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Johannesburg – At least 103 people died in natural disasters since mid-December last year, the ministry for co-operative governance said on Monday evening.
Most of the fatalities were in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, said spokesperson Vuyelwa Qinga.
About 14 420 households were affected and 6 200 of them were in KwaZulu-Natal.
The province also had the highest figure (5 000) for the number of informal and formal houses that were damaged.
A total of 13 043 were damaged nationally – 3 000 were in the Free State and rest in the Eastern Cape, Limpopo, North West and the Northern Cape.
“Total estimated financial costs resulting from the various incidents is R3.6bn plus an additional R409m indicated by the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries,” said Qinga.
“These costs are based on information coming from the Provincial Disaster Management Centres and municipalities. They are still to be verified by experts,” she said.
The ministry said that due to a global climate situation, rains in South Africa would continue until May “and even beyond”.
- SAPA
by Andreas Spath, source: women24
On a global scale, carbon emissions recorded for the IT industry equal those of the aviation industry. That’s not to say your home computer powers up like a jet, but it does sound a warning bell.
Because, even if you only have one, you should know that it takes around 1.8 tonnes of chemicals, fossil fuels and water to manufacture every average PC. In turn, the unit generates 100 kilograms of carbon dioxide per year and is generally obsolete after three.
When it’s time for an upgrade, worldwide around 31 million PCs are discarded with common household rubbish every year, contributing to the saturation of landfills. But it’s not only computers that leave a scar on the planet – CDs and DVDs, paper, staples and batteries are all home-office tools used without second thought.
What if you used a portable flash drive to store and transport information? Not only would you cut back on printing paper, you’d throw away fewer discs. And if you swapped staples for reusable paper clips? Or printed on both sides of the paper?
So, cast an eye around your home office and see which of these tips could work for you. At the very least, you’d cut down your stationery consumption (read bill), thus making your office, and the world, a greener space.
1. When scouting for office furniture look for items made from reclaimed materials (for example, recycled railway sleepers, plastic or metal) or wood that’s been grown and harvested sustainably. Make a point of choosing furniture that’s durable.
2. Staple less. Friends of the Earth, an international environmental organisation, calculated that, if each person on the planet used one less staple a day, we’d save as much as 120 tonnes of steel each year. Be conscious of what you consume and how much, from pens to glue sticks, paperclips and rubber bands. It all adds up.
3. Make your next monitor a flatscreen model. Not only will it free up desk space, a LCD monitor uses less than half the energy of its cathode-ray tube counterpart. When powering down, remember to switch off the monitor as it often draws more energy than the hard drive itself uses.
4. Computers use substantially less energy while computing than they do when idling – the energy you save by turning off your computer overnight could laser print two reams of A4 paper. Consider getting a laptop, which can use as little as 10 percent of the electricity a PC needs (and will come in handy during bouts of load shedding). When not in use, switch off all computer-related gadgets, including your printer, fax machine, scanner, copier and speakers. Turn them off at the wall – even on stand-by they still require significant quantities of power.
5. Storing documents in electronic format makes them easier and faster to search, and cuts down on your paper consumption. If your computer’s memory isn’t very big, discuss the possibilities of an external hard drive with your computer consultant.
6. Use environmentally-friendly supplies. Recycled pencils and a sustainable bamboo computer mouse may be hard to find on the local front but you can easily opt for envelopes made from recycled paper. If you regularly receive and send items by post, reuse the boxes, padded envelopes, bubble wrap and other packing materials. And if you have to have that bamboo mouse, order it online from www.thegreenoffice.com (and make sure you offset the CO2 emissions it will take to get it here).
7. Using a solar-powered calculator will cut down substantially on the number of batteries that end up in landfills. If you do need battery-operated office tools, rather use rechargeable batteries that are available at most supermarkets, stationers and hardware stores.
8. Pause before you print and you could cut carbon emissions by 2.5 kilograms for every kilogram of paper you save. When you do print, use both sides of every page – it’s called duplex printing and most modern printers can be easily set to do it. If you are in the market for a new printer, choose the inkjet variety, which is generally more energy efficient than the equivalent laser printer. Unless you require high quality print-outs, opt for the draft mode, which uses less ink. Also recycle printer cartridges by returning them to the shop when getting new ones.
