Simply Green - Issue 3, 2017

YOUR LEADER IN ECO-BUSINESS & LIFESTYLE

theINTERNETofTHINGS

DIGIMAG

ISSUE 3 • 2017

simply

1 SG

*Available November 2016

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*Available December 2016

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10 l 20 enta nm sm iro nali v En our ard J Aw er nn Wi

Inside

ican Afr ited uth Lim e So ies Th er Brew

News

Features

08 General 12 Events 66 Energy 76 Motoring 98 Building 110 Food

14 The Internet of Things 26 Honouring Arbour 34 Recycling 46 Water scarcity in Africa 52 Oceans & climate Change 56 Fracking the Karoo 60 Nuclear & Coal lobbies

simply www.simplygreen.co.za • editor@simplygreen.co.za Cape Town Office • P O Box 30946, Tokai, 7966 Tel 27 (0) 21 701 1186

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Publisher

Project Manager

Sales Executive

Robbie Sammers robbie@insightspublishing.co.za

Kyle Villet kyle@insightspublishing.co.za

Jacky Villet jacky@insightspublishing.co.za

Editor

Design

Chris Erasmus editor@simplygreen.co.za

Kevin Rule volkev@gmail.com

Robin Scott Robin@insightspublishing.co.za

Creative Director Silke Erasmus silke@simplygreen.co.za

Office Manager Susan Ball susan@insightspublishing.co.za

Issue 3 • 2017 Volume 10 No.3 •

Cover Image: www.pixabay.com

Lifesyle 70 E-mobility 84 Tiny Home Tiny Footprint 92 Home efficiency 104 Recipes 112 Reviews 116 Awards

Publishing House Insights Publishing 176 Main Road, Claremont Tel 021 683 0005 Disclaimer Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the publishers or staff.

Copyright Simply Green is a registered trademark and is copyright protected worldwide. Material published in Simply Green, including all artwork, may not be reproduced without the permission of the editor.

ISSN 1998-1309

Flagship Member

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SOUTH AFRICA'S ENVIRONMENTAL CAMPAIGN www.indaloyethu.co.za

EDITORIAL

EV Motoring Is Here

In recent days the UK and France have virtually in tandem announced measures to push non-oil motoring to the front of the line. Volvo has announced that all its models will be either electric or hybrids by 2019, BMW is on a major hybrid and electric push, as are Toyota, Mercedes and some others – and virtually every other major manufacturer is already producing hybrids, all-electrics or similar adaptations away from fossil fuels.

So, has the age of the electric car, after a few false starts in the latter part of the 20th century, finally arrived? The answer is, 'Well, that depends.' If you are willing to spend a lot of money and buy a BMW i8 or its run-around predecessor the i3, then there are already all-electric cars.

And of course, Tesla under its far-sighted founder Elon Musk is only making EVs, including the latest Model 3 – designed for the 'average Joe' motorist – which has been rolled out recently.

But go down to your local branch of whatever manufacturer you choose and you will find that few of the cars on show, either new or second hand, are going to vary from the standard internal combustion-engined vehicle.

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That's not going to change much in South Africa in a year or 18 months or even two years. But five years from now, the motoring conversation will be rather different than today, and with each passing year it will become ever more so.

All the signs of a major change in the way we do motoring are in the air and showing us the way forward towards non-fossil fuel driving.

Let's say you've just bought a latest model (of whatever make). Unless you've gone for a fuel-hungry beast because you just need to feel the power and the growl and the squeal of the wheels (which is all very well but rather unevolved, if you don't mind us saying so) you will see that your new set of wheels is much lighter on fuel than its predecessor, all other things being equal.

So increasing fuel-efficiency and, in general, a move to smaller engines, are both already-present adaptations in our marketplace and both are finding a keen audience of buyers and potential buyers.

With just a couple of decades to go before the UK and French bans on fossil fuel motoring kick in, it is obvious that these countries' decisions are but the beginning of a trend which is already moving fast.

Some months past China issued a decree requiring that

12% of cars (one in every eight) sold have to be battery-powered or a plug-in hybrids by 2020. India has said it wants to replace all vehicles with electric vehicles by 2030, though this seems a bit of a stretch in a country that still has Austin Healeys from the 1950s pottering along through its street.

Norway says it wants to end sales of new petrol and diesel cars by 2025, while other Scandinavian countries – Sweden, Denmark and Finland – are also making noises about similar intentions of phasing out fossil fuel engines.

So the writing, as they say, is on the wall for the old smoking clunckers and even for your slick, urbane town-car.

But there are, of course, many problems and hurdles to be overcome before we all jump into an EV and head off into a petrol/ diesel-free driving future.

Not least of these is the sheer mass of infrastructure required for a mainly EV fleet, private or public.

There are many billions invested in petrol/ diesel distribution infrastructures around the world; and there are many millions of people who will not be able to quickly or easily give up their old conventional-engined cars in the time frames that some leading governments and manufacturers might like to see.

To replace all the 'gas stations', as the Americans might have it, in just 20 years is obviously a virtual impossibility – to do so will likely take years to decades beyond any date like 2040, in all probability.

But there are steps underway, not merely in Europe or California, where the leading edges of the non-fossil fuel driving movement are to be found, but also in South Africa where manufacturers plan to team up to put some kind of electric plug-in infrastructure in place in most urban centres – and soon too.

It may not be clear what your next car will be, but if you are under 60 there's an excellent chance that you too will one day, in the not too distant future, be driving an EV of some description – if you are a bit 'old school' it may only be a hybrid, though quite possibly using hydrogen rather than hyrdocarbons for its combustion engine.

Does this seem, like so many prior predictions going back to the oil crisis of the late 1970s, like a premature prediction for the end of the internal combustion engine, as we have come to love, hate or simply use it?

It could easily appear so, but there are forces at work that make such an outcome not just likely but inevitable

– and one of them lies in the fuel itself.

While oil is currently not vastly expensive, the price is being pushed down somewhat artificially and not permanently by a major drive in the US (and a few other places besides) to open ever more fracking fields, with natural gas being produced in large volumes and offsetting the need for other fossil fuels, specifically crude oil.

But these days will eventually come to an end and petrol and diesel will once again become expensive in a slow but steady process reflecting the ever-diminishing reserves of crude in the ground which are currently accessible.

It may be imagined that future exploration for oil will improve, and further fields as-yet undiscovered will be found. Both assertions no doubt have some truth to them, but in the end oil is a rapidly diminishing reserve with a finite limit both on the absolute amount held within the earth and on its economically feasible extraction.

So EVs are inevitable, coming and – if you have the money – here already or very soon.

Shortly, they will be the order of the day.

When they are, upwards of 30% of all CO2 emissions currently being vented into the atmosphere will not be, along with a very significant quantum on NOX (nitrogen oxides) which form an important particulant and toxic component of the sort of haze that lingers on some days over cities like Los Angeles and on many days over Beijing.

So we will all breathe easier – and the planet will catch a break, though on its own this single step, taking some to several decades to fully manifest, will not head off the climate change craziness we have already unleashed.

Still, all progress towards a greener future is to be encouraged – and that governments and major manufacturers are pointing to deadlines for the end of the 'old banger' in the driveway is no small thing.

EV, oil and related matters aside, in this issue, our third of 2017, we invite our readers to plunge into the following pages and soak up as much 'good and green' news, views and information as they can – there's plenty of interest for all tastes and needs, from consumers in the supermarket aisles to home builders, gardeners, emergent green businesses and corporate executives driving their companies down the 'green road' towards a better future for all.

Chris & The Team If you are reading this on ISSUU and you live in South Africa, you might like to try our new platform for a quicker upload and smoother reading experience by clicking here.

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N ews THREE MILE ISLAND ACCIDENT SHOWS CONSEQUENCES When a partial meltdown struck the Three Mile Island nuclear generating station near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in March 1979, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission tried to downplay the incident. Much like the officials involved in the Fukushima meltdown, they said at the time that the radiation released into the environment was only in small amounts and had no detectable health effects.

However, researchers have finally shown a correlation between the Three Mile Island meltdown and cases of thyroid cancer in the surrounding counties.

Full Story

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THE INEVITABLE HAS FINALLY HAPPENED – AND IT'S NOT GOOD

THE 6th MASS EXTINCTION IS HAPPENING

For several months scientists have had their eyes on the Larsen C ice shelf in Antarctica, where a massive iceberg has been dangling by a thread. Now they report the iceberg has indeed calved, and is floating in the Weddell Sea. The volume of this iceberg is twice that of Lake Erie – in fact, it’s one of the 10 biggest icebergs on record.

There isn’t evidence this event is linked to climate change, according to Project Midas leader Adrian Luckman of Swansea University. He said it is possible, but recent data shows that the ice shelf has actually been thickening.

United States National Ice and Snow Data Center glacial expert Twila Moon agreed but did say climate change makes it easier for such events to occur.

Earth has supported life for 3.5 billion years, but its hospitality is hardly consistent. Natural disasters have triggered at least five mass extinctions in the past 500 million years, each of which wiped out between 50 and 90% of all species on the planet. The most recent occurred about 65 million years ago, when an asteroid ended the reign of dinosaurs and opened new doors for mammals. Now it's happening again. A 2015 study reported the long-suspected sixth mass extinction of Earth's wildlife is 'already underway'. And a new study calls the loss of that wildlife a 'biological annihilation' and a 'frightening assault on the foundations of human civilisation'.

Full Story

Full Story

The Evolution of Ecological Consciousness

Many people do not realise that permaculture is much more than about growing fruit and vegetables, it is a whole view incorporating the environment, energy, resources, housing, technology, education, healthcare, the arts, spirituality, psychology, philosophy and agriculture.

It provides a realistic alternative for our future sustainability, a gentler way that treads lightly on our Mother Earth. Anima Mundi is not a 'How To' video, it is a 'Where To' documentary showcasing alternatives like Earthships, Permaculture, Permablitz, retrofitting the suburbs, lifeboats, localised food production and currencies, planned energy and Gaian philosophy.

Anima Mundi is not a film that offers false-hope solutions, it is a practical film about the nature of reality, and the harsh and beautiful reality of nature.

This is the story of our unique moment in history. We are living through an age of tipping points and rapid social and planetary change. We’re the first generation to feel the impacts of climate disruption, and the last generation that can do something about it. The film enlarges the issue beyond climate impacts and makes a compelling call for bold action that is strong enough to tip the balance to build a clean energy future.

The Nature Of Cities follows the journey of Professor Timothy Beatley as he explores urban projects around the world, representing the new green movement that hopes to move our urban environments beyond sustainability to a regenerative way of living.

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N ews

investigatING climate change science and technology

ENERGY AFRICA PROJECT

As the effects of climate change continue to be felt around the world, particularly in Africa, ongoing research has become critical to mitigate its impacts. In response, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) has committed to produce two reports on climate change for Cabinet as part of 'Outcome 10: Protect and Enhance our Environmental Assets and Natural Resources' of the Medium-Term Strategic Framework.

Government's five-year Medium-Term Strategic Framework incorporates an outcomes-based approach to complement the National Development Plan's vision and trajectory that by 2030 South Africa's transition to an environmentally sustainable, climate change resilient, low-carbon economy and just society will be well under way.

The time has come for the long and twisted tale of South Africa’s energy crisis, and the history of its nuclear programme, to be told fearlessly and objectively, and most importantly without bias.

Filmmaker and Director Joseph Oesi is the ideal man to bring such critical stories to the fore, already having exposed the mining industry in his acclaimed and powerful 2016 documentary, Black Lives Matter. Oesi is about to take on this challenge and expose one of South Africa’s most burning issues through a new documentary that will be based on extensive research and engagement across South Africa and beyond. Energy Africa is currently launching into production and promises to be an expansive and comprehensive analysis of South Africa’s ongoing energy crisis and the options the country has to solve the electricity problems that have blighted it for more than a decade. The aim of this tell-all documentary is to challenge the status quo towards energy supply and explore new and sustainable alternatives to nuclear plants.

Full Report

For more info click here

If you didn’t want to be an astronaut before today, you will now. Recently, NASA scientists aboard the International Space Station had the honour of watching the northern lights – also known as the aurora borealis – from space. Considered to be the greatest light show on Earth, it’s even more dazzling from outside the planet’s atmosphere

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E vents CLEAN-UP AND RECYCLE WEEK SA 2017 Clean-up and Recycle SA Week will take place this year from 11-17 September 2017, with various clean-ups being planned for neighbourhoods, water sources and beaches around the country. One of the highlights of this annual environmental awareness event, will be the 21st International Coastal Clean-Up Day that will be taking place on Saturday, 16 September 2017. Clean-up and Recycle SA Week is an annual initiative by the local plastics industry, supported and endorsed by the various packaging streams and retailers.

Each year, close to 120 000 volunteers participate in these clean-up activities that take place along roadsides, rivers, schools, residential and illegal dumping areas. The initiative is supported by provincial governments, local municipalities, environmental organisations, businesses, schools and communities. One of the highlights of the Clean-up and Recycle SA week, is South Africa’s participation in the International Coastal Clean-up Day – the world’s biggest annual volunteer effort for ocean health that sees thousands of people flock to beaches to pick up and remove litter found in the marine environment.

For more info or to participate in the 2017 International Coastal Clean-Up, visit www.cleanupandrecycle.co.za.

THE CAPE TOWN FLOWER SHOW DELAYED DUE TO DROUGHT In respect of the Western Cape’s worst drought for over 100 years, Growth Events, owners of the Cape Town Flower Show, announces that the 2017 show will be deferred until October 2018. Show Director, Karey Evett explains: 'We believe we should bow to the industry’s challenges in these difficult times. The Cape Town Flower Show celebrates the Cape’s floral kingdom and supports the landscaping, horticultural and green industries and it is imperative that we demonstrate due responsibility. We think it’s critical that the landscaping industry has time to adapt to the crisis and to use their creativity in garden design that would not put any strain on our water reserves. Also, we want to match our 2016 inaugural show with a similarly successful and abundant show, because it’s important not to dilute the show’s appeal to participants and visitors.'

The four-day show will take place at GrandWest in October 2018.

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Tech

Be aware the

'Internet is here S G 14

of

Things'

You most likely know this – in theory at least – but if you don't you should be aware that the next and rapidly moving stage in the digital revolution is upon us. It is called the Internet of Things or IoT, and it means faster everything, more integrated everything, more centralised everything and much more convenience. It also means trouble if you are not ready for its vast and sweeping implications for our lives. We take a look.

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H 

ere's the thing about the Internet of Things (IoT): we can no more stop it than we could a massive tsunami such as that which hit

east Japan in 2011; it is an emergent phenomenon coming on the back of every-increasing digital processing power, communications bandwidth and storage capacity. The IoT is, in short, the next wave in our rapidly digitising world in which many 'ordinary' previously 'non-smart' objects will be inter-connected and remotely or automatically controlled, either by us or programmable 'stand-ins' for us like artificial intelligence built into central IoT control systems.

To be sure, we are not yet in a future-scape of robotocised everything, with a semi-intelligent multi-purpose domestic robot, probably looking somewhat humanoid mainly to not make such 'help' too intimidating, and doing almost all household tasks assigned to it, from washing up the dishes and cleaning the house or apartment to making beds and picking up laundry. That's all a little way out, though perhaps not as far into the future as you might think.

Just look how far we have come from the first home computers a little over 30 years ago.

We are not quite yet living the world of the cartoon family the Jetsons, complete with hands-free flying car. But the self-driving, carbon energy-free car has recently become is a reality.

Apply the same idea to every part of your

We are in the integration phase of the digital

day-to-day reality and you begin to get the idea of

and communications technology revolution, usually

what an IoT-run future world may look in say 10 or

these days referred to ICT. The world of IoT flows

20 years.

naturally and inevitably from that.

Both digital payment, which is already well

What the term IoT does describe in the relative

established and rapidly replacing older forms, and

short term – say three to five years hence – is a

goods receipt could be included, if the home design

situation where an ever-larger body of people living

you are living in has been adapted to meet the

in the more developed parts of almost any economy

potentials of IoT.

will to some degree, and increasingly over time, be

Over time, houses and housing complexes are

dependent on integrated digital systems using and

sure to adapt to this cost and time-saving technology

reliant upon IoT.

which is going to cut out many human hands, eyes

This is because IoT promises to take a lot of the drudgery out of doing things, even in our modern world.

What sort of things will IoT help us do? How

and brains from the equation of getting goods and services to you where and when you need them.

As we already have with many people, one will not only be able to work almost entirely from one's

about the refilling through auto-ordering, by your

smart phone, tablet or remote PC, but to run virtually

semi-smart fridge through your IoT central hub,

every aspect of one's life in much the same way, and

of basic necessities such as milk or bread from

increasingly on an automated basis, without us even

your selected outlet, as and when you reach a

bothering to have to think about things.

system-determined 'critical low' in that particular

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foodstuff.

What time must the coffee machine or kettle go

As we already have with many people, one will not only be able to work almost entirely from one's smart phone, tablet or remote PC, but to run virtually every aspect of one's life in much the same way, and increasingly on an automated basis, without us even bothering to have to think about things. on in the morning? How long before you have to rise

dinner for 7.30, serve for 5 people' will not have Siri

for your day's labour is it best for the geyser to go

trying to dial the wrong number, as currently, since

on so you don't have to take a lukewarm shower?

much more refined voice recognition is inherently

Those questions, and so many others like

going to be part of the system – who needs buttons

them, asked once and then stored in your home

to press on a remote or smart phone when you can

IoT system's central processing station will mean

just speak what you want?

your IoT home will be running various devices, even

It will be very similar in all significant respects

the currently 'dumbest' of machines like kettles or

to the world of the astronauts in Arthur C Clarke's

toasters, all on one integrated platform, ostensibly

milestone book and movie, 2001: A Space Odyssey,

making your life much 'easier'.

where you will, in effect, be living with a Hal

Your mobile will be able to 'call home' as you

9000-level computer capable of understanding

approach your abode at the end of the working

pretty much everything you say and even conversing

day (using your stored known habits and current

with you, albeit on a programmed basis.

location as a baseline for action) and use the IoT

As

indicated

above,

full

pseudo-human

systems operating there to do everything from

artificial intelligence (AI) is still very much in the

switch on the oven (where something prepared has

developmental works and same ways off as yet.

been waiting to be cooked) and certain lights, to

But in the notion of living with advanced and

warming selected rooms, switching the geyser on,

seemingly intelligent assistance lies a hint of the

boiling water or preparing for your arrival home in

full power and promise of IoT to change our lives in

whichever other way you have deemed suitable to

ways yet more drastic than they have changed since,

your lifestyle.

say, our grandparents' time.

New commands to the home, such as 'prepare

It was back in the late 1970s that a far-sighted

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modern cultural philosopher and futurist named Alvin Toffler saw the future with its ever-increasing pace of change and coined the term 'future shock'.

