature Reserve
Sep/090
For the first time in over a century, a black rhino calf has been born in the Baviaanskloof Nature Reserve.
Just two years after receiving six black rhino, South Africa’s Baviaanskloof Nature Reserve has welcomed its first rhino calf. Although black rhino were wiped out by widespread poaching in the area over a century ago, the recent reintroduction is off to a promising start.
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First Black Rhino Calf Born in Baviaanskloof Nature Reserve
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More FIFA World Cup 2010 media than you can shake a red card at
Mar/100
The trailer urges players to take their own country’s team to the World Cup, though we should issue a word of warning to those of you in the contiguous United States who choose to bring our fine nation to the top: it’s just a game. Okay, okay, sorry — we were just joshin’ ya! We suppose it’s possible. Maybe after the robots take over. Maybe.
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More FIFA World Cup 2010 media than you can shake a red card at