9. Use ecofriendly printer paper. Read the labels and look for chlorine-free paper produced mostly from recycled paper and a smaller percentage of sustainably grown fibres. Paper represents about 70 percent of office waste, so dodge the debris and read emails on screen. Waste paper that hasn’t been used for jotting down notes and messages should be taken to a recycling depot. Visit www.paperpickup.co.za to find a paper bank near you.
10. Send virtual faxes. There’s a range of software programs that allow you to send documents from your PC to a fax machine, and receive faxes from either source as an email. Alternatively, if you have a scanner, simply scan documents and send them as email attachments.
At first I thought that the above ‘greener’ tips wouldn’t mean much in conserving and saving. But, when I thought about how much paper I use every day, how many hours I spend in front of a computer, how many documents are stapled together I realised that cutting down on MY conspumption might just have someone else think about their consumption too. And that way, together, we can make a big difference.
The soils in large areas of the Southern Hemisphere, including major portions of Australia, Africa and South America, have been drying up in the past decade, a group of researchers conclude in the first major study to ever examine “evapo-transpiration” on a global basis.
Most climate models have suggested that evapo-transpiration, which is the movement of water from the land to the atmosphere, would increase with global warming. The new research, published online in the journal Nature, found that’s exactly what was happening from 1982 to the late 1990s.
But in 1998, this significant increase in evapo-transpiration – which had been seven millimeters per year – slowed dramatically or stopped.
In large portions of the world, soils are now becoming drier than they used to be, releasing less water and offsetting some moisture increases elsewhere.
Serious consequences?
Due to the limited number of decades for which data are available, scientists say they can’t be sure whether this is a natural variability or part of a longer-lasting global change. But one possibility is that on a global level, a limit to the acceleration of the hydrological cycle on land has already been reached.
If that’s the case, the consequences could be serious.
They could include reduced terrestrial vegetation growth, less carbon absorption, a loss of the natural cooling mechanism provided by evapotranspiration, more heating of the land surface, more intense heat waves and a “feedback loop” that could intensify global warming.
“This is the first time we’ve ever been able to compile observations such as this for a global analysis,” said Beverly Law, a professor of global change forest science at Oregon State University. Law is co-author of the study and science director of the AmeriFlux network of 100 research sites, which is one major part of the FLUXNET synthesis that incorporates data from around the world.
“We didn’t expect to see this shift in evapo-transpiration over such a large area of the Southern Hemisphere,” Law said. “It is critical to continue such long-term observations, because until we monitor this for a longer period of time, we can’t be sure why this is occurring.”
Rain forests drying up
Some of the areas with the most severe drying include southeast Africa, much of Australia, central India, large parts of South America, and some of Indonesia. Most of these regions are historically dry, but some are actually tropical rain forests.
The rather abrupt change from increased global evapotranspiration to a near halt in this process coincided with a major El Nino event in 1998, the researchers note in their report, but they are not suggesting that is a causative mechanism for a phenomenon that has been going on for more than a decade now.
Greater evapotranspiration was expected with global warming, because of increased evaporation of water from the ocean and more precipitation overall. And data indeed show that some areas are wetter than they used to be.
However, other huge areas are now drying out, the study showed. This could lead to increased drought stress on vegetation and less overall productivity, Law said, and as a result less carbon absorbed, less cooling through evapotranspiration, and more frequent or extreme heat waves.
Long-term observations
Some of the sites used in this study are operated by Law’s research group in the central Oregon Cascade Range in the Metolius River watershed, and they are consistent with some of these concerns.
In the last decade there have been multiple years of drought, vegetative stress, and some significant forest fires in that area.
Evapo-transpiration returns about 60% of annual precipitation back to the atmosphere, in the process using more than half of the solar energy absorbed by land surfaces. This is a key component of the global climate system, linking the cycling of water with energy and carbon cycles.
Longer term observations will be needed to determine if these changes are part of decadal-scale variability or a longer-term shift in global climate, the researchers said. – (EurekAlert, October 2010)
Cape Town – Government has set aside R800m for immediate relief to assist communities affected by the recent floods in the north of the country, President Jacob Zuma announced on Thursday.