That is what we are all already suffering – those of us, that is, who have joined the race forward through iteration after iteration, each coming quicker than the ones before it, of ways to use burgeoning digital technology, meshed with existing 20th century-style industrial 'non-smart' technology, to utterly reshape out lives.

And eventually the 'non-smart' components of our technological lives will be replaced by those using AI to create a seamless experience of a world that seems designed specifically for our benefit, comfort and convenience – or, at least, that's the 'sales pitch'.

We can reasonably expect what has just been described, and have this in not one arena but running right through our lives, because we have already seen this process happen, and some time ago – back in the 1990s in fact.

That was when the American military, frequently among

the

first

adopters

of

breakthrough

technologies and sometimes the actual developers of such technologies which later seep into non-military iterations, started strapping guidance systems on 'dumb' bombs to convert them into 'smart', GPS-guided munitions capable striking around nine

as well as in various other places around the globe

out of every 10 targets with an accuracy of several

all confirm this point as now the overwhelming

metres or less.

factor on the battlefield.

Together with other elements of integrated

Hi-tech as a driver for how modern warfare is

battle-field technologies – including in-field and

undertaken starts with the soldier on the ground,

in-fight, real-time access to tactically significant

feeds through airborne and satellite connections

information

equipment

and collected in far-distant command centres where

deployments and positions, both friendly and enemy

it is processed and fed back down the line – ideally

– the use of new tech to make old tech 'smart' has

to each and every element in each and every tactical

already completely changed the face of warfare.

unit engaged in the battle.

such

as

troop

and

If the first Gulf War against Saddam Hussein's

This means everyone on one side knows almost

vast but technologically outmatched forces was

everything that can be known at any point in

not convincing enough, the follow-up in 2003 was

time about what is going on, down to individual

undeniable in making the point that, without the

positions of particular soldiers, units and forces,

ability to obtain situational awareness out of the

their ammunition status, number of casualties,

chaos which is an irreducible element of every

and resupply requirements to keep the fight going,

battlefield, and to integrated that data and make it

through to almost the same level of detail about the

instantly available, no force is capable of standing

enemy.

against an enemy that can do such things.

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One may say that today battles are increasingly

Current conflicts in Syria, Yemen, and in the

being fought through first the gathering of relevant

several nations engaged with combatting Boko

data (drones, spy satellites, hacking and human

Haram in West Africa and Al-Shabaab in East Africa,

intel), the integration of all that and then its

Those along for 'the digitised and integrated everything in one's life' experience are jumping onto a rollercoaster of epic proportions with no clear notion of what they are getting themselves into and whether or not the ride is even survivable.

provision in useable packages to commanders and war-fighters on the ground or in the air.

Why the military?

The reason for exploring the uses of integrated digital technology – which is really what IoT is –

So here comes IoT for the rest of us, making life ever-more convenient, comfortable and tailored, even down to tiniest taste-driven details, just to our liking. It's like a dream come true; until the dream turns into a nightmare.

including the incorporation of what were previously

Why nightmare?

'dumb' resources and equipment through hi-tech

Think about this for a minute. If you were not

overlays, is because upon the field of battle bad

among the many thousands of unfortunates hit by

outcomes are, well, 'bad'.

the two recent outbreaks of ransomware, you would

People die or are maimed in battle, but no

almost certainly know about them and are now

commander or civilian politician sitting back at

breathing repeated sighs of relief that you were not

home (in Washington, say, or London or Paris or

either duped out of $300 or some similar amount

Berlin) wants to see repeated images of flag-draped

per computer you own or in your organisation, or

coffins of fallen fighters arriving in the homeland,

worse yet, that all infected computers might have

or of scores of horribly injured warriors being

lost all data stored on their hard-drives and any

offloaded on stretchers and in wheelchairs, on

back-up storage devices connected to them.

a regular and frequent basis – it's not good for business for either class of leaders.

That's pretty bad – and expensive, both to recover from and to prevent from happening. The

So war is where this kind of technology is going

worst thing about the unfolding 'arms race' between

to get its first and likely the toughest field trials

unethical hackers and those defending our systems,

imaginable. And it works.

computers and data from the online brigands is

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that in order to be really 'safe' you have to know beforehand what's coming.

And it's obvious that though the US's National Security Agency (NSA) and/or the CIA and other American government agencies were engaged in creating time-bomb style viruses and malware to hit their opponents' digital operations, their control is lost once such viruses get 'into the wild'.

This has not only happened with the recent ransomware attacks, but includes impacts on what are called programable logic controllers (PLCs), which are like minim-brains in otherwise dumb devices, and are used to run everything from the Iranian nuclear program's uranium separation centrafuges (mentioned because 'someone' has already attacked those units very successfully with the stutz net virus) to most power stations and energy distribution networks, damn containment systems, railways scheduling and movement systems and many other elements which our technologically dependent societies use to maintain themselves.

We have, as the old saying goes, our collective jugular veins exposed and throbbing in the wind, just waiting for the intended sharp knife to come along.

The unprepared IoT, for the unprepared, is a nightmare right out of

now by some rather narrow parameters of measure,

the blocks.

you will also be much more vulnerable to malicious

If some are already 'in' and others pretty well

Without leaving their hidey holes, the 'bad guys'

world, those left behind when IoT really kicks in will

will be able to reach out and literally take your life

fall much farther behind than those going with that

over or even away from you.

tide, and they will do so much faster. The digital

Not merely satisfied with having hijacked your

divide will deepen, widen and become effectively

data, emptied your bank account or stopping you

unbridgeable to many in the world's least developed

from making your car work, or get into your home

regions, countries, cities and communities, while

(or out of it), or in fact do anything with the least

those going with the leading edge of 'everything

amount of control from the central operational

gets smart and digital' process will soar away in

platform for your IoT system, the 'baddies' will

terms of earning power and lifestyle enhancement.

have you 'neck and crop', to use an outdated but

Even for the haves that scenario is not good since, throughout history, every time there has

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intent than you are at present.

'out' of the digital revolution which is sweeping the

colourful expression of our collective imminent degree of vulnerability.

emerged an unsustainable imbalance between haves

It's not just your bank account that won't be

and have-nots, revolutions of a more visceral and

safe, neither will you or your family be – someone

bloody type than that now occurring in the digital

who hacks the control centre of an IoT home will

realm have followed.

be able to do everything from spy on you without

But if, like most of us, you will have some or

you knowing (both audio and video) to burning you

even many elements of IoT at work in your life a few

and freezing you, successively, while you attempt

years hence, making it ostensibly 'better' than it is

to shower to actually causing more direct physical

The future, from a hi-tech point of view, may well be 'bright' in many ways, and it's likely true that most of us will simply go along for the ride, incrementally increasing our dependence on a very fragile digital infrastructure to help us keep our lives functional and in order. harm by, for instance, turning your geyser onto

the final step to potentially the complete loss

'very hot' and turning off its safety thermostat,

of personal freedom – the actual emergence of

resulting in a large hot-water and steam detonation

the technology imagined by George Orwell in his

probably right over someone's head.

chillingly predictive book 1984.

That is but one imagined scenario; the real

Big Brother is not merely coming – he's already

vulnerability will come in the form, most likely, of

here, watching your every online move if he so

not just obvious stuff like an overheated geyser

desires. He can turn on your computer, without you

bursting, but in insidious ways which we will only

knowing, and download to a mirror disc everything

come to terms with once they have been dreamt up

you have stored and/or do digitally.

and used.

He can, already, turn on your laptop's or PC's

And if you are one of those who lives in the

camera and watch you in, say, your bedroom, at any

'fool's paradise' of 'tomorrow is always better'

time – and you wouldn't even know it until, perhaps,

and 'such things cannot happen, can they?', you

you see yourself dancing naked and singing into a

should think about the inventive ways militant

hairbrush on You Tube, by when it's far too late.

Islamists have pursued their campaigns in places

The NSA and others like them who have such

like London, Paris, Nice and many other locations

capabilities do not boast about them openly, but

in just the last few years – it only takes opportunity

they exist, of that you may be sure.

and desire for someone to cause hurt to many and the IoT provides the necessary reach to affect many

What to do

thousands simultaneously or one specific person at

So 'what to do?' is the obvious question. If IoT is

a time.

coming (in effect, already knocking on the door to

In the latter lies one of the great threats and

come into your life even as you read this, if it has

21 S G

not already started to merge with your existence via multiple smart phone apps that make your life 'easier'), then can one really opt out? And given the very real consequences of doing so, is it even an option for most urbanised and modernised humans?

Most will do whatever seems the least costly and most effective – but moving along with the herd as far as such measures are concerned – to protect themselves. We will inevitably be using what amount to upgraded antivirus protection on steroids for our IoT systems.

That, like antivirus programs today, will stop most but not necessarily all nuisance and more malicious attacks.

So what happens when the 'bad guys', or Big Brother and friends (and who says these two apparently contending parties aren't the same thing sometimes, anyway?) crack open your protections and literally invade your life in as-yet unimaginable ways?

Our guess is that we shall have to wait and see – the future unfoldment of events may be generally

Senior managers are more overwhelmed with

predictable, but not precisely so and certainly not

data and informational flow than they have ever

in detail.

been – and most of it moves around in emails or

So we don't yet know how exactly IoT may make our lives better, worse or some new combo of these subjective evaluations of our experiences.

But IoT is going to change our lives, and once it takes hold, it will do so at an accelerating rate.

That is not the way business was done just 20 years ago, or even 10 years ago for the great majority of people.

And we have not even figured out how to make

Staying out of 'the system' seems to be an

email, convenient, efficient and quick as it is, work

approach set to doom one to literally be living in the

for us without adding the huge burden of constant

past, while others zoom ahead into an apparently

management and keeping on top of things. All that's

'bright new future'.

without even considering social media as another

So staying completely out of this next stage of

constantly increasing and demanding informational

the global digital revolution is not really on for most

load that needs to be handled by a growing number

of us.

of people.

But those along for 'the digitised and integrated

It is, as Toffler predicted, all moving too fast for

everything in one's life' experience are jumping onto

us much slower-evolving beings to keep up with and

a rollercoaster of epic proportions with no clear

so many are falling prey to chronic fatigue, bailout

notion of what they are getting themselves into and

and burnout syndromes.

whether or not the ride is even survivable.

Exaggeration? Perhaps, but likely not. Just look at what email has done, as a lesser but virtually all-pervading exemplar of what we may expect of our oncoming IoT future.

S G 22

attached thereto.

How much worse is all that going to get in an IoT world where one never escapes the all-pervading pseudo-smart digitised experience?

There may well be moments within this near-future world which would, to any preceding

Today, not even CEOs and MDs with secretaries

generation, look outwardly like 'heaven on earth'. It

and PAs can escape the hours of dealing with email

is already so – one-button quick-dial to a relative on

that have just become part of everyday life as a

the other side of the world via cell phone has made

sheer and sometimes dreaded necessity – especially

the once absurdly futuristic 'beam me up Scotty'

after even just a few days' break.

universe of Captain Kirk and his star trekking crew

Despite all that IoT brings in terms of challenges and problems, yet it also brings something else which many might consider would make the undertaking worthwhile – and that is the freedom to increasingly create and shape in detailed ways your most desired lifestyle. a daily and unremarkable occurrence – complete with live video, for which read Skype.

But give it a little while and there will be a growing number of us dealing with such things daily.

We are already far into the world imagined just a

'No problem,' I hear. 'That sounds cool.' Which

few decades ago as a distant future for mankind by

it is until somehow it goes wrong or, more likely,

Star Trek's creator and other sci-fi writers.

someone makes it go wrong, or uses what we do

No doubt, much more of that is on its way, which is our point with regard to IoT – all revolutionary ways of doing things bring unexpected and unintended

against us in some way.

Get ready people – the future is here and we cannot hide from it.

consequences, and we had better already be thinking

Despite all that IoT brings in terms of challenges

about them now or we are certain to be caught short

and problems, yet it also brings something else which

when they have become part of a reality upon which

many might consider would make the undertaking

we utterly depend.

worthwhile – and that is the freedom to increasingly

The future, from a hi-tech point of view, may well be 'bright' in many ways, and it's likely true that most

create and shape in detailed ways your most desired lifestyle.

of us will simply go along for the ride, incrementally

No doubt many too will have been forewarned

increasing our dependence on a very fragile digital

by the internet age which has shown that no

infrastructure to help us keep our lives functional

new development, no matter benefits it brings to

and in order.

medicine, learning and the spread of and access to

But if we are not awake to the dangers at the

knowledge of all kinds, is going to be roses all the

same time, we stand a good chance of blundering

time. Some will, as with the web, simply use IoT

into that near future gravely ill-equipped for what it

where and when they deem it suitable, if at all.

may mean.

In this IoT can and will be amazingly adaptable.

Beast or bounty, IoT is with us increasingly, so we

As with all fundamental changes to how we live, we

have little choice but to adapt to its presence in our

are going to face both positive and negative aspects

lives – you can start by practising speaking to all you

and it will be up to each one of to use our good

kitchen hardware and giving your shower orders like

sense and careful consideration in bringing this

'on, standard temperature'.

extremely powerful approach to life into our lives

Of course, your devices won't answer or respond in any way – not yet at least.

without letting it simply take over and become our master.

SG

23 S G

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S G 24

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Solarize your Life SunFire Solutions was founded in 2004 by a desire to make Good Quality Solar Products more readily available at affordable prices and harbour a passion for championing planet and pocket saving tech that is cheaper and better than fossil fuels.

Weaning our global society off of fossil fuels is a priority for our species longevity and is especially easy in Africa where we enjoy year round abundant sunlight. Initially founded to focus on Solar Cooking (still our main business) SunFire has gone onto to create one of the most comprehensive and affordable ranges of portable Lighting Solutions anywhere in Africa, we have an excellent range of install it yourself Solar Geysers and Solar home systems.

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Feature

HONOURING

ARBOUR Trees play a vital role in rural and urban populations. They are needed to enrich and anchor soil, to maximise water supplies, to beautify and humanise townships and urban areas and to provide shade and shelter.

They are also crucial for biodiversity conservation. Every year in September, schools, organisations and businesses participate in community 'greening' events to improve the health and beauty of the local environment and develop a green future for South Africa. Events are held around the country highlighting the benefits of planting and conserving trees to offset carbon emissions and for greening to improve the quality of life and uplift the environment, and communities. We take a look at a few innovations in honour of Arbour Day 2017.

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Uncle’s House by 3 Atelier The living area of this light-filled home in Vietnam centres around a flourishing tree that is large enough for children to climb. The architects at 3 Atelier built this home for their uncle and his family, using materials reminiscent of the parents’ childhood homes. Not only does Uncle’s House inspire kids to engage with nature, they can even grow vegetables in the dirt around its base.

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Inside Out House by Takeshi Hosaka One tree wouldn’t suffice for the Inside Out House by Takeshi Hosaka in Tokyo, Japan.

From the outside, the cubic home is simple and modern. Inside, multiple trees and plants bring the outdoors inside. Sliding glass doors offer flexibility, and natural light permeates the home through skylights, creating a serene sanctuary in which humans and cats coexist.

Tree House by A Masow Design Studio A. Masow Design Studio unveiled astounding plans for the ultimate treehouse: an entire tree wrapped in a glass facade in Kazakhstan. A spiral staircase would allow the owner to move between four levels, circumnavigating the tree as they moved from floor to floor. The glass allows natural light to stream in and provides an unobstructed view of the surrounding woods.

Symbiosis office by Cong Sinh Architects New developments are increasingly crowding out green spaces in the southern part of Hue, Vietnam. So Cong Sinh Architects designed Symbiosis, a peaceful office rooted in the environment in the midst of the bustling city.

Expansive windows on both floors of the office overlook a green oasis full of vines and a tree. The shade from the greenery even helps regulate the office temperature.

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House in the Trees by Anonymous Architects This cantilevered Echo Park home takes the treehouse concept to new heights and rests on a hillside overlooking Los Angeles. Carefully constructed so as not to harm neighbouring mature cypress trees, the fire-treated Western red cedar siding, reclaimed chestnut floors, and walnut cabinetry add to the woodsy, natural feel of the cozy California dwelling.

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Bird’s Nest Atami by Hiroshi Nakamura & NAP A 300-year-old camphor tree in Japan now includes a tiny teahouse nestled among its branches. Bird’s Nest Atami is part of the country’s largest treehouse. Inspired by how crows utilise coat hangers in nests, the earthy interior also includes wood furnishings, inviting tea drinkers to relax in nature.

PARK OF MUSIC Plenty of cities feature live music in their parks during the summer months – indeed it's one of the many joys of the long, warm days of the season. But in a park in Denmark, one can hear music year-round and on-demand. No, not on a stage or in a bandstand, but among the trees. It's all part of the city of Aalborg's public art project, where trees in the Park of Music host tunes from musicians who have performed at the nearby cultural center. It all started in the 1980s when the city asked visiting musicians to plant a tree as a memorial of their performance.

Source

WOOD PULP TO POWER HOMES If engineers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have anything to say about sustainable energy, we may soon be generating electricity by the simple task of walking. The ultimate in green design, the team has developed a unique flooring which harnesses footstep energy, while also using a completely renewable and economical material. But flooring isn’t the only option for producing electricity with human movement. Another group of mechanical engineers at the university have also developed innovative, foot-powered technology – only this time, using shoes.

Click here for more.

TREES FORM FRIENDSHIPS There are reasons why we anthropomorphise trees; they stand tall like people, they sway, for torsos they have trunks and for arms, branches. But are there more similarities between trees and people than those that meet the eye? Peter Wohlleben is one of a number of experts who believes this to be the case. Wohlleben is a German forester and best-selling author who has spent decades working with our arboureal cohabitants and getting to know their secrets. Why does the definition of friendship have to be exclusive to humans?

Click here for more.

TREES by JOYCE KILMER I think that I shall never see – A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest – Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast; A tree that looks at God all day, And lifts her leafy arms to pray; A tree that may in Summer wear A nest of robins in her hair; Upon whose bosom snow has lain; Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree.

31 S G

An excellent example of how recycling can become not merely a chore but something that directly contributes to the betterment of the lives of all – and even creates jobs – is to be found in the work of Neopak Recycling, which is 50% owned by the Twinsaver Group and 50% owned by Neopak. The company was a recent acquisition of what was formerly known as Nampak Recycling – a business that has been a major driver of the South African recycling industry for over 40 years.

Ethos Private Equity Group recognised the opportunity to grow the business further through a combination of new leadership and a new strategic direction. This makes this outfit one of the largest retrievers of recyclable waste and one of the largest suppliers of recyclable materials in South Africa.

Neopak Recycling currently processes in excess of 250 000 tons of recyclable waste per annum. It has branches in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Pinetown and Cape Town. Through a recent acquisition between Rainbow Paper Management there have been two new branches added to the Neopak Recyling stable, namely a branch in Johannesburg Selby and Port Elizabeth where various grades of paper, plastic, glass and metal packaging are sorted and prepared for each product type’s specific recycling process.

