Highlighting the solutions to issues of marine and land-based pollution in South Africa this week were national industry body for PET plastic recycling, PETCO, and the African Marine Waste Network. Extrupet, Africa’s leading PET and HDPE bottle recycling company, joined forces with PETCO, the industry body responsible for PET recycling in South Africa, and the Kenton-based … [Read more...]
Television adverts highlight growing marine debris problem
Plastics|SA will be releasing a series of new radio and television adverts this week in which it addresses the issue of plastics litter found in the marine environment. “Never before has the issue of plastics in our oceans received so much attention on a global scale. Plastics|SA, the umbrella organisation representing the entire South African plastics value chain signed the … [Read more...]
Urban environment to blame for Cape Town river pollution
Some residents in Hazendal, who live alongside Black River, believe that raw sewage is being pumped into the river and not only stormwater. The residents believe the deteriorating state of the river is causing an influx of flies, cockroaches and mosquitoes into their homes. The City of Cape Town says it’s just as concerned about the water quality and the … [Read more...]
Ocean plastic-cleaning machine to tackle Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Scientists are preparing to launch the world's first machine to clean up the planet's largest mass of ocean plastic. The system, originally dreamed up by a teenager, will be shipped out this summer to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, between Hawaii and California, and which contains an estimated 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic. It will be the first ever attempt to tackle … [Read more...]
SA activists recognised for halting secret Russian nuclear deal
It was the ultimate David versus Goliath battle. Two female South African environment activists working for small NGOs taking on the South African government and winning a legal challenge that stopped a $76 billion dollar nuclear deal with Russia. For their herculean efforts, Makoma Lekalakala, 52, and Liz McDaid, 55, were awarded the prestigious 2018 Goldman … [Read more...]
Blockchain-based solar startup introduces digital token
Sun Exchange is one of a growing roster of ambitious, digital tech-driven social enterprises looking to do good in the world by broadening access to distributed solar energy technology in the developing world, as well as for like-minded investors small and large. Last October, Sun Exchange announced it had raised $1.6 million to launch what it billed as the world’s first … [Read more...]
Top environmental awards dominated by women for first time
The world’s foremost environmental prize has announced more female winners than ever before, recognising the increasingly prominent role that women are playing in defending the planet. The struggle for a healthy planet may sometimes feel like a series of defeats, but this year’s Goldman environmental prize celebrates six remarkable success stories, five of them driven by … [Read more...]
Solar-powered water wheel cleans Baltimore Harbor
Baltimore Inner Harbor features a wide variety of activities, from museums and parks to dining and nightlife. It’s a tourist attraction that doesn’t put much focus on the harbor itself, which has been a lightning rod for waste. The Waterfront Partnership wants to make the waters swimmable once again, and one of the ways they’re achieving that is with Mr. Trash Wheel. Since … [Read more...]
Meet the people building alternatives to mining in Colombia
On the 26th March 2017, citizens from the mountainous municipality of Cajamarca, Colombia, voted, with a 98% majority, to ban South African miner AngloGold Ashanti’s vast La Colosa gold mining project, in a ‘popular consultation’ led by grassroots youth activists and small-scale farmers. One year on, and Cajamarca’s victory has helped inspire a much wider movement of … [Read more...]
Xolobeni community fights for a voice in mining decisions
From Monday 23 April until Wednesday 25 April, the Amadiba Crisis Committee (ACC) will be meeting the department of mineral resources (DMR) and Australian mining conglomerate Transworld Energy and Minerals (TEM) in the Pretoria High Court regarding the Xolobeni farming community. The ACC, along with the Legal Resources Centre (LRC), will be arguing that in terms of the existing … [Read more...]
A tiny beetle and its deadly fungus is threatening SA’s trees
Sandton is Johannesburg’s economic hub – home to numerous companies’ headquarters and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. And now it has a new, unwelcome resident: a tiny beetle that could lay waste to several tree species found in the suburb and potentially the wider Johannesburg area. This is particularly concerning, as Johannesburg is considered one of the world’s largest urban … [Read more...]
Long-awaited renewable energy deals a milestone for SA sustainability
The power purchase agreements (PPAs) signed by State-owned power utility Eskom earlier this month ended three years of waiting and uncertainty and it is a significant step towards a truly sustainable energy vision for South Africa and Africa as a whole, says solar energy equipment supplier Juwi. “The signing [of PPAs for] 27 Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer … [Read more...]
Scientists have accidentally created a mutant enzyme that eats plastic waste
They found the first ones in Japan. Hidden in the soil at a plastics recycling plant, researchers unearthed a microbe that had evolved to eat the soda bottles dominating its habitat, after you and I throw them away. That discovery was announced in 2016, and scientists have now gone one better. While examining how the Japanese bug breaks down plastic, they accidentally … [Read more...]