In his State of the Nation address to parliament, he said that as the country prepared for the upcoming local government elections, the country had been struck by devastating floods in recent weeks, and many families had been affected.
“We extend heartfelt condolences to the families of those who lost their lives. Our hearts also go out to those who were injured and who lost all their belongings.
“Let me use this opportunity to announce that government has set aside R800m for immediate relief to assist communities.”
Funds would also be earmarked to deal with post-disaster recovery and reconstruction in the years ahead.
“We thank relief agencies, non-governmental organisations, private sector, religious organisations and communities for assisting those in need,” Zuma said.
Source: News24
The National Water Forum voiced concern over the pollution effect of the recent flooding on the country’s water supply.
NWF national chairman Louis Meintjies said that in Gauteng, acid mine water levels rose quickly because of the rain and that the acid water had now affected a wider area, with the water pollution spreading.
“The downpours may have diluted the concentration of heavy metals in polluted water but it certainly did not allow contaminants to dissolve,” he said.
Sewage plants flooded
Meintjies warned that several sewage plants were flooded due to the heavy rains and that raw sewage had ended up in the water systems.
“Farmers have to take note of the possibility of the outbreak of fungi and diseases spread by the contaminated water on farm lands,” he said.
Water Affairs ministry spokesman Mandla Mathebula acknowledged that the floods had the potential of contaminating the water.
“We did anticipate cases of flooding and as a result of that we have a team that is looking at that situation,” he said,
“We don’t think we will have that problem of contamination, we are guarding against that.”
Experts from the department were put on high alert to ensure that the country’s water supply remained safe, Mathebula said.(Sapa/ January 2011)
Source: Health24
The hottest “green” toy in Germany isn’t made of organic or recycled materials. That’s so 2010. This one has a solar panel and only runs if kids remember to insert bright red “energy stones” that power the rest of the space station.
Germany, a pioneer in many renewable energy initiatives, is also at the forefront of creating environment-friendly toys aimed at making kids think about where energy comes from and how much of it they can use, raising awareness through play.
A panoply of high-tech green toys are on display at this year’s Nuremberg toy fair, which runs through Sunday. Among them, hydroelectric-powered toy cars, and doll houses with wind turbines and rainwater catchers.
The bright green “Future Planet” space station features an inner atrium with a fan that is powered by a functioning solar cell. Its aim is to get kids to use their imagination about how energy will be created in the future.
Makers and retailers believe such toys will play an increasingly important role in their future – and that of our kids.
“Energy is the question of the future and we are definitely thinking about this as we move ahead,” said Judith Schweinitz, a spokeswoman for Playmobil, maker of the solar panel-fitted space station. “It is increasingly being brought into our play concept.”
Green toys, which range from those made of sustainable materials to ones like the space station that just raise environmental awareness , make up only a sliver of the nearly $84 billion international toy market, but their share is growing, studies indicate. Environmental research firm Earthsense, based in Syracuse, New York, predicts that green toys will account for about $1 billion, or 5 percent, of U.S. toy sales in the next five years.
Stacy Lu, a 46-year-old mother of twins from Allendale, New Jersey, is a self-described “rabidly eco-friendly” consumer who has researched toxins in the household, and is drawn to toys that make kids think about the planet’s future.
“In my mind, just knowing that there are alternatives to energy sources that involve environmentally disastrous digging and drilling is important,” said Lu, who recently bought her godson an alternative-energy electrical kit as a gift.
Eco-friendly toys were given a special section at the New York toy fair last year and organizers of the Nuremberg fair, Germany’s leading international gathering of toy makers and sellers, also highlighted green toys.
Robert von Goeben, co-founder of San Francisco-based Green Toys Inc., started making toys and other children’s products from recycled milk jugs in 2008. Since then, he said, sales have exploded, recording 80 percent growth last year as demand for the toymaker’s bright tugboats, pastel tea sets and colorful trucks surged.
“I think that the success of our company, shows that there is clearly a wide segment of the population that will pay a little more for environmentally friendly toys,” said von Goeben, whose toys cost roughly a third more than comparable playthings made from conventional materials.