HOW WE WORK

All recyclable products generated are supplied to manufacturers that in turn use these materials to make new products. The primary function is to procure recovered fibre for the Neopak & Twinsaver paper mills and glass cullet for Nampak Glass. Neopak Rosslyn mill is one of the largest consumers of recovered fibre in South Africa and, in turn, produces kraft paper which is converted into corrugated cartons at various Neopak converting plants throughout South Africa. Twinsaver is the single largest producer of toilet tissue across three paper mills and converting plants in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape.

Neopak Recycling is therefore one of the largest buyers of recovered fibre in South Africa with material secured from various sources including corporate and industrial businesses, schools, tertiary institutions, government offices, independent recyclers, buy-back centres etc. They also partner with a number of companies and NGOs to offer turn-key recycling solutions for most major industries. With tailor-made services to suit our clients’ unique needs, we are focused on minimising the amount of waste sent to landfill.

office recycling box

Neopak Recycling now offers a comprehensive national confidential shredding service

See diagram for full understanding of Kraft paper mill recycling process.

1. Neopak Recycling trucks collect loose waste (k4) from Retail Stores etc.

2. At our Recovered Paper plants, we off-load, sort and bale the K4.

3. K4 Bales (post consumer) are sent to Neopak Rosslyn 100% waste based paper mill, where Kraft Recycled Paper Reels are manufactured. Same applies to K3 (new un-used offcut cuttings/ Bales (pre-consumer) that are sent from the Corrugators direct to Rosslyn.

4. Paper Reels are transported from Rosslyn to Neopak Corrugating plants, where finished product boxes are produced for various customers. Boxes are used by these various customers, FMCG, fruit packaging sector etc. to transport their respective products in, normally to a retail DC (Distribution Centre) first.

5. The DC then distributes these products in boxes to their respective stores.

6. Packaging from stores then either ends up at a consumers household, or it goes via reverse logistics back to the DC to be baled, or Neopak Recycling collects it from stores again for sorting and baling at their plants (see 1 and 2 above). The bales from a DC are also sent direct to Rosslyn.

7. Same cycle continues again and repeats etc.

Neopak Recycling has six sites strategically positioned for accessible supply and services to our suppliers and clients.

All sites are fully equiped with modern equipment to handle any level of recycling requirements.

FOR MORE INFO VISIT www.neopakrecycling.co.za or email marc.snyders@neopakrecycling.co.za

R ecycling

Recycling cornerstone of sustainability

With Clean-up and Recycle SA Week looming – 11-17 September – and with various clean-ups being planned for neighbourhoods, water sources and beaches around the country, including the 21st International Coastal Clean-Up Day (ICC) that will be taking place on Saturday, 16 September, it is time to once again put recycling near the top of our sustainability agenda. But there's much more to recycling than an annual beach clean-up. We take a look.

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35 S G

C 

lean-up and Recycle SA Week is an annual

initiative by the local plastics industry, supported and endorsed by the various

packaging streams and retailers. Each year, close to 120 000 volunteers participate in these clean-up

activities that take place along roadsides, rivers, schools, residential areas, illegal dumping areas and informal human settlements. The initiative is supported by provincial governments, local municipalities,

environmental

organisations,

businesses, schools and communities.

The aim of this week is to increase an awareness of the social, environmental and economic benefits of recycling, with communities, schools and businesses encouraged to clean-up the areas where they work, live and play by collecting the litter and ensuring that it gets recycled.

The importance of plastics recycling has been driven home by the growing awareness of the impacts of slow-degrading plastics on landfills (they release large amounts of the powerful greenhouse gas methane, plus in some cases eco toxins) and in riverine and oceanic systems, where micro-particle plastics pieces are consumed by krill and other organisms at the bottom of the food chain and then work their way right to the top – including finding their way into human beings. Large pieces of plastic routine ensnare sea creatures of all types, often causing much suffering before death.

In truth there is only one place for used and discarded plastic containers, and that is in the recycling bin.

And with billions of tons of plastic being produced annually and a mere 30% at most being recycled, the world cannot go on polluting its key nature systems with this entirely man-made problem.

Paper, glass etc

S G 36

energy used and costs involved, when properly done, more than make up for the savings in the use of new raw materials.

Aluminium The same goes for aluminium, even though smelting or resmelting aluminium is a highly

But plastics form only one target of the recycling

energy-consumptive process. According to some

movement. The other obvious candidates are paper

recyclers, it takes nearly but not quite the same

and paper-based products, almost all of which are

energy to produce a new aluminium product from

recyclable and should be recycled, along with glass

recycled aluminium. Once all the sorting and

which is entirely recyclable and should also never

separating costs, transport costs and related inputs

make it into dumps.

are taken into account, plus the eco-benefits of

While both paper products and glass take a

removing aluminium waste from the environment,

certain amount of human and mechanical energy

it is clear that recycling aluminium is not only

to clean, sort and prepare for the actual recycling

economically feasible as an industry in its own

process, and while in both cases it takes a fair

right, it is also quite doable from the practical side

amount of energy to recycle either paper or glass

of getting the recycled material into the smelting

into a useful second-life product, in each case the

furnace.

While both paper products and glass take a certain amount of human and mechanical energy to clean, sort and prepare for the actual recycling process, the energy used and costs involved, when properly done, more than make up for the savings in the use of new raw materials. e-waste And then there is the ever-growing problem in our digital age of e-waste – something that has only

can be recovered through proper recycling, while hazardous fractions can be treated prior to safe disposal.

major issue from an eco-impact point of view in the

Possible health effects

last decade or so.

E-waste recycling has direct and indirect effects on

really emerging into the popular consciousness as a

Electronic and electrical waste includes ICT

human health conditions. Direct impacts on human

equipment, consumer electronics, small household

health may be caused by:

appliances and large household appliances. A very

•

Dust in indoor air generated in manual and

simple and easy-to-remember definition is that

mechanical dismantling processes (such as

e-waste is anything that is no longer in use and

when processing plastics or cathode ray tubes

that once used electricity to power it. Why should we recover e-waste? Not only should we, but we

(CRTs) found in old TVs and computer screens);

•

must recover and recycle e-waste as there are many valuable elements in such products and their

dust

generated

in

the

mechanical

dismantling process; •

combined impacts on our eco-systems are severe.

Noise emissions during the manual and mechanical dismantling process (conveyor

Electronic and electrical waste contains both valuable and potentially hazardous material that

Filter

belts, hammering, shredders etc.); •

Deviations from occupational safety standards.

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Indirect impacts on human health may be caused by: •

Air pollution related to (HT) incineration (however the situation has been very much improved since waste gas purification systems have become a common standard);

•

Emissions due to transportation of materials;

•

Contamination of water systems and soil near landfills.

The indirect impacts on human health are difficult

to quantify, among others because of synergistic effects and the time-lag between exposure and reaction.

Value chain It turns out that most South African companies fail to take advantage of the potential that exists to generate revenues from recycling electronic waste.

Also, by ignoring reverse logistics – which deals with the returns and proper disposal of obsolete products – companies are not only indirectly damaging the environment, but their corporate reputations.

Experts and observers warn that this situation will only change once companies and corporations realise they can make money from 'going green'.

Most managers have yet to focus on the value chain involved in recovering and recycling e-waste – but the trend is increasingly in that direction and companies that get on this bandwagon early are likely to benefit much more than late-comers with respect to secondary opportunities arising from the

the average person produces roughly 12kg of

recycling process.

e-waste annually. Only 10-15% of this is recycled

Sapics, association

a

professional that

enables

knowledge-based

worldwide while the remaining 85% is sent to landfill

individuals

or is incinerated.

and

organisations to improve business performance,

Lead, mercury, chemicals and other materials

recognises the need to raise awareness of the

found in e-waste, when dumped at landfill sites can

potential that lies in reverse logistics related to

leach into the soil and contaminate groundwater.

e-waste, both for a positive impact on the bottom

Among problematic materials involved are also

line and winning favour with communities who care

cadmium, beryllium, or brominated flame retardants.

that the producers of their favourite products are environmentally responsible.

How big is the problem?

recovering e-waste, while incineration can result in toxic gases being released into the atmosphere.

But while toxic and problematic if ignored or

No reliable figures on e-waste volumes and recycling

handled and discarded improperly, e-waste is also

of e-waste in South Africa are available since the law

a potentially valuable as source for secondary raw

does not currently require landfill site owners or

material.

recyclers to keep accurate records.

S G 38

Informal waste collectors at landfill sites may also be exposed to these dangerous substances when

The goal of 'reverse logistics' is to facilitate the

However, according to the e-Waste Association

movement of products back into the manufacturing

of South Africa (eWASA), global figures predict that

cycle and to thereby obtain value from these

Why should we recover e-waste?

Not only should we, but we must recover and recycle e-waste as there are many valuable elements in such products and their combined impacts on our eco-systems are severe.

products while reducing the flow of products to the

may be exposed to hazardous waste. There is no

landfills.

guarantee that secondary contamination of key local

At some South African recycling facilities,

eco-systems is not taking place in the process, since

electrical products are dismantled so that their

there is little to no oversight or control of these

various component materials, such as precious

recovery projects.

metals including gold, indium and palladium, ferrous metals and plastics may be reclaimed.

According to eWASA, some ferrous metals can also be used as secondary raw materials in various manufacturing processes.

Cathode ray tube monitors can be ground into

There have reportedly been some incidences of e-waste being shipped outside of South Africa for disposal, although this is not believed to be a common practice.

Complex

sand and used in the production of faux marble

The problem of e-waste is obviously complex,

products. The plastics can be used to build park

given the various materials and small quantities of

benches and street signs and the aluminium can be

these to be found in discarded TVs, cell phones,

melted down for use in the motor manufacturing

computers and other electronic devices. But if

industry, according to industry experts.

each individual and company begins to consciously

This is a far better option than the practice of

dispose of e-waste such that recycling of it is much

many developed countries which is to ship their

easier and more cost-effective, the sooner the flow

e-waste to developing countries where workers

of toxic components in e-waste into landfills and

dismantling products in poor conditions where they

water streams and reservoirs will be reduced.

39 S G

People power When recycling clean-ups are happening, you can actually feel the positive spirit of the many volunteers – especially children – who treat the exercise as an adventure while also being quite aware that they are 'dong a good thing'. It is a win-win situation.

Recycle, recycle, recycle But the push for recycling to happen with whatever materials we would otherwise throw away goes beyond even the primary and obvious product types we have mentioned.

And where there are already well-established recycling projects underway, there is always room for improvement by ordinary people at every level making the small but important steps for simply throwing their recyclables into the correct containers.

Specialist problems Among materials found surprisingly often in commonly

used

objects

and

which

require

specialised handling to be safely recovered and recycled are: radioactive materials; mercury or mercury

containing

switches;

burnt

copper;

fluorescent tubes; and CFL bulbs; Did you know that a single fluorescent tube contains enough mercury to contaminate 30 000l of water? The problem of small but steady streams of mercury finding their way not only into our landfills

Recycled fractions of lamps and tubes includes

but also our water systems is a daunting one, and

glass, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, plastic,

difficult to manage.

mercury and phosphor powder which can all be

As of 23 August 2016, no hazardous waste electric and electronic equipment (WEEE) lamps in

products.

any form have been accepted at landfill in terms of

While problematic and sometimes requiring very

NEMWA (Act No 59 of 2008, Government Gazette,

specialised recovery and recycling measures, e-waste

No 10008, Volume 578, No

36784, 23 August

nonetheless represents a viable materials stream,

2013, page 44, Chapter 2, point 5, waste disposal

if it can be harvested in a cost-effective manner.

restrictions).

Improper discarding of e-waste into standard waste

The ban on hazardous WEEE lamps to landfill

streams is the least effective way of removing

includes all fluorescent tubes, compact fluorescent

unwanted electronic and obsolete equipment, and is

light bulbs (CFLs) and light emitting diodes (LEDs).

the most likely method of ensuring ongoing harm to

Specialists offer recycling of fluorescent tubes and other lamps, such as the Oripack collection system which has been operating since 2014.

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recovered and used in suitable end processes and

the environment for many decades, even centuries, to come.

Rapid technology change, low initial cost, and

Recycling of fluorescent tubes and lamps

even planned obsolescence have resulted in a

provides a total environmental solution, because it

fast-growing problem of stock-piled e-waste and

allows for the recovery of all fractions of the lamps

mismanagement

and tubes.

solutions are available but in most cases are

around

the

globe.

Technical

Interesting facts about recycling • Recycling one ton of paper on average saves 17 mature trees • Recycling creates jobs • Recycling contributes to a cleaner, greener and healthier environment • Recycling reduces waste going to landfill • Recycling paper produces fewer polluting emissions to air and water • Recycling is good for our economy as it decreases the necessity to import raw materials • 1kg of recycled newspaper offsets about 10km of emissions from the average car • 1 ton of recycled glass will offset about 1 000km of commercial air travel • 1kg of recycled aluminium will offset about 130km of train travel simply not being applied because of a lack of a legal framework, of finance models, collection systems, logistics and other services needing to be implemented before these viable technical solutions can be applied in a sustained and sustainable fashion.

Recycling everything The development of a fully elaborated system of recycling can produce not only new and thriving industries, along with the employment that that brings, it also helps improve general human well-being and health, and even builds community spirit and a more positive attitude among citizens towards their environment and each other.

Some may say this is going too far, but one only need look at countries like Sweden for the relevant confirmations.

SG

For more info or to participate in the 2017 International Coastal Clean-Up, visit: www.cleanupandrecycle.co.za. Alternatively, contact the following coordinators: • Inland Provinces: Jacques Lightfoot Jacques.Lightfoot@plasticssa.co.za • KZN: Douw Steyn Douw.Steyn@plasticssa.co.za • Cape Province: John Kieser John.Kieser@plasticssa.co.za Resources http://www.plasticsinfo.co.za/ http://www.recycling.co.za/ http://www.neopakrecycling.co.za/ http://www.neopakrecycling.co.za/company-info/ http://astrecycling.co.za/ https://ewasa.org/ https://www.oricoles.co.za/services/e-waste http://www.e-wastesolutions.co.za/

http://www.recyclepaper.co.za/

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BRAIN GAIN

Why SA’s brilliant expats are bringing their skills home

I T IS MORE THAN A M AG A ZINE, IT'S A MOV EMEN T The Digital version of Fast Company South Africa is now available on Apple iPad and Android tablets

Recycling electronics in South Africa is easy and efficient with AST recycling. Help us to keep this country clean and e-waste free with AST recycling!

Every organization has produced volumes of electronic media every year, from hard drives and data backup devices to CDs, DVDs, and magnetic tapes. However, disposing of old or obsolete electronic media poses environmental concern, as well as a risk of information exposure.

With AST recycling e-waste disposal is a very simple and eco-friendly process. We treat or process used electronics in order to make the materials more suitable for reuse. Our goal is to turn everything we collect into a reusable stream of components or commodities.

Electronic media has to be disposed of in a safe environment, owing to the toxic substances that they contain, which we don't want to add to our open-air landfills. Our technicians will collect every form of electronic media that you've marked for destruction, create an inventory of the materials collected for our own records, transport the electronic waste to our secure offsite facility, and then recycle the destroyed media using environmentally-friendly procedures.

Regardless of your industry, data security is a concern to all.

AST recycling offers mechanical shredding, a process that ensures 100% data destruction. We can provide every client with a data destruction guarantee and certification.

AST recycling promises nothing less than a convenient and efficient process for all removing and recycling your electronic waste products. With cases of identity theft and fraud on the rise, it's more vital now for companies everywhere to know that their electronic media and electronically-stored data is being securely contained and safely disposed by professionals.

Our company is committed to the highest quality and sustainability standards for the recycling of e-waste. We are a member of e-Waste Association of South Africa, and a proud Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) contributor, as declared by the National Empowerment Rating Agency (NERA).

As a responsible citizen, we view our active participation in the country's and economic development, as well as our contribution to the well-being of societies within which we operate, as critical.

we collect the following items • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Desktop & Laptop Computers Keyboards & Mice Smartphones, PDA's & Cell Phones GPS Systems LCD Monitors & Televisions MP3 Players CRT Televisions & Monitors Microwaves Game Systems Power Supply Systems Audio Equipment Computer Boards Digital Cameras Assorted Electrical Wire Camcorders Toner Cartridges Printers, Scanners, Copiers & Faxes Surge Protectors Satellite Components Power Cords

astrecycling.co.za

COMPANY PROFILE

THERE IS HOPE IN THE FUTURE MADI DROP The M‑Drop stays in the household drinking water container for six months, continuously controlling and eliminating waterborne illness and disease, providing ongoing protection against secondary contamination. There are no routine dosage requirements, no training, no maintenance and no replacement parts needed.

SAWYER MINI PERSONAL FILTER The MINI can be attached to the included collapsible drinking pouch, inline on a hydration pack, on a standard soda bottle, or simply use the included drinking straw to drink directly from the water source. Like all Sawyer filters, a proper backwashing can restore up to 98.5% of the filter’s flow rate. That means no expensive cartridges to replace, ever.

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Future Strategy was established in 2012 in response to the market demand for independent and innovative solutions to the strategic challenges faced by companies, corporations, entrepreneurs and individuals. Their aim is, through their subsidiary companies, to be a creative and dynamic force and influence in the creation and conduit of wealth in Sub-Sahara Africa and beyond. We take a look at some of their pioneering partners.

VILLAGE BUCKET WATER FILTER The Village Water Filter bucket filter utilizes a .1 micron hollow fibre membrane filter. The filter element itself is manufactured by NOK of Japan. The bucket filter removes all bacteria and protozoa to meet or exceed EPA standards. The goal is to provide a low cost water filter that will reduce pain, suffering and death caused by consuming unclean water.

KOHLER CLARITY COUNTERTOP FILTER Kohler has a long history of product design and manufacturing that manages to blend form and function. Now, they are bringing their expertise to WaSH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) initiatives worldwide to help solve health and hygiene problems, such as limited access to safe drinking water.

KOHLER Clarity is incredibly simple to use and maintain. Backed by Kohler’s commitment to quality, it’s made with Kohler’s philosophy of fusing aspirational design and technology.

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W ater

SA Among Hardest Hit

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Water scarcity is a global challenge, with southern Africa being the hardest hit. South Africa is especially water stressed – ranked the 30th driest country in the world. WWF, one of the world's largest and most respected independent conservation organisations, takes a closer look.

W

ith annual rainfall levels about half the world average, South Africa also experiences

unevenly

distributed

rainfall in our landscapes and we have a highly variable climate where droughts and floods are common.

