World's strongest creatureHelp for St Lucia lake
Durban - A donation of over R23m would be used to find an effective and sustainable solution for the hydrological problem of the St Lucia lake system, which is part of South Africa's first World Heritage Site.

The St Lucia system has for years been struggling with its worst drought ever. The salt content of the system is in places three times higher than sea water and there is currently no fish or birds in these parts.

In 2009, a channel was established between the Umfolozi River and the St Lucia lake to help the flow of fresh water as an emergency measure but the river twice came down in flood, which caused water full of sediment to end up in the shallow lake system.

great for tourism
SAVE BANTAMSKLIP CAMPAIGN

The draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for a nuclear power station at the Bantamsklip site has been released for public comment, with a closing date set for 10 May 2010. Bantamsklip is situated near the Pearly Beach resort, 50 km east of Hermanus.
 
The Save Bantamsklip Campaign and its affiliates and associated organisations are happy to have been placed third on the list of priority sites, but the battle to have the Bantamsklip site removed entirely from the list is far from over. We assert that the Government has already confirmed their whole-hearted support for a "nuclear fleet" with all the ancillary nuclear fuel-chain components. Unless this commitment is opposed, we expect to see construction begin at Bantamsklip in ten year's time, at the latest.
 

Tiger nearly extinct in the wild: pic by HeWhoWalksWithTigers

Eskom taken to court to reveal corporate tariffs

Sake24 has lodged a high court application to force electricity utility Eskom to reveal the tariffs it charges BHP Billiton, one of the world's largest mining companies, Beeld reported on Thursday. Sake24 wants to know how much its aluminium operations in Richard's Bay and Mozambique pay for electricity.

This comes after an investigations which showed that these operations used as much power as cities such as Durban and Cape Town.

Beeld said the tariffs BHP Billiton paid were lower than what it cost Eskom to generate the electricity. Eskom has declined to reveal how much BHP Billiton pays. More

Energy efficiency standards planned for this year

Business can expect mandatory energy efficiency standards, for both fuel and buildings, in a new

waterfall by !pharaohsgirl from deviantartIt's National Water Week

It's national water week this week so why don't you consider your water usage, and see how you can help to conserve water. Water and Environmental Affairs Minister Buyelwa Sonjica said that "It is therefore important for us to pull out all the stops to ensure that our visitors enjoy safe and clean portable water, whose quality rates among the best in the world." More

Koeberg shutdown to lessen World Cup risk

ESKOM will later this week and next month conduct two shutdowns at the Koeberg nuclear power plant for pre-emptive maintenance work on one of its cooling systems in a move to avoid power supply problems during the Soccer World Cup.

Investing in the future
In the past few years a new financial concept has been created called a green bond ( the World Bank recently issued its first green bonds to Japanese investors).

Recently, a new concept for these types of bonds, called a Climate Bond was created by the Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI), which was launched in December 2009 by the Network for Sustainable Financial Markets. Climate bonds were the brainchild of

Ferrari Hybrid HY-KERS 599No, Ferrari are not just painting their cars green in a bid to tap into a presumably growing market of sports car enthusiasts with a conscience. They seem serious about producing a fuel electric hybrid performance car. Marketing genius or missing the point? Or perhaps future European vehicle emission legislation is providing the nudge...

The experimental ('vettura laboratorio') Ferrari HY-KERS 599 debuted at the Geneva Motor Show last week and the electric motor adds to the performance by boosting the output by 100bhp. Handling is apparently also improved as the positioning and weight of the motor reduces the centre of gravity.

The hybrid is based on the 599 GTB Fiorano, with the electric motor assisting the 6.0-litre V12 petrol engine providing instantaneous torque. Goodness knows what the 0-100 km/h figures will clock in at.

Lithium ion batteries will be

The World Bank has proposed to give a US$3.75 billion (R29 billion) loan to Eskom to build a number of new coal-fired and nuclear power plants

And at the same time, Eskom plans to raise electricity rates 25% over the next three years. Big polluters are getting cut-rate electricity - the world's cheapest - while the poorest will face the highest rates in the country.

Dozens of South African environmental, community, church, labour, academic and women's organizations have mobilized, but we need your help sending a message to the World Bank that we won't accept a dirty loan.

Wind power blows away tranquility?

BENEDICTINE monks living in the hills outside Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape, are angry about plans to build a wind farm near their monastery. Brother Timothy Jolley, the Mariya uMama weThemba Monastery prior, yesterday said the Anglican monks feared the noise and visual impact of the 135m turbines would forever destroy the “contemplative life” they had worked so hard to achieve over the past 12 years. More

The standard of water quality in the Cape under question.

The overall quality of the city's inland and coastal water has reached a 10-year low, and despite the associated health threats, budget and resource constraints mean the situation is unlikely to be reversed soon, says a City of Cape Town report.

I'm sure you've heard of a little thing called the recession. Well, in light of recent economic upheavals, I think that many of us are concerned with saving a couple of rand wherever we can. One way of doing this is to drive more efficiently. Most of you probably have a commute to work. By learning to drive effectively you can save fuel which in turn saves energy and is good for the environment and your wallet.

Green prefab homes rising in popularity
A modular home manufacturer in USA says that, where other builders are cutting projects in the down economy, his company is raising production of the energy-efficient model, called the 'i-house' – a solar modular home. South Africa has its own version that's caused quite a stir, known as Zenkaya – ready-made living space that is re-defining the term 'prefab' and giving it a new eco-friendly and eco-chic slant. They're cheeky, easy, chic and unique. The designs are based on core sustainable principles – efficient use of space, reducing waste in the factory, and all materials are recyclable.

Eskom shuns renewable energy
An Irish energy company, Mainstream Renewable Power, claims that Eskom does not want renewable energy to succeed in SA. Mainstream vented its frustration over what it said was Eskom’s unwillingness to accommodate renewable energy players in the SA power generation market. It last year established a joint venture with local company Genesis Eco-Energy to build wind farms to generate 500MW in the Eastern, Northern and Western Cape. “Eskom does not want renewables. They do not want competition,” Mainstream CEO Eddie O’Connor said yesterday. [businessday] read here about what Eskom should be doing...