But Wild Toys, makers of animal figures and exploration sets, said their experience had shown otherwise.
The company, which sells mainly to zoos and museum shops, jumped on the green bandwagon two years ago, bringing out a line of purely organic plush animals, even making sure the cotton for the stuffing was grown with organic fertilizer. The toys cost about 25 percent more than their conventional counterparts.
“They are still sitting in our warehouse,” said Wild Toys spokesman Valdemar Barde, adding that consumers are not yet ready to swallow the cost of going green in the toy box.
“We are still in that phase on toys that consumers say, ‘Yes, we want to be green, but no, we don’t want to pay for it.”
But according to a survey conducted by the Nuremberg toy fair, roughly a third of consumers in Germany said they would pay 10 to 20 percent more for playthings made from sustainable products, also with an eye to their longevity.
“Sustainable toys are also high-quality toys, meaning they last longer and then we also have the aspect that it is worth it to invest a few more euros,” said Rainer Weisskirch spokesman for Germany’s TUV quality control organization.
Von Goeben noted that safety concerns play a role and that recent scandals over cadmium in many Chinese-made toys and BPAs in conventional plastics have made parents more concerned about what goes into their kids’ toys.
“No longer can we have this anonymous plastic thing from someplace and give it to the child. Parents are smart and they want information about what’s in the product. That’s what’s really driving the market.”
Source: laramieboomerang
Durban – Senior managers of the Kruger National Park and Hluhluwe Park on Tuesday discussed strategies to curb rhino poaching, Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife said.
It was recently reported that the price of rhino horn had increased to R400 000 a kilogram, making it more expensive than gold at R300 000 a kilogram.
“Staff from the Kruger Park flew into the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park [to] exchange information on rhino security and anti-poaching strategies,” said Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife spokesperson Jeff Gaisford.
A series of meetings were also attended by SA National Parks senior general manager of investigations and intelligence Ken Maggs and Ezemvelo CEO Dr Bandile Mkhize.
The discussions included the national rhino conservation strategy, said Gaisford.
He said the sharing of information about rhino security enabled participating agencies to benefit from the unique experiences of other organisations.
A total of 333 rhinos were killed and dehorned countrywide in 2010 and 162 people linked to poaching were arrested.
The highest incidence of poaching was in the Kruger National Park where 146 rhinos were killed. The North West followed with 57 rhino deaths, and Limpopo closely behind with 52. KwaZulu-Natal was at the bottom of the list with only 38 reported rhino killings last year.
- SAPA
Source: News24
Durban – Four poachers were shot dead and one injured in the Kruger National Park in Mpumalanga and the Hluhluwe-Mfolozi Park in KwaZulu-Natal, officials said on Monday.
Three were shot dead during a gunfight between five poachers and rangers in the Stolsnek section of the Kruger National Park over the weekend, SABC news quoted SANParks CEO David Mabunda saying.
The fourth poacher was wounded and the fifth escaped.
An R5 rifle, ammunition and poaching tools were found on the scene.
Hluhluwe-Mfolozi Park spokesman Jeff Gaisford said: “Field rangers and members of the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park anti-poaching unit shot dead a suspected poacher in an exchange of gunfire in the Makhamisa section of the park late on Saturday afternoon.”
Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife staff members heard three shots fired “fairly close” to them, went to investigate and spotted two suspected poachers.
Gaisford said one of the men was armed with an R1 rifle and opened fire on rangers, who shot back.
“In the ensuing exchange of gunfire, the suspected poacher carrying the R1 rifle was shot dead and the other managed to escape, dropping a .303 rifle in the process.”
No rangers were injured.
“The Ezemvelo group could not immediately locate a rhino carcass and the search was resumed by helicopter early on Sunday,” said Gaisford.
“Staff are hoping that the suspected poachers may have missed the rhino altogether, but are continuing to monitor rhinos in the area in case an animal was wounded.”
Gaisford said the carcasses of two dehorned black rhinos were found in Zibozini, in the Ophathe Game Reserve, on Friday.
“It was estimated that the animals had been shot three days previously. Both horns were missing and it is unclear whether these were removed by scavengers or poachers,” he said.