Water availability is one of the most decisive factors that will affect the economic, social and environmental well-being of South Africa over the next decade, with huge economic development pressures and social upliftment challenges. Half of our river flow is supplied by a mere 8% of the land area of South Africa – this small area of land forms our vital water source areas. And yet only 16% of this land is formally protected. Our current growth and development requires a new way of planning to protect these precious natural assets to ensure that future generations inherit healthy landscapes and a water secure future for all.

WWF is also involved in driving water stewardship

initiatives with both communities and corporations, identifying

water

risks

and

ensuring

healthy

water-supplying landscapes such as wetlands, as well as enabling water balance through the clearing of water-thirsty alien vegetation and restoring our river systems.

We must realise that water does not come from a dam, pipe or tap – and that water supply issues cannot be solved by building more dams or creating more infrastructure. It requires rehabilitating, maintaining and conserving the natural areas which form the critical catchments and ‘water factories’ for our country.

Water is the reason we have life on Earth. The water cycle connects us all and in turn is dependent on a healthy, living planet. Pollution and destruction of the natural resources threaten this existence.

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What is WWF doing around water?

Our water work focuses on the critical role of

1. We have the potential to provide water for

a healthy, natural environment in providing us

all South Africans but 18% of SA relies on

with water security. WWF works with partners and

communal taps and 9% of households don’t

communities to secure protection of the land that

even have access to clean water, relying on

makes up our water source areas – the 8%.

What can you do?

•

Find out where your water really comes from.

Fix any leaking faucets or dripping taps.

•

•

Africa, half the water in our rivers and dams comes from just 8% of our land.

and in-between washing your hair and put a

average rainfall each year. It is the 30th driest

bit of water in a basin when rinsing fruit and

country in the world and 98% of our water is

vegetables.

already allocated. We are not re-engineering

Collect shower or bath water in a bucket and

water-wise cities fast enough in response to

Re-direct water from your washing machine into a way that you can use it for flushing.

•

from living catchments and aquifers. In South

Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth

then flushing the toilet.

•

springs, rivers and wetlands.

2. Water doesn’t come from a tap – it comes

3. South Africa receives just half of the world’s

re-use this greywater for mopping floors and

climate change and droughts.

4. In 2016, 8 out of 9 provinces were declared disaster areas due to the ongoing drought.

5. 35% of drinking water is wasted in cities and

Realise that water saving must be ongoing

municipalities due to leaks. This includes

even when there has been good rainfall, or

privately owned homes.

if your city’s dams are fairly full. Using water wisely requires a change in mindset and water-saving habits.

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Fast facts

SG

Water doesn’t come from a tap.

Water goes on a long and complicated journey to get to you.

Visit journeyofwater.co.Za to learn more about where your water comes from.

Photo Š Hougaard Malan

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Think Twice Before You use a Public Washroom Soap Dispenser - It Could Make You ill

FACT: A top up soap dispenser found in public toilets can contain more than three million bacteria. One in four dispensers is contaminated and can actually leave your hands with 25 times more bacteria than before you washed them!

These bacteria are known as opportunistic microbes and can cause eye infections, skin infections, bladder infections, bronchitis, flu and urinary tract infections. They also

endanger

people

who

have

compromised

immune systems and those recovering from surgery or major burns.

The Centre for Disease control backs this up with its guidelines on how hand care products should be stored.

Hand care products, including plain (non-antimicrobial) soap and antiseptic products can become contaminated or support the growth of micro-organisms.

Liquid products should be stored in closed containers and dispensed from either disposable containers or containers that are washed and dried thoroughly before refilling. Soap should not be added to a partially empty dispenser, because this practice of "topping off" might lead to

The John Yablonski Study found that 100% of newly installed refillable bulk soap dispensers were grossly contaminated within months due to the reservoir being open. When bacteria like coliform contaminates soap, it thrives in it and when new soap is added to the old supply without rinsing out the dispensers first, it only exacerbates the problem. Every time more soap is added the bacteria says,

‘Good,

more

food.”

Once

dispensers

are

contaminated, bacterial ‘biofilm’ returns to the inside even after cleaning and not even bleach can clean it completely.

Topping UP creates known hygiene and cross contamination issues and is not sanitary Veronica Vivier of Nuwkem Hygiene says “Research confirms that using refillable bulk soap dispensers in a public toilet (the ordinary pink soap you most often see in a public toilet) is actually working against your efforts of keeping your hands hygienic. As 80% of infections are spread through hand contact, a contaminated hand will transfer that bacteria to 27 surfaces and the damage multiplies.”

bacterial contamination of soap and negate the beneficial effect of hand cleaning and disinfection.”

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www.nuwkem.co.za

View our product range to see how we can help improve hand hygiene in your office.

Potential for virus dispersal in the washroom while washing hands TOP-UP SOAP DISPENSER

HYGIENICALLY SEALED SOAP DISPENSER

80%

CONTAMINATION

ZERO

CONTAMINATION

TOP-UP SOAP DISPENSER

HYGIENICALLY SEALED SOAP DISPENSER

80%

ZERO

CONTAMINATION

CONTAMINATION

HAND WASHING IS AN IMPORTANT PART OF HYGIENE “Bacteria resides in all skin creases on the hands and

What then is the solution or alternate to refillable

nails, so hands need to be washed for long enough i.e.

dispensers? Hygienically sealed systems or sachets with

15-20 seconds to get rid of the bacteria. Ensuring we have

pumps. The sealed systems have new, clean soap that is

clean hands is one of the most important steps we can

never

take to avoid getting sick and spreading germs to others,

contamination from germs in the air or from the fingers

maintains Vivier“.

of the person doing the refilling, and the container

We asked the service industry the following questions, the answers are alarming: Does the dispenser get emptied and cleaned between fills?

NO!

Does new soap get poured on top of old soap?

YES!

Does the dispenser lid get properly replaced/secured?

Sometimes!

Does the operator clean around the handle/pump?

NO!

Does the operator ensure that their hands are sanitary before topping up?

Do the dispensers drip?

Does the soap separate in the dispenser?

opened

and

refilled.

They

help

prevent

is recyclable.

Nuwkem Hygiene, supplies hygienically sealed soap refill sachets in anti - bacterial foam soap or lotion foam soap refills. The soap sachets are versatile, recyclable, tamperproof, hermetically sealed with a refill / pump combination.

Nuwkem - a great reason to change from bulk filled soap dispensers to sachet soap filled dispensers.

Unh?????

Often yes Often yes For more information, please contact us on+27(0) 11 455 6307 or charl@nuwkem.co.za

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C limate C hange

Agulhas Current sheds light on climate patterns

South Africa has one of the fastest and strongest flowing currents in the world running along its east coast: the Agulhas Current. It influences local as well as global rainfall and climate. Katherine Hutchinson, PhD Candidate, South African Environmental Observations Network, and Department of Oceanography at the University of Cape Town, explains why it's important to monitor a current that plays a significant role in the global ocean conveyor belt.

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W

hat is the impact of the Agulhas Current on the local climate and why does it matter in the global context?

The Agulhas Current transports warm tropical

Indian Ocean water southwards along the South African coast. It modulates the rainfall along the east coast and interior regions of South Africa by providing the latent heat of evaporation needed for onshore wind systems to pick up moisture and carry it inland.

The current itself also sets the backdrop for local ecosystems which contribute to South African fisheries. Friction between the current and the continental shelf edge drives upwelling of nutrient rich bottom water. This in turn promotes high levels of phytoplankton – the grass of the ocean which sustains the aquatic food web.

The Agulhas Current also plays a critical role in global ocean circulation which is why it's considered important for climatic conditions across the world.

This is due to a process known as the Agulhas Leakage. The current flows along the east coast of South Africa and then turns back on itself flowing into the Indian Ocean. But during this process (known as a retroflection), large pockets of warm, salty, Indian Ocean water are pinched off from the current. They form ring-like structures called Agulhas Rings or eddies which are massive spinning vortices. These eddies slowly head north-westwards, crossing the South Atlantic Ocean and eventually feed into the Gulf Stream which flows along the east coast of North America.

The Gulf Stream helps modulate the climate conditions of North America and Western Europe.

How do we know this?

Oceanographers understand currents by measuring the changes in the ocean. But the challenge up until recently had been that the data collected on the Agulhas System only explained the current's behaviour at a certain point in time.

As a result, many oceanographers have turned to computer models that simulate how ocean currents respond to other factors – like winds – which are measured by satellites. These models are not perfect, but can be very useful in providing insight into connections between different factors affecting the ocean.

The complex nature of the Agulhas Current has made it very difficult to simulate using ocean models. Until 2010 oceanographers were only able to observe the Agulhas Current with snapshots they got by deploying instruments during research cruises.

But scientific developments, combined with international collaboration, have allowed South Africa to place two long term monitoring lines across areas of the ocean where it's believed critical exchanges of heat and salt are taking place. Heat and salt are essential parameters as they determine the buoyancy of a water mass, its tendency to sink or float. Buoyancy differences and wind forcing are the two mechanisms that drive ocean circulation.

To measure the oceans response to climatic changes (alterations in heat and salt fluxes and shifts in wind patterns), continuous monitoring is needed. These monitoring lines are made up of instruments placed throughout the water column. They measure current speed, direction and temperature at extremely high temporal resolutions.

The first array ran from 2010 to 2013 (the Agulhas Current Time-series Experiment). This consisted of moorings placed across the Agulhas Current just off the coast of Port Elizabeth. In 2015 oceanographers replaced it with the Agulhas System Climate Array (ASCA). These moorings are currently measuring the evolution of the Agulhas Current with time, providing scientists with vital information on the current's behaviour.

Where are the gaps?

The ASCA array sheds a great deal of light on the behaviour of the Agulhas Current and the local A map of the Agulhas Current System. provided by author

S G 54

implications for South Africa. But it doesn't provide

information on the amount of warm Agulhas water being leaked into the South Atlantic. This leakage is a critical link in the global ocean conveyor belt and so understanding how it is changing over time is essential in preparing for the consequences of climate change.

Another project was initiated in 2013 to measure the exchange of water from the Indian Ocean into the South Atlantic, the South Atlantic MOC Basin-wide Array (SAMBA). South Africa, in

collaboration with France and Brazil, placed a series of instruments to capture the 'corridor' of Agulhas Rings that cross the Atlantic. The aim is to monitor long term changes in inter-ocean exchange at the east and west borders of the South Atlantic.

The Agulhas Current also plays a critical role in global ocean circulation which is why it's considered important for climatic conditions across the world.

Oceanographers previously believed that the Agulhas Current had been strengthening over time due to an increase in the Southern Hemisphere winds. But the array showed that it has been

Depictions of the SAMBA and ASCA arrays. provided by author

broadening and not strengthening. The effects of this broadening are currently being investigated, but one outcome is that a wider current allows for a

Brazil, the United States and Argentina have

greater exchange of water between the inshore and

deployed similar moorings on the western portion

offshore areas meaning that pollutants will more

of the basin contributing to the end goal – to

easily be shifted out to sea.

create a basin-wide array to bridge the entire South Atlantic.

It's crucial that in-situ monitoring of the Agulhas Current system continues. This kind of data will

What do we know so far?

allow scientists to detect changes in the current over time. It will also help oceanographers improve their

South Africa is located at a major crossroad of

models and help them understand how variations in

ocean-basin exchange between the Indian and

the current affect local and global ocean circulation

Atlantic Oceans. Several modelling studies have

and climate.

SG

tried to simulate how these exchanges will alter with climate change under varying scenarios. But they have often produced conflicting and inconclusive findings.

Republish by courtesy of The Conversation under Creative Commons licence.

Katherine Hutchinson is a PhD Candidate, South African Environmental Observations Network, and Department of Oceanography, University of Cape Town. She is a physical oceanographer with a passion for understanding the driving forces of ocean circulation and how the ocean-atmosphere system is responding to climate change. Katherine is in her final year PhD student in physical oceanography. Her project involves a collaboration between UCT, the South African Environmental Observations Network, the University of Miami and l'Institut Universitaire EuropĂŠen de la Mer.

55 S G

Energy

What's really going on with Fracking in the Karoo?

South Africa has been considering shale gas development in the Karoo – an arid part of the country that spans more than 400 000 square kilometres – to add to its energy mix. The possibility of 'fracking' in the region has provoked heated debate. The Conversation Africa's Ozayr Patel asked Robert Scholes and Greg Schreiner to unpack the issues.

S G 56

57 S G

W 

hat's happening in terms of shale

and wind energy? Because adding quick-to-respond

gas development in South Africa? The

gas turbines into the South African energy mix

Scientific Assessment for Shale Gas

increases the ability of the power generation system

Development in the Central Karoo was published in

to use intermittent renewable energy sources in a

October 2016. So far no decisions on the current

way which slow-to-respond power sources like coal

exploration right applications have been made,

and nuclear cannot.

despite reports to the contrary. If rights are granted,

This technical policy decision has already been

exploration activities could start within the next

taken, as reflected in the country's integrated

3-5 years, conditional on the results of site-specific

resources plan; the only question is where to source

environmental impact assessments.

the gas.

If it's found that gas from deep shale layers can be liberated at commercially viable flow rates, the Karoo could be the location of a domestic gas industry within the next 20 years, lasting for several decades.

The public and the regulators have had lots of questions about the potential development of shale gas in the Karoo. The scientific assessment assembled a team of over 140 experts to evaluate these questions, clustered under 17 broad issues raised by the stakeholders. It is perhaps the most comprehensive study of its kind undertaken in South Africa.

Is there gas under the Karoo?

Definitely. The deep boreholes drilled in the 1970s

Relative to the use of imported gas, a viable

revealed traces of gas, especially in the shales of

Karoo shale gas find would save foreign exchange,

the Whitehill Formation at the bottom of the Karoo

accrue tax and employment benefits and improve

geological sequence, several kilometres below the

national energy security. The number of jobs

surface. At the time it was deemed non-recoverable

provided is quite small, especially for the low-skilled

because it is 'tight' gas, reluctantly yielded by

unemployed (a few hundred). The size of a shale gas

the rock. Technical advances, especially horizontal

industry in financial turnover terms is of the same

drilling and hydraulic fracturing (fracking), now

order of magnitude as the existing Karoo farming

make it possible to extract tight shale gas.

and tourism industries. So it would make little sense

This does not mean that it's economically viable to do so in the Karoo. Large volumes of gas have been claimed to be present based on sparse

to promote shale gas if it were to the significant detriment of existing, longer-term sectors.

data, but the economically recoverable resource

What are the main concerns?

is much, much smaller. Best current estimates

Fracking has been shown to increase the frequency

put it in the range 5 to 20 trillion cubic feet (tcf).

of small earth tremors. But the Karoo is exceptionally

By global standards, even the top end would be

seismically stable, and the increased risk of

relatively small. For example, the proven reserves of

dangerously large earthquakes was judged by the

conventional gas in the Mozambique Channel are 75

scientific assessment to be small.

tcf. But by local standards, even the low end would

The risk to water resources is the biggest

be helpful; the offshore Mossgas field, now almost

concern to all those involved. Each production well

depleted, was less than 1 tcf.

needs about 15 million litres of fluid to frack. The

What are the benefits of shale gas development?

Why use gas at all when there is abundant cheap solar

S G 58

Cartoon demonstrating the difference between 'conventional' and 'unconventional' gas reserves

fluid is mostly water (it doesn't have to be fresh), sand and a small quantity of potentially harmful chemicals. After fracking, the fluid is pumped back to the surface and stored for fracking the next well.

Eventually the contaminated water must be purified,

formerly quiet environment, already struggling to

the hazardous material sent to a licensed disposal

service the resident population.

facility (currently there are none in the Karoo), and the clean water returned to the environment.

What questions remain?

The greatest risk is that the fracking fluid

Fracking in the Karoo has been presented as a

leaks into the surface water and shallow aquifers

'yes-no' decision that will be taken by government.

used by people, livestock and the ecosystem, due

In reality, the choices are more nuanced, far in the

to inadequate sealing of the upper parts of the

future, and not solely governmental. The scientific

borehole, or following a spill on the surface. These

assessment asked 'under what circumstances and

risks can be reduced, but not eliminated, by good

under what regulations would it be sensible?' It

engineering.

found no reason to completely eliminate shale gas as

Current potable water resources in the Karoo

an option – if best practice is followed. The question

are already fully allocated. The additional water

that will determine if development proceeds is

requirements for shale gas development would

whether the resource is sufficiently attractive for the

either need to use water from local non-potable

private sector to invest the billions of rand needed.

sources, such as deep saline groundwater, or water

Only exploration can answer that.

SG

imported from outside the region.

The impact of shale gas development on the unique Karoo fauna and flora would mainly come from the accompanying habitat fragmentation and

Republished from The Conversation under Creative Commons licence

disturbance, rather than physical destruction. Each well-pad occupies just over a hectare, and the number

Robert Scholes

per well-field is about 50. A small gas find may be

Professor Bob Scholes is a Systems Ecologist at the Global

one well-field, a big find may be five. So the area

Change Institute (GCI), University of the Witwatersrand. Robert

directly affected is a tiny fraction of the Karoo land

Scholes received funding from the CSIR to lead the Scientific

area, even once the connecting roads and pipelines

Assessment of Shale Gas. He is a Trustee of WWF-SA.

are considered. The exact location of the well-pads is quite flexible, which reduces the potential impact on

Greg Schreiner

both the rich Karoo cultural heritage resources and

Sustainability scientist, Council for Scientific and Industrial

particular plant or animal populations.

Research. Greg Schreiner does not work for, consult, own shares

The biggest and least tractable impact is likely

in or receive funding from any company or organisation that

to be social: the introduction of noise, traffic, lights,

would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant

workers, work-seekers and their dependants into a

affiliations beyond the academic appointment above.

59 S G

Energy

Nuclear & coal lobbies threaten renewables in South Africa South African power utility Eskom recently repeated that it will not conclude supply contracts with the developers of new renewable energy power stations. These developers were selected under a programme to facilitate private sector involvement in the building of medium-sized renewable energy power stations. The programme has won plaudits for its success in facilitating the establishment of multiple solar and wind farms in record time. But Eskom is once again stalling. The power utility's stand threatens the viability of the entire renewable energy sector in the country. Its hostility also defies logic given that the whole world is embracing renewable energy as key to a clean energy future and combating climate change. University of Johannesburg Physics Professor Hartmut Winkler looks at the issues.

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61 S G

S

o what lies behind the opposition to renewables? The answer lies in the fact that two powerful lobbies are at work in

South Africa. One is pro-coal, the other pro-nuclear.

This has made the success of the renewable energy projects a target for attacks from interested parties in both. Disrupting the renewable energy sector would ensure that the coal sector remains dominant.

And that, over time, it is gradually displaced by nuclear.

The lobby groups attached to coal and nuclear appear to have had powerful allies on the state utility's board. There is mounting evidence that they have been furthering the interests of a group linked to the Gupta family. It in turn has been accused of capturing state entities to further its own ends, as well as those of President Jacob Zuma, his family and allies.

