Cape Town is slowly becoming a dry city, the eastern parts of our country have experienced major floods and the industrialised cores of our country experience levels of pollution that include greenhouse gases at unacceptable levels. In the longer term we may face the threat of extending malaria areas, loss of agricultural habitat and so forth. Anyone with children should seriously consider what their world might look like were it three degrees hotter. It would be simplistic to call for a quick fix. Our economy is largely driven by an abundant source of coal.
Cheap coal is one of our few international competitive advantages.
The challenges of climate change and global warming are a threat to these industries and services. The interests of Eskom and, particularly, the coal business are paramount. Restating the threat will not help. We must find some way of turning the threat into development opportunities. These are abundant, with multiple benefits.