Ezemvelo staff was helping the Richard’s Bay organised crime unit in the cases.
- SAPA
Source: News24
Cairns – Australians voiced relief and surprise on Thursday after one of the world’s most powerful cyclones spared the nation’s northeast coast from expected devastation, with no reported deaths despite winds tearing off roofs and toppling trees.
Cyclone Yasi, roughly the size of Italy and packing winds of up to around 300km per hour, threatened Australia with its second major natural disaster in as many months this week, but ended up missing heavily populated areas.
“It’s amazing no-one was killed. The wind was howling like a banshee,” said farmer Nathan Fisher, speaking out the window of his four-wheel-drive vehicle as he returned to his property from a shelter in the small town of Innisfail.
Australia, a vast continent with less than three people for every square kilometre, is one of the few countries where a storm as large and terrifying as Yasi – with a diameter of up to around 500km – could simply miss major cities.
Weakening
Even as Yasi began its 1 000 km inland march into the outback on Thursday, weakening all the time, tracking forecasts showed it was likely to hit only a handful of small towns in a region home to around 400 000 people.
The lack of any major damage or substantial casualties was also attributed to several days of cyclone preparation, early evacuations, laws that ensure newer homes and buildings are strong enough to survive a cyclone, and less than expected sea flooding as the cyclone missed the peak tides.
The cyclone came ashore around midnight along hundreds of kilometres of coast in Queensland state and then drove inland, bringing heavy rains to mining areas struggling to recover from recent devastating floods.
“Early reports have given us all a great sense of relief,” Queensland Premier Anna Bligh told reporters, adding the cyclone emergency was still unfolding.
“Some people in this region will be going back to their communities, going back to their neighbourhoods, and facing scenes of considerable devastation.”
Yasi was rated a maximum-strength category five storm, on a par with Hurricane Katrina, which wrecked New Orleans in 2005, killing 1 500 people and causing $81bn in damage.
It was downgraded to a category-two storm as it moved inland but its core remained very destructive, the Bureau of Meteorology said.
Sugarcane crops destroyed
The biggest impact could be on the economy. Sugarcane crops had been damaged, with initial estimates suggesting around 15% of the national sugar crop could be lost. The industry estimated that one area, accounting for about a third of the crop, had suffered up to 50% losses
Australia is the world’s third largest raw sugar exporter.
Some coal mines remained shut after the cyclone passed, although others were starting to resume operations. Queensland accounts for 90% of Australia’s steelmaking coal exports.
The eye of the cyclone crossed the coast near the tourist town of Mission Beach, where devastating Cyclone Larry struck in 2006, and damaged areas around Tully and Cardwell, where many older homes, built before tougher building codes were applied, suffered severe damage.
Authorities said initial reports suggested only about 100 houses had suffered major damage. There were no initial reports of serious injuries.
Hills around Tully were covered in snapped trees and scoured almost clean of vegetation by the force of the wind. The main road into Tully was flooded and several houses had roofs torn off, with crumpled tin lying in flooded fields.
At Innisfail, Bill Biscow stood in flood waters and cleaned up roofing shredded by the storm. “It was scary, but the damage is not as bad as last time when the place got flattened. Cyclone Larry probably blew away the oldest buildings.”
Roofs torn from houses
In the coastal hamlet of Cowley Beach, steel roofs were torn from houses and twisted around power poles.
“I’ve been in the area for a long time and I’ve seen many of these, but this one is the biggest I’ve ever seen, said 84-year-old Robert Hurst, cleaning up his still-intact house.
Another resident, Maria Cook, returned from an emergency shelter to check on her home on the outskirts of Innisfail.
“I’m going to have to use a chainsaw to cut past trees and to get back inside my house,” she said.
A weather bureau spokesperson said a storm surge of two metres above normal tides had inundated one stretch of coast but the surges were not as severe as authorities had feared.
The cyclone had cut electricity to around 200 000 homes, but main links to the power grid remained intact.
Queensland has had a cruel summer, with floods sweeping across it and other eastern states in recent months, killing 35 people and causing damage estimated at $10bn or more.