It has also been widely argued that the massively expensive proposed nuclear build is being driven by the same interest groups.

The battle over renewables is therefore closely linked to a wider political confrontation over control of key aspects of the South African economy.

Eskom's flawed argument The renewables dispute centres on the state utility's refusal to endorse 1121 MW of new renewable energy.

nuclear power. It can't have it both ways.

This translates to about 1% of Eskom's current

Powerful forces at play

generated electricity, given that renewable energy

Until two years ago Eskom was seen as a neutral

supply is intermittent. This additional renewable

player committed to effectively provide electric

energy would make up 5% of the total renewable

power in the best interests of the country. It threw its

energy generating capacity projected by 2030.

weight behind previous power procurement plans.

Eskom accepts the need to expand its generating potential in the long term. The additional contribution

But that all changed in 2015 after Brian Molefe was appointed CEO.

from renewables is well within its broader expansion

Molefe and his successor Matshela Koko are both

targets. And tariffs on the energy from renewable

linked to the controversial Gupta family. Their names

sources would be almost half of the estimated cost

featured in the Public Protector's State of Capture

of new coal and new nuclear power.

report as well as in a bulk leak of emails which

The Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown has been disingenuous in citing cost as a reason to stop

implicated the Guptas and other leading figures in the state capture network.

the last phase of renewables. The higher costs she

Molefe and Koko played a pivotal role in helping

recently quoted were presumably those associated

the Guptas purchase a coal mine – the Optimum

with the first round of renewable energy projects.

mine – and to secure a lucrative coal supply contract

These contracts were concluded in 2012 and prices

with Eskom. Both are also strongly pro-nuclear. They

for renewables have come down considerably since.

have also gone on record to argue that renewable

For its part Eskom has pointed to the oversupply

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Koeberg Power Plant

energy is too expensive.

of electricity as the reason for its objection. But

Eskom has furthermore listed renewables as the

elsewhere it has trumpeted the need for more

reason for planning to shut down four coal power

The lobby groups attached to coal and nuclear appear to have had powerful allies on the state utility's board. There is mounting evidence that they have been furthering the interests of a group linked to the Gupta family. It in turn has been accused of capturing state entities to further its own ends, as well as those of President Jacob Zuma, his family and allies. plants. In reality, these old plants had already been

generate over 100 000 jobs in South Africa.

destined for closure in anticipation of the imminent

Kubayi has also shown that she's highly receptive

additional power supply expected from two new coal

to the nuclear lobby. Visiting a nuclear industry

plants – Medupi and Kusile.

fair in Russia in the middle of June she expressed

It's suspicious that one of the power stations

concern that the judicial disqualification of the

facing closure, Hendrina, is supplied by coal from

existing nuclear co-operation agreement damaged

the Optimum mine. The effect of stalling renewable

relations with that country.

power expansion could force the extension of Hendrina's life span.

Brown is in the process of restructuring the Eskom board after Molefe departed, Koko was

It has been convincingly argued that South Africa can't afford the nuclear option in the current economic environment.

suspended and the chairperson of the board

The immediate future

resigned. Although there are signs that the minister

The global ascendancy of renewables and their

is aware that she has been misled by the Eskom

particular pertinence in South African climatic

board on other matters, she doesn't seem to believe

conditions may even make coal and nuclear energy

this is true when it comes to renewables, repeating

technologies obsolete in the future. Ultimately South

recently the view that it's too expensive.

Africa won't be able to buck international trends.

Brown's counterpart in the energy portfolio, Nkhensani Kubayi, has displayed little sympathy for

That means that, in the longer term, the future of renewables in South Africa remains bright.

SG

the renewable energy sector, also making far-fetched and easily disprovable claims that the initial solar and wind power stations have resulted in zero jobs.

Renewable energy is in fact estimated to eventually

Republished with permission from the author and The Conversation

63 S G

How has the business model changed from what it was originally?

Our mission at Zeroth is to change the way we use energy and effectively and productively manage our energy sources – energy in all forms. Our principal objective is to make RENEWABLE ENERGY (RE) accessible to the masses and effectively, through a comprehensive paradigm shift, alter methodologies of producing food, personal and produce transportation and power to our industries and residences.

We believe we should – to achieve a sustainable system – make a profound contribution to the education system to develop leaders and entrepreneurs to innovate and conceptualise. In our present system of education employees merely teach and train more employees.

With you becoming a more full power producer how will this affect your clients?

We have worked extremely hard and will continue to work hard to make sure that our clients will be able to have a ‘one-stop-shop’ if you will, for all their energy needs. What that means is that our clients will be able to communicate their needs and we will be able to direct the most appropriate solution, and maximise savings and benefit to the them.

At Zeroth we ultimately link multiple high-quality suppliers with their end-users in the mass market. This process includes a review of current suppliers in the market, and qualifying them within our fundamental business principles. This ultimately allows us

to understand the best offerings available on the market for a variety of end-users. Thereafter, we now understand which solutions to recommend for our network of end-users.

We already have amazing partners with a range of solutions available. They have considerable expertise and experience in the renewable and energy space.

What do you find the most difficult in the industry right now?

TRUST is the most difficult thing to find in the industry right now. We put this in capital letters, because the innovation and solutions we present, are new for most clients we engage with. Solar and other forms of renewable energy have been around for some time now.

However, there is still a significant amount of social proof, or social validation required before everyone will trust micro-grid solutions.

People are just use to energy coming from the state. That is why we work with our clients every step of the way, and we make sure that they understand the full measure of what they are signing up for, not only including the benefits, but also some of the risks all parties carry in this process. We see no other way of doing business....if we can’t be transparent we shouldn't be doing business. As a matter of fact....if we are unclear to one of our clients, and they are thrown a curve ball...we lose all our credibility. Honesty and Transparency is one of the main pillars we have built our business on. Clients trust us to represent their needs, and find them the best possible solutions. They trust us enough to sit back, and focus on their business. We do the rest.

CONTACT For more information on our Solar Rental Solution visit

www.zeroth.co.za

Tel 081 270 1298 • Email info@zeroth.co.za S G 64

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E nergy N ews

Morocco gains new loan for hybrid PV-CSP project Morocco has received approval for a $25 million loan from the Climate Investment Funds’ Clean Technology Fund (CIF CTF) for the Noor Midelt Phase I combined PV and CSP project, the African Development Bank (AfDB) said in a recent statement.

The AfDB and the World Bank have already agreed to support Noor Midelt Phase I, which consists of two hybrid PV-CSP projects each of CSP gross capacity 150-190 MW and a minimum of five hours of thermal storage.

The Moroccan government has chosen to support hybrid PV-CSP plants for Noor Midelt to provide low-cost power output during the day and electricity supply after sunset.

While PV with batteries are seen as the most economic solar solution for storage durations of a few hours, CSP plants offer lower generation costs across longer storage periods.

Morocco has set a target of installing 10 GW of wind and solar power by 2030 and the country has been a frontrunner in CSP deployment.

The government has preselected solar development sites at Ouarzazate and Midelt, both situated in central Morocco.

Full Story

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Wacker Chemie signs heat transfer fluid deal with Chinese developer Germany's Wacker Chemie has signed an exclusive supply agreement with Chinese CSP developer Royal Tech for its silicone fluid heat transfer medium, Wacker Chemie said in a statement.

Royal Tech is currently developing a 50 MW parabolic trough plant in the city of Yumen in Western China and a 100 MW plant in Inner Mongolia.

The Chinese company has been involved in the research and development (R&D) and industrialisation of CSP technology since 2009. The company is involved along the value chain, from R&D through project development, component manufacturing, commissioning and maintenance.

China plans to build 1.3 GW of CSP capacity by 2018 in a first batch of 20 CSP projects. The plants will benefit from some of China's best solar irradiation conditions, but many of them will be subjected to extreme desert and winter weather conditions. These include the Western regions of Qinghai and Yunnan provinces.

Full Story

SCIENTISTS FIND IT IS POSSIBLE TO SEND DATA THROUGH THE ELCTRICITY GRID For the first time anywhere on Earth, UK scientists have successfully transmitted data through a national electricity grid. The achievement marks a leap toward ‘virtual’ power grids which allow homes and businesses to use energy more wisely.

Because the system uses the electricity grid itself to send data signals, the technology can be installed and implemented quickly and without the need for additional infrastructure. In a test of 20 receivers on UK’s national grid, 100% of the signals sent were successfully received. Technology like this could help people lower their energy bills, cut peaks in energy use that strain the grid, and reduce or even eliminate the need for dirty generators that are often employed to supply extra energy during peak times.

Full Story

SINGAPORE'S $11m solar testbed will be the largest ever made Could floating solar offer a viable renewable energy option for island countries? Singapore authorities are testing out 10 solar panel systems on what will be the largest floating solar testbed in the world at the Tengeh Reservoir. As Singapore boasts 17 freshwater reservoirs, floating solar could be a perfect option for the country to generate its own clean energy. The 10 systems will undergo tests for a minimum of six months, and ultimately two will be selected to be scaled up and tested in a second phase.

Full Story

Major advanceS in solar cells Solar cells made from an inexpensive and increasingly popular material called perovskite can more efficiently turn sunlight into electricity using a new technique to sandwich two types of perovskite into a single photovoltaic cell. Perovskite solar cells are made of a mix of organic molecules and inorganic elements that together capture light and convert it into electricity, just like today’s more common silicon-based solar cells. Perovskite photovoltaic devices, however, can be made more easily and cheaply than silicon and on a flexible rather than rigid substrate.

Full Story

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E nergy N ews CONCEPT DEVICE: The Smartflower POP Combining smart technology and clean energy generators is easily the next biggest trend in the renewable energy industry, and the developers of smartflower POP are ahead of the curve. Since its emergence in 2010, the clever solar power system has honed in on what private homeowners want from a sustainable energy source, and the latest version now promises 40% more energy output thanks to its ability to track the sun as well as clean and cool itself. Its creators hail it as the 'world’s first all-in-one' solar power system, and they think it could take the industry by storm.

Full Story

breakING energy conversion limits Researchers at MIT are heating up clean energy technology with a new solar cell capable of converting solar heat into usable light, which raises the overall solar-to-electricity conversion rate of the cell. The new device demonstrates, for the first time ever, a method that allows solar cells to use heat to break through a theoretically predicted limitation on the amount of sunlight which can be converted into electricity.

Compared to traditional solar cells, MIT’s new invention could be the thing that takes the clean energy industry to the next level. The team, including doctoral student David Bierman, started working to convert sunlight first into heat, and then into electricity, using devices known as solar thermophotovoltaics (STPVs). Acknowledging the previously held ideas about limitations of solar efficiency, Bierman said, 'with solar thermal photovoltaics you have the possibility to exceed that'. And they did.

Full Story

TESLA LOOK TO SUPPORT WIND FARM Deepwater Wind LLC is proposing to pair Tesla Inc batteries with massive offshore wind turbines as part of a bid to supply the state of Massachusetts with clean energy generated at sea. The company submitted its bid recently in response to a request from National Grid Plc, Unitil Corp and Eversource Energy for about 9.45 million MWh of annual clean energy supply. The contracts – open to hydro-electric, solar and other forms of clean energy – require the majority of power to be delivered during late winter afternoons and evenings.

Full Story

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RainQueen Tanks is a corrugated steel manufacturing business with factories in Stellenbosch and Johannesburg.

Even though our main focus is steel water tanks we are excited about the many ways in which corrugated steel can be used and pride ourselves in delivering a variety of beautiful products.

These range from Tanks, Reservoirs, Pools and Ponds to Raised Garden Beds, Planters, Recycling products, our unique garden shed or Tuinhuys and many smaller handcrafted items.

We are keen to expand the uses of corrugated steel, and are always happy to discuss new products, designs and custom made tanks no smaller than 550mm.

For a full list of our services visit

rainqueentanks.co.za

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Mobility

M otoring The history of transport is the story of how we, as humans have created and innovated increasingly smart and streamlined ways to get from here, to there.

Carel Snyman, General Manager of SANEDI's Cleaner Mobility Programme take a look at how our own mobility has jeopardised our future.

A Time for Change

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71 S G

S

tarting on foot our resourceful imaginations have automated transport taking us from horse drawn journeys to wheeled and winged

adventures across the globe. Building ports and laying railway tracks and highways, we’ve expanded a network of connection across towns, cities and countries.

As the world becomes increasingly urban, densely populated areas will face dramatic and seemingly intractable transportation issues. 50% of the global population already lives in cities and, according to the United Nations, that number will approach 70% in the next 40 years.

If current trends continue, people’s reliance on cars will only increase, particularly in emerging markets. As the growing population becomes more affluent, the number of vehicles on the road worldwide is projected to triple, to as much as 3 billion by 2035, according to economic forecasters

Lewis Mumford, The Roaring Traffic’s Boom

Global Insight. It is in developing countries that the

people moving from the city centres to their urban

greatest growth rates in motor vehicles have been

periphery. This dispersion reduces access to public

seen in the past few years and are expected in the

transportation and makes the cost of building

future, primarily in urban areas.

and maintaining new public transportation systems

And as the traffic jams worsen, much more than

prohibitive. Overall, non-motorized modes of

time will be lost. Vehicle congestion typically erodes

transportation even in the urban areas of developing

a country’s GDP by 1-3%. And the pollution, noise,

countries can only remain viable options if there is

accidents, and altering of the landscape attributable

a suitably high population density and a mixed land

to cars and roads may leave long-term health and

use development pattern.

The environmental and social impacts of these

psychological scars on local communities.

Sadly, in our hunger for newer and faster we

trends are significant because they are directly

have not always considered the environmental

related to quality of life and urban productivity. These

impact of our transit choices and what once seemed

impacts include congestion, energy consumption,

so smart is having an increasingly negative impact

air pollution, and traffic accidents.

on our health and the health of our planet. Instead

In addition to the huge amounts of energy

of moving us faster our transport systems are

transportation consumes, motor vehicles produce

slowing us down and sometimes even reversing

more air pollution than any other human activity.

our progress. The streets that once connected us

In city centres, where traffic congestion levels are

are now congested sites of anger and frustration.

high, traffic can be responsible for as much as

Our cool wheeled inventions no longer providing

90-95% of the ambient carbon monoxide levels,

us with safe, cost-effective, efficient means to get

80-90% of nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons, and

from A to B.

a large portion of the particulates, posing a major visible

threat to human health and natural resources. The

manifestation of the failures in urban transportation

transportation sector is the most rapidly growing

planning, and its costs are significant. For example,

source of greenhouse gas emissions. (Urban

in Bangkok alone, yearly congestion cost estimates

Transportation in Developing Countries: Trends,

vary from $272m to more than $1b according to

Impacts, and Potential Systemic Strategies)

Congestion

is

perhaps

the

most

the Road Management & Engineering Journal of TranSafety, Inc.

S G 72

'Adding highway lanes to deal with traffic congestion is like loosening your belt to cure obesity.'

Due to our choices, of energy carriers (fuels like petrol, diesel, etc) and vehicles technologies (internal

The rapid, unplanned, and uncoordinated growth

combustion engines) to do the transportation work,

of cities has dispersed their populations, with more

the world is facing challenges in terms of the energy

supply and exhaust gasses released into the air.

about 15% in kilometres. A process of combustion

In terms of energy supply, fluctuating prices and

that releases harmful exhaust gases to the urban

availability of the primary energy (oil) have been

atmosphere – an unsustainable practice that should

issues that led to conflict in the past. The toxicity

be discontinued.

and environmental damage of the exhaust gases

Typically most cars, designed to carry up to an

have led to laws that aim to clean the combustion

average of four passengers, carries only a single

process as well as limiting the release of the

passenger into the city during the commuting

emissions.

times. This means that the road space is wasted and

This led to changes in the specification of the

badly utilized in terms of people moved per area

combustion engine, the exhaust system, and the

of road. This compares badly with public transport

fuel specification. All of these resulting in higher

infrastructure or the use of smaller modes such as

costs of vehicles as well as their fuels.

a bicycle.

Something has to be done. There’s no need

So let us re-invent the way we move. The focus

to throw out all our smart thinking or our smart

is on the daily commute – that is where most

vehicles. What we need to do is re-think how best

damage is done in terms of eroding our earnings

to use these to ensure safe, speedy and affordable

from mineral exports paying for imported fossil

transport for all. Concentrating on getting the mix

fuels, poisoning the urban air that we breath and

right and giving priority to environmentally friendly

disrupting the CO2 balance in the world contributing

options, together we can reclaim our streets as sites

to climate change.

of community and connection.

Think before you drive, rather ride on public

The need to find and implement alternatives

transport, change and improve on your mobility

to finite fossil fuels, end-use technologies that are

habits. You can right-size your ride, share your

wasting energy and produce harmful emissions is

ride and power your ride with sustainable energy

becoming more important. The mode of transport

sources. This means your own human energy or

that stands out as the “weak link” in terms of energy

renewable energies from the sun, wind, biomass

consumption, emissions produced and the main

waste and others.

cause of city congestion, is the century old personal car.

Due

Do not expect change if you continue to do the same things that got you in this mess. Realise that

to

the

internal

combustion

engine

you are part of the problem. Your are not in traffic –

technology used for propulsion, most of the fuel

you are traffic. Do not demand the change – be part

in the tank (64%) ends up in heat and only

of the change. Make it happen.

SG

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COMPANY PROFILE

Putting

the brakes on emissions A new hydraulic lower cost and more efficient version of hybrid transmissions is set for launch to reshape the way South Africa seeks to do green transport in the country. We take a look at the Miser hydraulic hybrid system, developed by small business engineering firm Ducere Holdings, as a solution to regenerative braking and engine optimization for any size vehicle.

A 

ndre Reyneke, managing director at Ducere

experts have demonstrated 70% fuel savings in

Holdings says: 'While our country may not

city transit and 52% on highways, and correlates

be quite ready to establish a full-blown

very closely to the emission reductions effected

electric vehicle, no-carbon emission market, such

by the MISER System. The real savings at our pilot

as the ones in other developed economies, we

project client shows us exceeding the targets set for

thought to innovate a product that achieves both

part-MISER indicating that the above figures will be

fuel savings while reducing carbon emissions. Our

easily met once full-MISER is made available.

product is ideal for new vehicle designs where

Norman Grant, technical director and chief

the engine can be chosen, but they can also be

design engineer at Ducere Holdings is the brains

retro-fitted to existing vehicles.'

behind this 'nifty little innovation' and believes

'We have tested the MISER System on larger

that: 'What has worked to our advantage has been

vehicles such as heavy duty trucks and the results

the utilization of advanced hydraulic technology,

are in: our fully automatic transmission surpasses

a sophisticated control system and mechanically

all targets set by governments relating to fuel

simple gear and clutch system.'

consumption and greenhouse gas emissions,' adds Reyneke.

