The Environment in South Africa
84.4 % of the population has access to electricity according to World Bank (2020). 87.9% of the electricity produced by South Africa is through fossil fuels, 5.2% nuclear, 1.6% solar, 2.6% wind, 2.5% hydroelectricity, and 0.2% biomass and waste.
The Urban population in 2022 is 68.3% of the total population with an estimated 1.72% annual rate of urbanization change between 2020-2025.
- As of 2020, 14.1% of the land area is Forest. 9.9% of the land area was reported in 2018 as arable land, permanent crops made up 0.3%, and permanent pasture, 69.2% combined with 79.4% of land area as agricultural land.
- As of 2017, Annual freshwater withdrawals were 19.4 billion cubic meters with 3.89 billion for industrial use, 4.1 billion for municipal use, and 11.39 billion for agricultural.
- South Africa is mostly semiarid; subtropical along the east coast; with sunny days, and cool nights.
- South Africa is mostly semiarid; subtropical along the east coast, with sunny days, and cool nights. South Africa has a vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow.
Engie launches 100MW solar park in South Africa The French company also signed a 20-year agreement to supply power to parts of South Africa’s Northern Cape.
- Gold, chromium, antimony, coal, iron ore, manganese, nickel, phosphates, tin, rare earth elements, uranium, gem diamonds, platinum, copper, vanadium, salt, and natural gas are the main natural resources.
- International Environmental agreements are Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
Limitations of Environment in South Africa
- Due to the lack of energy, there are many blackouts that may last for several hours.
- Pollution is a source of many of the environmental issues present such as climate change, and air pollution.
- Co2 emissions for South Africa in 2020 were 7.62 metric tons per capita leading Africa in Co2 emissions and vastly exceeding the continent’s average of roughly 1 metric ton per capita(2020). In absolute terms, South Africa ranked 1st emitting 451.957 million metric tons of CO2 emissions, becoming the most polluting country in Africa in 2020.
- Lack of significant arterial rivers or lakes necessitates extensive water conservation and control measures; increase in water consumption outpaces supply; pollution of rivers from urban and agricultural runoff; acid rain caused by air pollution, deforestation, soil erosion, land degradation, desertification, pollution from solid waste, disruption of the delicate ecosystem has led to significant floral extinctions.
- As of October 2022, South Africa reported a total of 4,028,308 covid cases with 37.8 million of the population with at least one covid vaccine dose.