Cairns – One of the most powerful cyclones on record began pounding Australia’s northeast coast, threatening popular tourist cities and sending people scrambling to find refuge after police turned them away from overcrowded shelters.
Cyclone Yasi, packing winds of up to 300km/h near its core, started to come ashore along hundreds of kilometres of coastline on Wednesday night, giving a foretaste of a storm centre described by authorities as “terrifying”.
“Tonight we need to brace ourselves for what we might find when we wake up tomorrow morning,” Queensland state premier Anna Bligh said.
“Without doubt, we are set to encounter scenes of devastation and heartbreak on an unprecedented scale. This cyclone is like nothing else we’ve dealt with before as a nation.”
Yasi is a maximum-strength category five storm, on a par with Hurricane Katrina which wrecked New Orleans in 2005.
Its centre is expected to hit land a little after midnight.
Cyclone proof houses not safe
Selwyn Hughes, turned away from a shopping centre acting as a shelter, stood with his family in the centre’s uncovered car park and said his only comfort for the moment was in numbers.
“There are so many of us here. Surely they have to do something, find somewhere safer to move us to before it arrives,” he said, squatting on a pink suitcase with his five children, aged two to 13.
Engineers warned that Yasi could even blow apart “cyclone proof” homes when its centre moved overland, despite building standards designed to protect homes from the growing number of giant storms.
Bligh said the cyclone could batter the state for up to three days as it moves inland and slowly weakens. She said 37 000 homes have already lost electricity.
The greatest threat to life will likely come from surges of water forecast at up to 7m above normal high tide levels in the worst-affected coastal areas. Waves of 6.6m have already been recorded about 20km out from Townsville.
More than 400 000 people live in the cyclone’s path, including the cities of Cairns, Townsville and Mackay. The entire stretch is popular with tourists, includes the Great Barrier Reef, and is home to major coal and sugar ports.
Strongest ever cyclone
In Townsville alone, the storm surge could flood up to 30 000 homes, according to the town’s web site. The tourist hub of Cairns also expects its city centre to be flooded.
The military is helping evacuate nearly 40 000 people from low-lying coastal areas, and from the two hospitals in Cairns.
Satellite images showed Yasi as a massive storm system covering an area bigger than Italy, with the cyclone predicted to be the strongest ever to hit Australia.
Mines, rail lines and coal ports have all shut down, with officials warning the storm could drive inland for hundreds of kilometres, hitting rural and mining areas still struggling to recover after months of devastating floods.
Yasi threatened to inflate world sugar, copper and coal prices, forcing a copper refinery to close and paralysing sugar and coal exports. It even prompted a major mining community at Mt Isa, almost 1 000km inland, to go on cyclone alert.
Global miners BHP Billiton and Peabody Energy have shut several coal mines located in Queensland ahead of the cyclone, an official for the union representing Queensland coal miners told Reuters.
Meteorology equipment knocked out
Prime Minister Julia Gillard has put 4 000 soldiers based in the garrison town of Townsville on standby to help once the cyclone passes, as well as military ships and helicopters.
Hundreds of people were lining up in a supermarket on the western side of Cairns, stocking up on staples such as bread, milk and tinned goods.
The centre of the cyclone is expected to make landfall between Cairns and Townsville. Yasi knocked out meteorology equipment on Willis Island in the Coral Sea, 450km east of Cairns.
In Cairns, main streets were deserted. Shops were closed and windows taped to stop glass from shattering.
“We’re hoping for the best, but expecting the worst to be honest,” Scott Warren said as he covered windows with black plastic sheeting at a coffee shop on the Cairns waterfront.
State premier Bligh warned that the mobile phone network may go down and said current estimates were that 150 000-200 000 people could lose power if winds topple transmission towers.
At Cairns airport, people queued from dawn to catch the last flights out of the city before the terminal was locked down and sandbagged against potential storm surges.
Queensland, which accounts for about a fifth of Australia’s economy and 90% of its steelmaking coal exports, has had a cruel summer, with floods sweeping across it and other eastern states in recent months, killing 35 people.
The state is also home to most of Australia’s sugar industry and losses for the industry from Yasi could exceed AU$500m, including crop losses and damage to farming infrastructure, industry group Queensland Canegrowers said.
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