Simulation results, verified by international

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Grant says that the product was tested and piloted at a local trucking company in Johannesburg and 'because it is so affordable, ROI is really quick,

The MISER technology is also applicable to: • Other methods of transportation.

• Utilities including wind turbines, etc...

www.misertransmissions.com

• • • •

Up to 70% less fuel used.

Dramatically improves vehicle performance.

Significantly reduces the emssion of harmful gasses.

Lower total cost of ownership and longer lifespan of vehicle.

with pay-back possible in less than a year in certain

entrepreneurs who develop clean-tech solutions to

drive cycles.'

local challenges.

This engineering team has been working at their

Dr Melamu says: 'The decision to offer Andre and

innovation for thirteen years, and thanks to the support

his team strategic support services and to connect

of government and privately funded small business

their business to funding opportunities was an easy

engines, are ready to present their product to market.

one because the product is a direct response to the

One such organization is the Climate Innovation

country's commitment to effectively green, not only

Centre (CIC) South Africa which has incubated and

our economy, but society as a whole.'

2016 was a 'coming of age' year for the MISER

supported Ducere Holdings during the pilot and commercialization process.

Head of the Green Economy Unit at The Innovation

System as it received a number of accolades in the local innovation and green entrepreneurial landscape:

Hub, Dr Rethabile Melamu drives the CIC's efforts

•

WWF South Africa Climate Changer winners

in supporting green entrepreneurs and sustainable

•

City of Joburg's GreenCity StartUp overall winners

innovation and is equally thrilled to be a part of Ducere

•

Cleantech Competition finalists

Holdings' small business journey.

•

Impact Amplifier / SSP awarded

'The country's green economy is not dependent on

Reyneke offers: 'We believe in the power of

one industry or sector, it requires the collective effort

community, and this small business journey has not

of a wide range of players who hone their skills and

always been easy but the support we have received

harness their efforts in a particular field. Transport,

from a number of organisations in this fast-growing

and particularly the financial and environmental cost

entrepreneurs eco-system has been incredible.'

of fossil-fuelled transport is one of many cogs in this wheel,' remarks Dr Melamu.

The company has set its sights on skills transfer and training and creating job opportunities as the

The CIC South Africa is part of a global network

MISER System enters the market in July 2017 with its

of centres, established in partnership with the World

products available via Ducere Holdings' distribution

Bank's InfoDev unit in 2015 and actively seeks out

network across the country.

The MISER technology is also applicable to: • Other methods of transportation.

• Utilities including wind turbines, etc...

www.misertransmissions.com

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M otoring N ews

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Volvo Cars to go all-electric Volvo Cars has announced that every new Volvo launched from 2019 onwards will feature an electric motor, marking the historic end of cars that only have an internal combustion engine (ICE) and placing electrification at the core of its future business.

The announcement represents one of the most significant moves by any car maker to embrace electrification and highlights how, over a century after the invention of the internal combustion engine, electrification is paving the way for a new chapter in automotive history.

'This is about the customer,' says HĂĽkan Samuelsson, President and CEO. 'People increasingly demand electrified cars and we want to respond to our customers' current and future needs. You can now pick and choose whichever electrified Volvo you wish.'

Volvo Cars will introduce a new portfolio of electrified cars across its model range, embracing fully electric cars, plug in hybrid cars and mild hybrid cars.

First, it will launch five new fully electric cars between 2019 and 2021, three of which will be Volvo models and two of which will be high performance electrified cars from Polestar, Volvo Cars' performance brand. Full details of these models will be announced at a later date.

Then, these five cars will be supplemented by a range of petrol and diesel plug in hybrid and mild hybrid (48 volt) derivatives in all model ranges, representing one of the broadest electrified car offerings of any car maker.

This means that there will in future be no Volvo cars which do not feature an electric motor, as pure ICE cars are gradually phased out and replaced by ICE cars that are enhanced with electrified drivetrains.

'This announcement marks the end of the solely combustion engine-powered car,' continues Samuelsson.

'Volvo Cars has stated that it plans to have sold a total of one million electrified cars by 2025. When we said it, we meant it. This is how we are going to do it.'

The announcement underlines Volvo Cars' commitment to minimising its environmental impact and making the cities of the future cleaner. Volvo Cars is focused on reducing the carbon emissions of both its products as well as its operations. It aims to have climate-neutral manufacturing operations by 2025.

The decision also follows the June announcement that Volvo Cars will turn Polestar into a new separately-branded electrified high performance car company. Thomas Ingenlath, Senior Vice President Design at Volvo Cars, will lead Polestar as Chief Executive Officer.

The Green Good Design Award is a development from Good Design, which was founded in Chicago in 1950 by Eero Saarinen, Charles and Ray Eames, and Edgar Kaufmann, to promote and foster a greater public understanding and acceptance for Modern Design.

For 2017, 100 designs from 23 nations were awarded Green Good Design Awards. The thoughtful and innovative work by Hyundai Motor's design teams helped the IONIQ become recognised as one of the best ecological and sustainable designs in transportation for 2017.

The IONIQ is the first eco-vehicle in the world to offer three distinct electrified powertrains on a single, dedicated vehicle platform – the IONIQ Hybrid, Plug-in Hybrid and Electric models.

Hyundai Motor's IONIQ line-up calls upon two key factors, efficiency and technology, in its design, which combine to create both a unique and forward-looking appearance.

www.volvocars.com

www.hyundaiusa.com/ioniq/index.aspx

Hyundai GET a Green Good Design Award The 2017 Hyundai IONIQ has been crowned with a 2017 Green Good Design Award that celebrates important examples of sustainable designs and provide awareness on what companies are designing and producing to make the most positive impact on the environment.

77 S G

M otoring N ews TESLA'S NEW SUPERCHARGER TO BE SUPER-FAST

THE OX: World’s first all-terrain flat-pack truck THAT folds in on itself Designed and built in Britain, the OX is unlike any other vehicle and has no competitor – whether from a concept, performance or pricing point of view. It is the world’s first flat-pack vehicle, with a revolutionary design that offers all-terrain mobility for all. The OX is the result of the Global Vehicle Trust’s (GVT) ambition to help people in the developing world by providing cost-effective mobility for communities to undertake crucial daily tasks, such as collect drinking water and transporting grain, fertiliser or building materials. GVT unveiled its prototype in London and has been communicating with aid organisations in Africa, and is now seeking investors to bring the project of five-plus years to fruition hoping that one day an OX will be seen in every village in Africa.

oxgvt.com

OLD DOG HAS A NEW TRICK The Isetta was a microcar manufactured by BMW in the '50s.

With its unique front entry and compact look, the car became beloved all around the world.

Now, the Microlina manufactured

by Italian company Tazzari from a design by Micro, has taken the concept and updated it for the modern eco-conscious consumer.

At just under 3m in length, the Microlino can be recharged at any conventional domestic power socket in just four hours.

www.micro-mobility.com

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When it comes to electric vehicles becoming the norm, many people scoff at the idea of having to plug in their cars and wait around for the batteries to recharge.

But Tesla CEO Elon Musk may have a solution in the form of a next-gen Supercharger capable of recharging a Tesla vehicle battery in mere seconds. Via social media, Musk has hinted that the Supercharger V3 would serve up at least 350 kW, which is more than twice the output of current Superchargers on the Tesla network. Tesla’s current Superchargers are already the fastest electric car battery-charging units on the planet, capable of recharging a car battery in minutes rather than hours, but there is always room for improvement.

Source

TESLA MAY JUST HAVE MET THEIR MATCH Jaguar is taking aim at the Tesla Model X by unveiling the I-Pace – an all-electric SUV that’s set to hit the streets in 2018. The I-Pace features a 90 kWh battery, a driving range of around 336km, and it generates 394 horsepower and 516 foot-pounds of torque from two electric motors. Jaguar also says the I-Pace will be able to reach 100km/h faster than most sports cars at around four seconds. Jaguar debuted the I-Pace at the Los Angeles Auto Show and according to the automaker, the concept is not far off from the production version.

Since the I-Pace doesn’t use a conventional engine, designers were able to maximise space for passengers and their stuff. Thanks to its cab-forward design, the I-Pace will have more interior room than many larger SUVs. The I‑Pace concept has been designed and engineered to take advantage of the new opportunities electric cars create. From the proportions of its innovative aluminium architecture to its dynamic handling and everyday practicality, everything has been designed for pure excitement, Jaguar expect to have these next generation vehicles rolled out by the end of 2018.

Source

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M obility N ews

hydrogen-powered passenger train a first in zero-emissions French company Alstom unveiled the first-ever passenger train powered completely by hydrogen at threcent Berlin InnoTrans trade show. The hydrogen train will be put into service on Germany’s Buxtehude-Bremervörde-Bremerhaven-Cuxhaven line in Lower Saxony by December 2017. After two years in development, the train offers a zero-emissions alternative to Germany’s existing fleet of diesel trains, thanks to a roof-mounted tank of hydrogen fuel.

Source

bullet bike breaks human-powered record Aerovelo has set a new human-powered speed record using its specially designed aero bike.

Running at the World Human Powered Speed Challenge in Battle Mountain, Nevada, the egg-shaped Aerovelo Eta managed to hit 144.17km/h. The team at Aerovelo will continue to refine the Eta over the coming year, with the goal of beating its own record next year.

Source

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THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS Imagine you're out either exercising on your bike, or perhaps on the way to or from work, and you realise you need to get home sooner rather than later. Well, the KickStarter-funded GeoOrbital bike wheel can transform your bicycle from static to electric in around 60 seconds. The wheel comes in two sizes which should fit 95% of all adult bicycles and allows bikes to travel up to 80km/h. The wheel comes with a flat-proof tire so you never have to worry about getting a flat or even checking tire pressure.

Source

The Energy Observer has been dubbed 'The Solar Impulse of the seas' and could usher in a new era of ocean travel.

Thanks to onboard solar panels, wind turbines, and hydrogen produced from electrolysis of ocean water, the futuristic catamaran Energy Observer set sail for its round-the-world voyage in February. The propulsion for the Energy Observer will come from electric motors, which will be powered by a battery bank fed by solar panels and wind turbines, but the addition of an electrolysis system, which will split water into hydrogen and oxygen and then store the hydrogen, the vessel will set a precedent as the world's first boat 'with an autonomous means of producing hydrogen' to help it along on its zero carbon emissions voyage.

USING THE ELEMENTS TO TRAVEL THE GLOBE

Source

LIGHTING THE WAY TO SAFETY Poland just unveiled an amazing new bike path that glows bright blue at night! The path near Lidzbark Warminski is illuminated by phosphor, a synthetic material that lights up after it’s charged by sunlight. Studio Roosegaarde’s Starry Night bike lane inspired TPA Instytut Badan Technicznych in Pruszkow to create the glowing bike path. The bike lane is still being tested, as it is not known how long the lane will last before it begins to wear out.

Source

BUILT FOR SUPERHEROES The BMW Vision Motorrad Next 100 is the motorcycle for superheroes of the future. This concept motorbike's body is culled from a slinky carbon fibre shell and has a self-balancing system. A turn of the handlebars redirects the bike. It boasts zero carbon emissions and has incorporated driver assistance, a camera-based sensor technology, making it essentially the anti-crash motorcycle. One feature of this system is called the Visor, a set of spectacles that are controlled through eye movements.

Source

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M obility N ews

SOLAR POWERED ROADS SET TO BECOME A GROWING TREND

NORWAY to build first 'floating' underwater traffic tunnels

At only 1km long, a two-year test of this solar road will help determine if a full rollout of 1 000km of solar roads in the country is worth pursuing. Affectionately known as Wattway, the road in the village of Tourouvre-au-Perche in France, where an estimated 2 000 motorists use it each day, is lined with 2 880 solar panels and the electricity generated by the system will power the street lighting in the village. Regardless of whether the results are favourable or not after two years, is that this real-world testing of solar roads will help inform (or dissuade) future projects such as this.

The gist of the idea is to suspend an underwater tunnel from floating pontoons. By the time you finished reading that sentence, you probably already had a list of things in your head that seem to make this a terrible idea. After all, it does seem to combine the worst aspects of both underwater tunnels and bridges. But, the idea may actually be a good one, and it’s already being seriously considered in Norway. Norway has so far committed $25 billion in funds to the project, which is expected to reach completion by 2035. There’s still some hard work ahead for the engineers involved: such a system has never been built before, and no one is exactly sure how the wind, waves, and water currents in the fjords might affect the structures.

Source

Source

SOLAR SIDEWALKS A Hungarian startup is generating energy from sidewalks with its pavers built around monocrystalline silicon cells mounted in tempered glass, which are then embedded into a framework of injection-moulded recycled plastic.

Platio, based in Hungary, has developed its own version of a solar generating paving system, and is working on a sister product that converts kinetic energy from footsteps into clean electricity.

Source

RUNNING ON THE WIND The Netherlands, aka Windmill Country, is now operating 100% of its electric trains with wind energy. As of January, an estimated 600 000 daily train passengers have been travelling carbon neutral, according to an announcement from the Netherlands’ principal passenger railway operator, NS. This achievement is a full year ahead of their original plan after the project was announced in 2015. The power used by the trains comes from wind farms in the Netherlands, Scandinavia and Belgium. By tapping into both domestic and foreign sources of wind power, there is always sufficient green power available on the grid for rail companies, even if the wind is not blowing.

Source

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Eviation Aircraft's NEW electric plane Though flying via airplane is fast and fun, it’s one of the least environmentally-friendly methods of travel.

That may soon change, however, as Eviation Aircraft (a member of NASA’s on-demand mobility program) recently unveiled the first prototype of an all-electric aircraft with a range of up to 965km. Presented at the 52nd International Paris Air Show, the prototype could be ready to move into certification and commercialisation as soon as next year. The e-plane could potentially fly six to nine passengers, in addition to two crew members on long distances. Eviation has by far the most aggressive timeline of any company intent on producing an electric plane.

Full story

Retro e-bike can fit in your trunk The future of urban mobility isn’t all sleek electric cars or pioneering flying cars. Vanda Electrics infuses a sense of playfulness into a commute with their Motochimp, a foldable motorbike that can be packed into a car trunk.

The unconventional vehicle was designed to celebrate spontaneous joy rides and 'defy boredom and faceless urban transport'. From the website, it appears the motorbike will come in at least three bright colors: red, blue, and yellow.

Full story

TOYOTA'S STAIR CLIMBING iBOT WHEELCHAIR RETURNS Toyota has revealed plans for its second generation iBOT prototype, a wheelchair so adaptable it allows people to climb stairs. The comeback is great news for people who feel limited by conventional wheelchair mobility and could usher in a whole new frontier for balancing technologies that improve people’s lives. The iBOT originally appeared on the scene in 2001, yet with the hefty price of $25,000 it was out of commission by 2009. The iBOT 2.0 will feature the same functions, but with a slimmer design and a keener eye to the device’s mechanics.

Full story

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E co L iving

tiny homes tiny footprint Tiny home living is not merely a 'trend' emerging around the world, it is a virtual necessity in many of the world's most population-dense cities where every square metre of land comes at a premium. Beyond the enormous savings on occupied space to be made through tiny home living, it is also inherently much less demanding in terms of raw materials, cost of build, fittings and utilities and energy consumption since smaller, more compact spaces are easier to heat or cool. In general, tiny home living is by definition 'greener' and 'cleaner'. In this third part of our series on tiny home living we take a closer look at some examples of tiny houses and their features.

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TINY HOMES  BACKCOUNTRY OREGAN, USA Started in 2016 by husband and wife team, Tina and Luke, Backcountry Tiny Homes is a one stop shop for tiny home builds, designs and plans, while also offering space-saving furnishings for any size home. They have many different models to choose from (they could also help design your own). The Basecamp Green model (pictured here) is built for tiny home owners with passions to spare that want a home base for all of their adventures with compact storage solutions and amenities, but adds an impressive solar and rainwater harvesting system to the design.

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PARK HOMES CHRISTCHURCH, NZ



Paul Hennessey, Master Builder and the inspiration behind Park Homes, had a vision to help people get out of the housing rut and into their own homes, designed to their unique tastes and built at a fraction of the cost of traditional housing. Since the Christchurch earthquakes the housing market has increased dramatically and people are finding it hard to even meet their rising rental costs, let alone dream of having a mortgage and owning their own home. It's this idea that led Hennessy to build this ultra-modern 13x3m small home.

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FRONTIER TINY HOMES  NEW TENNESSEE, USA Having always been fascinated by the form and function of structures and good design, founder and CEO of New Frontier Tiny Homes David Latimer aims to drive the evolution of the tiny house movement by designing and building custom tiny homes. They use only the finest materials and highest standards of craftsmanship to execute their original designs to help improve lives by supporting economic freedom, intentional living, and sustainability. These innovative tiny house use the contrast of material and style to contrast modern aesthetics with natural beauty.

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KEVA TINY HOUSE SALT SPRING ISLAND, CANADA



This gorgeous, hand-built tiny house was designed by self-professed 'forest walker, ocean paddler, veggie eater and headstand lover' Rebecca Grim and built into fruition with the help of some friends. With an area of roughly 50m with a 20m loft, the house also has a porch that can be easily dismantled and moved when necessary, and is sheltered with clear plexiglass (fantastic for stargazing in bed) and to keep rain out. Grim says her tiny house is an expression of creativity, freedom and exploration of lifestyle.

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Savscapes Landscaping Cape Town is a one stop landscaping company offering services for all your requirements from design, construction, irrigation systems, water features, decking, vertical gardens, gabion retaining walls, garden service and much more at affordable prices.

Vertical Gardens Cape Town began its operations with clear focus of creating beautiful landscapes for homes and businesses at affordable prices. That is why we are well on our way to becoming one of the area’s most trusted landscaping services.

Founded by veteran landscaping professional Gareth Savage with years of experience, Vertical Gardens Cape Town takes pride in the fact that every project we do reflects the unique aspirations of the people for whom it is designed.

Simply Green asked Gareth a few questions to shed some light on the industry.

Why should people, even in crowded urban areas, consider having their own tiny garden?

The reason for any garden is to be close to nature, so in crowed urban areas it is essential to have an area of tranquillity where one can relax and be in outdoors. The use of water features in a small garden is also key to drown out the noises of the urban environment.

How small can a successful tiny garden be?

Can one literally make a useful 'window' or 'backdoor' sized garden?

Yes you can. With the help of vertical green walls it is possible to use just a wall been looked at through a window or door. And to use a lot of different species to create a bit of interest on the wall.

As a full landscaping company, what are the challenges that you are currently facing in the industry?

We are currently going through a challenging period with water restrictions and had to change when we plant plants and what plants to use. In the long run going forward it is for the better, as we are using more sustainable (indigenous) plants that people were very reluctant to use. Garden designs have also changed from huge rolling green lawn areas to more subtle areas of interest with pots, aloes, rocks, stones and bark to appear more like natural gardens.

Is it true that there is a growing demand among urban dwellers for their own tiny gardens?

I personally think so, but the personal prefaces of the person determine whether they need one or not. A person who has a lock up and go setup would not really have use for a garden. But there a lot more clients wanting a green area within their homes.

How best should readers go about making their tiny garden?

I would suggest that they first need to think of what they want out the garden. For example, do they want a garden to look at or a garden to entertain in, and go forward from there. Create a focal point and work around that to introduce shrubs and plants that promote bird life.

What produce is best to use in a tiny garden?

I always say to my clients a small garden is easy to create a wow effect and a fuller picture garden. The use of flagstone pavers, braai pits, wooden trellis/screens, decking platforms, natural stone, pebbles, green walls and the use of one indigenous medium sized tree. All these elements put together properly will create a place of tranquillity and a outdoor living area.

www.savscapes.co.za | info@savscapes.co.za

Home

increasing the resource efficiency and biodiversity value of homes The rolling power outages experienced in recent years coupled with the crippling drought – the effects of which are still evident in the critical water shortage in

rainwater harvesting, waterwise gardens and

artificial

lawn,

among

others,

are becoming increasingly common features in residential property, further fuelled by the relentlessly rising costs of electricity and water which are draining the pockets of economically constrained consumers.

But while more and more people are investing

the Western Cape – have seen a

in a variety of means aimed at conserving

growing number of consumers look

municipal tariffs, at what point do these become

to install and adopt a wide variety of energy- and water-saving devices.

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S 

olar power, geyser timers, boreholes,

our natural resources and reducing monthly imperatives which impact favourably on the value of a home and the demand for such sustainable homes among home buyers?

These are questions being investigated by

Pam Golding Properties, which has embarked on

efficiency and in so doing, help lead transformation

a number of initiatives aimed at increasing the

in this regard. Apart from the cumulative benefits

awareness of the benefits of homes which are not

of conserving the planet’s natural resources by

only environmentally friendly but also cost-efficient.

reducing our environmental impact, this in turn

Says Anthony Stroebel, Head of Strategy and

translates into actual cost savings for consumers

Innovation at Pam Golding Properties and a director

and, ultimately, raises the potential for increased

of the Green Building Council of South Africa

investment returns for home owners when they sell

(GBCSA): 'There is a rising groundswell in what we as

the property, or even increased monthly income in

individuals can do to help conserve our planet. Each

regard to rental property.'

and every one of us has a role to play in making a

Says Dr Andrew Golding, CE of the Pam Golding

contribution to conserve and maintain our natural

Property group: 'As marketers of real estate around

resources and our key biodiversity assets. But, as

South and Southern Africa and in support of

importantly, this now makes great financial sense.’

the greater "Green Agenda", we appreciate that

'As key participants in residential real estate

every home either positively or negatively impacts

we believe we have both a responsibility and an

the overall sustainability of our future social

opportunity to play a role in promoting resource

development.

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'Aside from the long-term vision required to protect life on our planet, we recognise the responsible behaviour of the growing number of conscious consumers who are undoubtedly reshaping the future economic worth of almost everything. From water bottles to rocket fuel, perceived value has shifted, and this without doubt includes the future value of the home.

'For us, as estate agents armed with information that has been brought to light by our expert the National Biodiversity and Business Network (NBBN) partners like the Department of Environmental Affairs and the Endangered Wildlife Trust, we intend to use any influence we may have within the vast residential property sector to reduce the footprint on biodiversity, home by home.

'I believe over the next decade we will see the demand for properties which protect and promote biodiversity and incorporate green features will increase exponentially.'

Estate agents and valuers are key to the establishment of a green homes market as they evaluate and make recommendations to the residential market on the contribution resource-efficient features add to the marketing of green homes.

As a starting point, and given the lack of credible research in South Africa regarding the potential for

in Design for Greater Efficiencies) rating for homes,

‘green’ engagement in the residential sector, Pam

is a tangible tool that can demonstrate savings

Golding Properties and GBCSA have undertaken

and provide a credible measure of future payback

pioneering research which points decisively to

which will drive the value of green homes. Available

a positive green premium in the sales price of

via a free online software platform, this simple yet

green homes, which increases with the degree of

tangible, user-friendly green rating tool aims to

energy efficiency, ongoing energy price increases

achieve a minimum saving of 20% in energy, water

and the potential for green building regulation.

and embodied energy in materials. Smart, fast

There is also some evidence to show that a rental

and affordable, it calculates the upfront cost and

premium applies, with green buildings proving

potential operational savings of green buildings.

more attractive to tenants.

The research says estate agents and valuers are

are predicted to be added as a valuable property

key to the establishment of a green homes market

attribute as the research shows that green homes are

as they evaluate and make recommendations

perceived to be of higher quality with more efficient

to the residential market on the contribution

running costs. The appeal of resource-efficient

resource-efficient features add to the marketing

homes is multi-dimensional, offering residents a

of green homes. Some estate agents are already

variety of benefits including enhanced comfort and

reporting that the installation of rain collection

quality of life and financial savings.

tanks is on the rise, and proving useful selling points.

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EDGE certification and green home features

A further initiative is the recently launched and useful ‘Guide to Biodiversity in your Garden’

The GBCSA saw the commercial green buildings

produced by Pam Golding Properties and the

market grow exponentially year on year and it is

Endangered Wildlife Trust. This well-timed booklet

expected that the residential market will behave

is an informative and useful guide brimming with

similarly but with a steeper trajectory. While Green

eco-friendly advice. Among many others this

Star rated office space is recognised and established

includes cost-effective water-wise gardening, how

for offering buyers and tenants a differentiated

to identify and deal with alien and invasive plant

value proposition associated with higher quality

species, combating fruit and vegetable eating

and lower operating costs, GBCSA’s EDGE (Excellence

insects the natural way, making your own compost

and mulch and even tips on earthworm farming

celebration of the visionaries and innovators – or

and vertical landscaping.

‘eco-heroes’ – who are finding solutions to the

It also explains how gardening according to your own regional climate and soil type is an

earth’s most pressing environmental challenges.

The

Eco-Angel

award

was

presented

to

important key to a successful, indigenous garden

Nonhlanhla Joye of Umgibe Organics and Training

which can be both beautiful and eco-efficient.

Institute, which uses ordinary plastic bags to create

'The spirit of biodiversity and the conservation

suspended vegetable gardens that hang from

and protection of animals and plants is rapidly

custom-made structures. It’s a home grown solution

gaining traction among individual citizens and

for food production in a changing environmental

the business sector alike,' says Stroebel. 'As a

landscape and a farming technique that has proven

founding partner of the National Biodiversity and

to be a frugal, environmentally friendly, water

Business Network we are helping drive innovations

and space saving method that has uplifted the

and leadership to change the way biodiversity is

community.

perceived and to develop accountability for its protection.

This stroke of genius came from a dark place in Joye’s life – she was diagnosed with cancer and

'Importantly, this inspiring and insightful guide

couldn’t work but as the breadwinner had to put

outlines a few simple ways you can add value

food on the table, so she started growing her own

to your property by protecting and encouraging

vegetables, and elevated her plants to keep out the

nature’s life-giving biodiversity in your very own

chickens.

garden. With this guide we hope to support

The system is able to grow ten times the crops

home owners in understanding and achieving their

in the same area as conventional agriculture,

potential role in preserving and enhancing the

with less than a third of the water required. The

diversity value of their property, ultimately adding

operation has now grown to the stage where she

value to their asset and to the natural capital of the

supplies restaurant groups and even supermarket

country.'

groups.

SG

Pam Golding Properties also recently sponsored the Eco-Angel Award at the Eco-Logic Awards 2017,

For more contact Pam Golding Properties on

an annual event presented by Enviropaedia as a

021 7101700 or email headoffice@pamgolding.co.za

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'Never let a good crisis go to waste' is a popular quote and one person who took this to heart is Abel Namuramba, founder of Isiphiwo Fusion – an energy and water saving company or energy efficiency concierge as he describes it. With South Africa’s electricity and now water crisis, his company is capitalising on the situation by offering solutions that could see consumers save up to 30% or more on their monthly electricity and water consumption.

Fight the rise in your utility bill costs by making sure your building is not using more energy and water than it needs. Today’s best performing buildings are using up to 30% less electricity and water, with better visibility and comfort.

Isiphiwo Fusion brings you Building Performance Services that modernize your home, office, school, factory, hospital and any other type of building. If you have a bulging energy bill and overflowing water consumption in your building, we will help you.

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Low water flow showerheads can save up to 2/3 of hot water with every shower.

The energy and water saving showerhead can archive flow rates as low as 6 litres per minute without compromising the quality of the shower. Saving hot water results in great savings of electricity in a building site of any type Isiphiwo Fusion (Pty) Ltd P.O Box 1911, Ruimsig, South Africa, 1732 • Email info@is-fusion.co.za Energy Audits • Green Awareness Programs • Energy Efficient Projects Building Energy Management Services • Energy & Water Saving Devices

For more info click here 97 S G

B uilding N ews POWERED BY THE SUN As part of our ongoing coverage of all things 'good and green' in the built environment, we focus on more green homes and buildings, some focused on the use of solar energy, low-cost solutions and water usage efficiency.

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GRoW Home – University of Buffalo Though essential, solar isn’t the star of the sun-powered GRoW home – it’s the thriving all-weather vegetable garden at its centre. Part greenhouse and part solarium, this ultra-efficient house runs on solar and thermal energy to achieve near total self-sufficiency.

A 24-Silevo-panel photovoltaic system tops the folded roof and produces 9MWh per year, which the designers estimate is nearly double the amount of energy that residents will need.

INhouse – California State University California Polytechnic State University students designed the INhouse, a net-zero abode that lets you keep your garden intact even in times of drought.

Shaded by a solar panel-topped structure, the water-smart house drains all of its greywater into a constructed wetland system that then filters and redirects the water into landscape irrigation. The home also includes a monitoring system that tracks and sends real-time data to a smartphone app.

Indigo Pine – Clemson University Your future solar-powered dream home could snap together like a puzzle without the need for any power tools. Clemson University students designed and built Indigo Pine, a solar-powered abode constructed from CNC-milled interlocking pieces that can be put together by hand without a single nail. Since plywood can be milled using any local CNC machine, Indigo Pine could be built almost anywhere its digital blueprints are received.

Shelter3 – Crowder College & Drury University The elegant Shelter3 (pronounced shelter cubed) is an ultra-strong home that defends its residents in style from big storms. Powered with a photovoltaic system that will supply more electricity than it needs, the tornado-proof house ensures self-sufficiency even when the grid is destroyed. Students from Crowder College and Drury University home designed the net-zero.

Low-cost housing project harnesses existing infrastructure Maputo, the capital of Mozambique, has a population of more than 2.5 million with approximately 80% of the population living in slums. Developed during the Portuguese colonial rule until 1975, the city lacks proper infrastructure. A housing development project, Casas Melhoradas aims to improve housing conditions for low-income groups in the city by developing alternative construction methods and developing economical housing typologies. The project demonstrates how existing buildings can be transformed to meet the needs of the community. In the latest prototype, completed this year, a vertical structure was added to an old house situated near the centre of Maputo in a slum called Polana Caniço. The housing unit was constructed using lightweight wooden elements, prefabricated in a local timber workshop, transported by hand and assembled in a short period of time.

Full Story

First Earth is a documentary about the movement towards a massive paradigm shift for shelter

MIRRORING OUR WORLD We use mirrors to reflect on ourselves – but this mirrored building in Taipei asks us to reflect on how we interact with our environment. B+P Architects transformed an old shipping container into a shining art annex in New Taipei City that blends in with its surroundings while challenging viewers to question their relationship to nature. The project establishes diversified environments for creativity using mirror-polished stainless steel. Its aim is to create a space where neighbouring communities can learn about aesthetics. The architects chose to put the container at the far end of a boulevard in order to preserve the serenity and peace as integral parts of the project.

Full Story

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B uilding N ews Celebrating the very best in sustainable buildings Each year, the American Institute of Architects Committee on the Environment reveals its 10 most sustainable buildings. Representing some of the best high-profile green architecture you're likely to see in one place, this year's selection includes solar-powered schools, super-efficient universities, and a Singaporean hospital that uses 69% less energy than its typical US counterpart. We take a look at a few of these astounding accomplishments. For the full list click here.

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Singapore's Ng Teng Fong General Hospital & Jurong Community Hospital is an impressively green hospital that focuses on passive design principles.

Stanford University decided to replace its ageing and almost 100% fossil-fuel-based energy systems with this high-tech, sustainable central energy facility

The RW Kern Center near Hampshire College is completely self-sustaining, generating its own electricity, captures rainwater and recycles waste.

Discovery Elementary School is the largest zero-energy school in the US. Designed by VMDO Architects, the school has a very large solar panel array on its roof.

Bristol Community College John J Sbrega Health and Science Building takes a holistic approach to eliminating fossil fuels and increasing efficiency.

Chatham University Eden Hall Campus generates more energy than it uses, is a water resource, produces food, recycles nutrients and supports habitat.

durable homes made from recycled plastic bottles In Tindouf, Algeria, a large number of the homes are made from materials like adobe and mud bricks. Vulnerable to heavy rains and frequent sandstorms, more durable structures have long been needed. Though he has acquired the nickname ‘Crazy with Bottles’ for his work, 27-year-old Tateh Lehbib Breica’s use of plastic soda bottles to construct more weather-resistant homes is bringing relief to the refugee camps of the region. Breica began working to transform the bottles into workable bricks by packing them with sand and straw.

He then proceeded to build a home for his grandmother by stacking 6 000 of these ‘bricks’ in a circular shape, and then coating them with cement and limestone.

Full Story

ROMANTIC LUXURY WITH ECO HEART Prefabricated offsite with timber and steel elements, Treehouse M on China’s Mount Qiyun was assembled within a short time with minimal site impact and waste. The designers carefully sited the treehouse to immerse guests in nature at the forest resort. Panoramic views can be enjoyed from the room without compromising privacy. The contemporary design and luxurious feel elevates the structure into a kind of glamping in the treetops.

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B uilding N ews

LAND OF THE SUN Egypt's first solar-powered village has risen from the desert.

Located in Bahariya Oasis and powered by building-integrated solar panels, KarmBuild's Tayebat Workers Village currently provides shelter for 350 people. KarmBuild says it is 'the only company in Egypt to integrate solar technology into a building's design', and its use of local, natural materials ensures a gentle environmental footprint. Not only is the power generation environmentally friendly, but KarmBuild employed sustainable construction techniques, such as utilising energy-reducing methods and building with 90% local earth materials.

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TWISTY TAIPAI TOWERS The ultra-dreamy designs of Belgian-born sustainable architect Vincent Callebaut have been subjected to a fair amount of healthy skepticism and outright dismissal as well as numerous awards and accolades. After all, such polarising reactions come with the territory when you’re in the business of churning out eco-utopian designs that defiantly burst – or bloom, rather – outside the box. In essence, Tao Zhu Yin Yuan, which was previously known as Agora Garden, will function as a sort of habitable CO2 vacuum that helps to put a small, but not at all shabby, dent in Taiwan’s overall carbon emissions: 250 million tons in 2014 per the International Energy Agency. Callebaut's carbon-capturing plantscraper is due to open in September 2017. It will feature 40 luxury units with massive outdoor 'sky gardens'.

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3D PRINTING A HOME Building a house typically takes months, exacerbating the housing crisis so many people face worldwide. Apis Cor, a San Francisco-based company that specialises in 3D-printing, decided to tackle that crisis with a groundbreaking mobile 3D-printer that can print an entire 400-square-foot tiny home in just 24 hours. What’s more, doing so costs just over $10 000 – a steal compared to most modern homes.

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Beaucience

is

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African,

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All products contain a breakthrough peptide called PROTEASYL. This special ingredient works naturally with the skin to create a younger feeling and looking skin. Beaucience is paraben free and proudly certified with Beauty Without Cruelty. For more information please go to www.beaucience.co.za

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Easy to Use - Very Safe - Non Explosive Low Odour - Non Toxic - Bio-Degradable Use reference GREEN 5018 on your order and stand a chance to win!!

The unique properties of our green firelighter is lack of odour, non toxic, being readily biodegradable are sought after for environmentally conscious people.

We added a dash of fun with the bright colours ready for any occasion. The container is one of the key features because it seals tightly and can be stored any place.

Our firelighter must reach a certain temperature before it will ignite. Because it has a wax base it can be stored without the fear of loosing its ability to ignite. It burns warmer and thus the reason to use less of our unique product.

To give a practical corporate gift is one of the best ways of sending a message to anyone. It is the best way of creating a conversation on a social basis in a relaxed environment about your product or service. This is also a innovative way to upsell to your clients.

For more info contact Jan 082 491 5018 www.greenfireignitor.co.za

Are you concerned about harmful chemicals in your home? Have you thought about changing to all natural cleaning products but are worried that they ‘won’t work as well’?

Look no further than Bet ter Earth’s Natural Cleaning Product range

BATHROOM & TOILET CLEANER This gel will leave your bathroom & toilet spotlessly clean. Use on your sinks, bath, toilet and shower

CONDITIONING LAUNDRY GEL There is no need to add fabric sof tener as this gel contains a fabric conditioner that is safe for all fabrics.

CLEANING SPRAY

DISHWASHING LIQUID

DISHWASHING GEL

This fragrant cleaning spray will leave surfaces fresh and clean. This can be used on kitchen counters, walls, stove tops and glass surfaces.

This dish washing liquid cleans your dishes perfectly.

It is easy on your hands and the environment but tough on grease.

Sof tens the water and binds to heav y metals. Does not require additional rinse aids / salts to keep your dishwasher clean.

TILED FLOOR CLEANER

WOODEN FLOOR CLEANER

Gently cleans and shines your floors. The citrus aromas freshen your home and give your floors a streak free finish.

Gently cleans your wooden floors, with a streak free finish leaving floors looking spotless and shiny.

Bet ter Earth. Bet ter for you. Bet ter for the Earth w w w.bet terearth.co.za S G 104

AIR FRESHNER A subtle Grapefruit scented air freshener that contains no harmful aerosols.

ADAPTING DIETS Ideal for anyone who wants to eliminate sugar from their diet, Monique Le Roux Forslund's new book Sugar-free and Carb-conscious is based on ‘low carb high fat’ principles, with the emphasis on home-cooked, nutritional meals. The recipes will increase satiety, reduce sugar cravings and eliminate the need to snack between meals and are suitable for family meals. The following pages are extracted from the book.

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Cauliflower pizza base This makes one 30-cm round base, so increase the quantities according to the number of pizzas you are making.

Cauliflower pizza base

Salt and ground black pepper to taste ½ cup (± 100 grams) finely grated cauliflower 1 tablespoon tomato purée,for topping ½ cup finely grated cheese This thegrated quantities cheese foraccording topping to the number 2 eggsmakes one 30-cm round base, so increaseExtra of you(optional) are making.

Driedpizzas origanum Salt and ground black pepper to taste ½ cup (± 100 grams) finely grated cauliflower 1. Combine the cauliflower, cheese and eggs in a bowl. Season to taste.

1 tablespoon tomato purée,for topping ½ cup finely grated cheese 2. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper. Spread the mixture into a 30-cm circle.

Extra grated cheese for topping 2 eggs 3. in a preheated oven at 180°C for 15–20 minutes, until crisp and golden. Remove from the DriedBake origanum (optional) oven and set aside to cool.

4. When cool, tomato puréeand over theinbase.

Sprinkle with 1.

Combine thespread cauliflower, cheese eggs a bowl.

Season tograted taste. cheese and add your choice of toppings (see below some suggestions).

2. Line a baking tray withforgreaseproof paper. Spread the mixture into a 30-cm circle.

5. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for 15–20 10 minutes, untiluntil the crisp cheese melts andRemove the toppings 3. minutes, and golden. fromare the cooked desired. oven andasset aside to cool.

4. When cool, spread tomato purée over the base. Sprinkle with grated cheese and add your choice of toppings (see below for some suggestions).

5. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for 10 minutes, until the cheese melts and the toppings are

Toppings cooked as desired.

Grated mozzarella or Cheddar cheese, ham, salami, grilled chicken, onion, mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, crumbled blue cheese or feta cheese, sliced Brie cheese. Add sliced avocado, fresh herbs or home-made béarnaise Toppings sauce (see page 154) to the finished pizza before serving.

Grated mozzarella or Cheddar cheese, ham, salami, grilled chicken, onion, mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, crumbled blue cheese or feta cheese, sliced Brie cheese. Add sliced avocado, fresh herbs or home-made béarnaise sauce (see page 154) to the finished pizza before serving.

tip tip

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118 |

Main Meals

118 |

Main Meals

Main Meals

| 119

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Mushroom soup 50 grams butter 200 grams button mushrooms, sliced 100 grams brown mushrooms or exotic mushrooms, sliced 1 medium onion, sliced 1 cup cream 1 cup water 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce Salt and ground black pepper to taste 1.

2.

3.

4.

1 teaspoon ground paprika 1–2 rashers of bacon, chopped and fried until crispy (optional)

Herbed cream ½ cup crème fraîche 2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander 2 tablespoons chopped chives

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the mushrooms and onion and fry until the onion is soft.

Add the cream, water, Worcestershire sauce and seasoning and simmer for 10 minutes.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and blend with a hand-held blender until smooth.

If desired, stir in a spoonful of herbed cream and garnish with crispy bacon and cheese chips (see page 95).

Herbed cream 1. Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl.

Serves 2 Sugar-free and Carb-conscious by Monique Le Roux Forslund, published by Struik Lifestyle, RRP = R240.00 Images credit: Monica Dart © Penguin Random House South Africa (Pty) Ltd 2017.

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200 grams button mushrooms, sliced 100 grams brown mushrooms or exotic mushrooms, sliced 1 medium onion, sliced 1 cup cream 1 cup water 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce Salt and ground black pepper Grows to taste Desert Farm

1–2 rashers of bacon, chopped and fried until crispy (optional)

Herbed cream

F ood N ews

½ cup crème fraîche 2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander 2 tablespoons chopped chives

Tons Of Food Without 1. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the mushrooms and onion and fry until the onion is soft.

Soil, Pesticides, 2. Add the cream, water, Worcestershire sauce and seasoning and simmer for 10 minutes.

Fossil 3. RemoveFuels the saucepan Or from theEven heat and blend with a hand-held blender until smooth.

Groundwater 4. If desired, stir in a spoonful of herbed cream and garnish with crispy bacon and cheese chips (see page Innovations that will 95). one day make the human race thrive on Earth, saving its finite resources from extinction, are something we should embrace without a second thought.

We get our food from plants and animals. As we grow in numbers, so tooalldoes the globalindemand for food.

1. Combine the ingredients a small bowl.

Currently, activists are fighting the spread of Genetically Modified Food (GMO). The argument for GMO proponents has been that the world is running out of its resources, and hence, we need to find ways and means to sustain us. According to them, GMOs will ensure that we maintain our food production level. This argument might sound convincing on first hearing, however, deeper probing of GMOs has revealed that the harm caused far outweighs the good it does.

We, therefore, cannot accept GMOs. It will bring a plethora of health problems to the populations who consume them, in the long-term. We must find other alternatives to boost our food production.

Thankfully, some innovators are coming up with sound and efficient ways by which we can grow our food – without relying on our finite resources.

A start-up, called Sundrop Farms, has developed high technology greenhouse facilities that use a number of solutions to grow crops with less reliance on finite natural resources, than conventional greenhouse production.

Sundrop Farms has offices in London in the United Kingdom, and Adelaide, in southern Australia.

But with Sundrop Farms, these resources can be reinvented the other way around. In 2010, Sundrop Farms opened its first pilot facility in Port Augusta, South Australia. Located in the middle of a desert, it would have been impossible to grow food in the area using a tradition farming method. But Sundrop is changing the game. It is growing crops in the desert through the latest innovative means, combining seawater and sunlight.

Sundrop treats the seawater from the Spencer Gulf, reusing it in a massive greenhouse lined with cardboard.

By doing this, it avoided having to rely on groundwater for its operations. Sundrop also grows hydroponically, which reduces the overall need for water, while making the need for soil a moot point. Utilising a bevy of mirrors to redirect the desert sun, all the farm needs is sunlight and some seawater to grow 17 000 metric tons of food every year.

Herbed cream

Source

Serves 2

Soup

| 99

Unwasted: The Future of Business on Earth (Full Length Documentary)

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F ood N ews

HOMEGROWN AMAZON We take water for granted far too often. Whole civilisations have fallen as a result of over-exploiting water sources, according to Royal College of Art graduate student Pratik Ghosh, so it’s imperative that we treat what we have with care. So Ghosh designed Drop by Drop, a plant-based water filtration system that explores more sustainable methods of obtaining water. The system is capable of cleansing home wastewater, and growing herbs at the same time. Drop by Drop filters water much like transpiration processes in the Amazon rainforest.

According to Ghosh, his prototype is a mini biosphere that operates by keeping four factors crucial for transpiration – humidity, light, heat and wind – at optimal levels.

Full Story

Edible City tells the stories of the pioneers who are digging their hands into the dirt, working to transform their communities and do something truly revolutionary: grow local food systems that are socially just, environmentally sound, economically viable and resilient to climate change and market collapse.

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MORE THAN 35 COUNTRIES HAVE BANNED GENETICALLY MODIFIED CROPS FROM THEIR COUNTRY – here's why The global resistance against Genetically Modified crops (GMOs) is growing at an exponential rate.

A few years ago, you were almost ridiculed for suggesting that GM foods could be a problem, and now scientists and researchers are presenting information that has 19 new countries joining an already long list of nations to completely ban, or have severe restrictions on, GMOs – as well as the pesticides that go with them.

These countries will not allow genetically modified crops to be grown in their country. The opt-out countries are requesting that biotechnology companies exclude their territories from GMO seed sales, and some countries, according to RT news, are simply putting things to a halt until more research is conducted.

So why are these countries doing this? Two of the main reasons have to do with environmental and health-related concerns. Alongside all of these troubles (according to Reuters), some countries simply want to take time to do proper research — flying in the face of the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) decree that GMOs are completely safe. There are many who disagree with this assertion.

Full Story

Mother Nature Products have been proud manufacturers of great green baby products in Cape Town, South Africa, since 2006.

021 782 9117 • mothernatureproducts.co.za

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A Bite of Latin America Susie Chatz-Anderson Human & Rousseau • 978 0 7981 7374 2

Join Susie Chatz-Anderson on a culinary journey through Central and South America, discovering real Latin American food and recipes. Her passion for the region and its food infuses each of these delicious recipes. Packed with anecdotes and magnificent pictures, this book offers practical guidance to help you recreate the magic of these meals at home.

The subtle layering of flavour and use of authentic techniques make for scrumptious food, adapted for South Africa. Susie ChatzAnderson's passions are good food and living a good life. She constantly goes on trips around the world, discovering new taste experiences. She and her husband took one year off from the corporate world, travelling through Mexico and SouthAmerica, searching for the best dishes and eating experiences.

'The origin of this book really lies in two things: my complete love of good food, and a decision taken by my husband and I – after many years of 'normal' life – to resign from our serious offices jobs, put all our earthly possessions into storage and buy two tickets to travel the world for one year, starting in Mexico.'

Foodstuff Tony Jackman Human & Rousseau • 978 0 7981 7289 9

The cookbook as memoir, or memoir as cookbook? With FoodStuff, maverick food writer Tony Jackman presents us with a refreshingly original take on life and food. He relates every heartache, every joy, and does not shy away from imparting the pain of loss of a family member or his troubled relationship with

his father. The stories of his journey towards adulthood are counterbalanced by rich tales from his life. FoodStuff has many meaty recipes, spicy poultry dishes, some of Jackman's eccentric signature dishes, and desserts he likes to spoil his friends with.

Jackman, known in particular for his article Sliced & Diced in the Weekend Argus, invites you into his world, from humble beginnings in an English working-class family to an illustrious career as an unapologetically eccentric South African foodie, playwright and author. This book tosses together tales from a rich, nomadic life with masses of meaty recipes (Obies oxtail potjie, beef fillet with melted French Brie, parsley-crusted rack of lamb); spicy poultry dishes (tamarind duck curry, chicken coconut curry); a handful of signature dishes (spanspek soup, bacon-and-beer braai bread); and the desserts with which Jackman likes to spoil his friends (the chocolatiest chocolate tart ever, lemon syrup cake, pears in Chardonnay Pinot Noir with a Parmesan wafer).

The South African Gluten Free Cookbook Edited & Published by Penguin Random House ISBN 978 1 4323 0651 9

People with gluten intolerance or coeliac (celiac) disease often struggle to find suitable recipes.

Gluten-free ingredients can be expensive, making it a challenge to prepare family meals that don't break the budget. One of the keys to successful glutenfree cooking is knowing which flour will give the best result.

In this book, the various types of flours are discussed and a homemade gluten-free flour mix that forms the basis of many

recipes in the book is included.

This book presents 100 tried-andtested recipes that are perfect for everyday meals, as well as for entertaining. Baking and desserts receive special attention, but there are also recipes for greattasting breads, quiches, noodles and pasta dishes that make use of a variety of gluten-free flours and flour substitutes. In keeping with current trends, cauliflower, quinoa and kale feature alongside salmon, pesto and Asian-style chicken, while traditional cooking holds its own with pumpkin fritters, waffles, mince pies and Yorkshire pudding.

Food for Sensitive Tummies Gabi Steenkamp & Cath Day Tafelberg • 978 0 6240 8120 3

Do you suffer from winds, burping, cramps, heartburn, constipation and/or diarrhoea as well as bloating? Then this book is for you! Having a sensitive tummy or super sensitive tummy (IBS – irritable bowel syndrome) can be one of the most debilitating health issues to deal with. In Food for Sensitive Tummies, Gabi and Cath show you how you can cut down on the ingredients and food that cause you problems and still prepare a whole range of recipes that are simple, affordable and delicious to eat. From fresh and healthy breakfast ideas, to wholesome mains such as Butternut, Aubergine and Rocket Lasagne, cooking for sensitive tummies has never been so easy.

Straightforward and authoritative advice from two of South Africa's leading dieticians means it's never been so easy to learn how to treat your tummy well.

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Field Guide to Succulents in Southern Africa Gordon F Smith, Neil R Crouch, Estrela Figueiredo

Guide to Sieges of South Africa Nicki von der Heyde

Penguin Random House 978 1 7758 4367 2

In this companion volume to the highly successful Field Guide to the Battlefields of South Africa, the pivotal sieges that characterised the Cape Frontier, Anglo-Zulu, Basotho and Anglo-Boer wars are brought together in one volume.

Accounts of 17 sieges over the last two centuries explore in detail the historical context in which they occurred, the day-to-day military actions that sustained the investments and the conditions both soldiers and civilians faced while defending their territory against a hostile force. The siege descriptions are animated by maps where possible, and a variety of information boxes and human-interest stories, gleaned mainly from diaries, letters and eye-witness accounts; longform features focus on the practical aspects of siege warfare, such as artillery, medicine, food, and the psychological effects of besiegement.

The book also provides practical information for visitors who wish to explore these historical sites.

A fascinating read that will appeal to anyone interested in the volatile history of the country – armchair historians and travellers alike.

Southern Africa is the natural home of the richest and most diverse succulent flora in the world.

These plants come in all shapes and sizes, from trees such as the baobab at more than 20m tall, to miniature soil huggers, just a few millimetres high, which mimic their pebble-desert surroundings.

This user-friendly, richly illustrated field guide features more than 700 southern African succulents, focusing on the most interesting and commonly encountered species. An introduction to families and their key features will help readers identify the relevant plant group, while concise accounts describing the plants' diagnostic features, along with distribution maps, will enable quick ID of species. More than just an ID guide for plant lovers, this book will inspire gardeners who are turning to indigenous, low-maintenance and waterwise plants for cultivation.

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Penguin Random House • 978 1 7758 4201 9

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A wards

SA VINYLS ASSOCIATION HOSTS SUCCESSFUL VINYLS SA 2017 CONFERENCE

The Southern African Vinyls Association (SAVA) hosted a successful Vinyls SA Conference at the Hilton Hotel in Sandton recently. Delegates representing the leaders of the local PVC industry, the media and other interested parties attended the presentations by international and local experts that centred around issues relating to the manufacture, use and recycling of PVC.

T 

he Vinyl SA 2017 conference was the

are constantly reviewing our Product Stewardship

second international conference hosted

Commitment to ensure that we stay abreast of

by SAVA and built on the success of its

developments and are proud of the progress our

first event that took place in 2014. Global speakers

industry has made. The timing of this year's event

who presented papers and answered questions

was therefore critical and we are grateful that it was

raised by delegates included Peter Willis, owner

so well attended,' says Delanie Bezuidenhout, CEO

of 'Conversations that Count', who delivered the

of SAVA.

key-note address, Ian Lilja of the Vinyl Council of Australia (VCA), who delivered an update on the VCA

Economist at the IDC, Renier Snyman of DPI Plastics,

Product Stewardship Programme and Dr Brigitte

Tandy Coleman of Polyflor SA and Mike Smart of

Dero, General Manager of the European Council for

Genesis Consulting provided insights into local

Vinyl Manufacturers and VinylsPlus, who provided

challenges,

an expert overview of the European Regulatory and

impacting the PVC industry.

Policy Context.

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Local experts such as Gerhard Kuhn, Senior

opportunities

and

developments

Another highlight of the conference, was the

'Like any other industry, the vinyls industry is

SAVA Awards in recognition of member companies

facing various challenges that it needs to address

that have not only demonstrated a commitment to

from an environmental, health and business point

SAVA's Product Stewardship Commitment (PSC), but

of view in an ever-evolving arena. We are taking our

have also proven to be 100% compliant with all of

responsibility towards sustainability seriously and

its key undertakings.

'The PSC is a series of achievable commitments that addresses the industry's extended producer responsibility and supports the key focus areas of the association. It is therefore a great honour for us to publically thank and recognise those industry champions who are passionate about guiding the PVC industry to achieve the goals we have set in

terms of sustainability,' Delanie said as she handed out certificates to Adcock Ingram Critical Care, Alpha Plast, Belgotex Floors, Chemsystems, Chembridge Additives,

Cibapac,

Continental

Compounders,

DPI Plastics, Floorworx SA, Isegen SA, Marley Pipe

Systems, Mpact Limited, NCP Chlorchem, Plastichem, Polyflor SA, SASOL Polymers and SunAce South Africa.

A special 'Innovation in Recycling' trophy was awarded to Adcock Ingram Critical Care and Polyflor SA for their individual contributions to improving

the recycling of PVC. 'The main criteria for this award was that the recipients had to present a recycling initiative that has not been introduced to the South African market before, but will in the long run contribute greatly to an increase in the recycling of post-consumer PVC waste. To this end, both Adcock Ingram and Polyflor SA stood out with the innovative work they are doing in the recycling of non-hazardous PVC products in hospitals and healthcare centres, and the recycling of vinyl floor offcuts respectively,' she explained.

'The product qualities of PVC have ensured it a place as the material of choice for many applications.

As with any other material, it needs to be handled correctly, especially in certain phases of its life-cycle if it is to have a role in a sustainable future for society. SAVA believes that raw material suppliers, product manufacturers, product distributors and consumers are joint stewards for the responsible and sustainable production, use and disposal of PVC products, and to this end we and our members are committed to reaching the objectives we have set for ourselves, within the agreed timeframes.

'By hosting and attending conferences such as the Vinyls SA 2017, we pro-actively address PVC-related issues and constructively engage with stakeholders and role-players to create a positive environment for a vibrant and sustainable PVC industry,' Delanie concluded.

SG

For more information about SAVA or to view presentations, visit www.savinyls.co.za

POLYFLOR SA WINS INNOVATION IN RECYCLING AWARD Polyflor SA was honoured for their contribution to increasing the recycling of PVC in South Africa by being awarded the 'Innovation in Recycling' award at the Southern African Vinyls Association's (SAVA) Vinyls SA 2017 conference held in Johannesburg recently.

Polyflor was the first company in South Africa to recycle the off-cuts of their vinyl floors generated during the installation process at the end of last year. To date, the company has managed to divert more than four tons of vinyl floor pieces from landfill to recyclers who use the material for manufacturing traffic cones, rubber boots and sheeting.

'Innovation involves the deliberate application of information, imagination and initiative in deriving greater or different values from resources, and includes all processes by which new ideas are generated and converted into useful products,' said Delanie Bezuidenhout, CEO of SAVA during the awards ceremony.

'The main criteria for this award was that the recipient had to present a recycling initiative that has not been introduced to the South African market before, but will in the long run contribute greatly to an increase in the recycling of post-consumer PVC waste.

For this reason, we felt it fitting to honour Polyflor for their Vinyl Floor recycling initiative, as well as Adcock Ingram Critical Care for their efforts to encourage PVC Recycling in the Healthcare Environment,' Delanie explained.

All of SAVA's members are signatories to the PSC – a long-term, voluntary and self-administered initiative by the PVC industry that includes the setting of realistic timeframes for the delivery of key undertakings in production, the responsible use of additives and a sustainable recycling programme to ensure a vibrant and sustainable vinyls industry. These commitments bind signatories to deliver on specific outcomes. The result of the PSC is a networking relationship between government, business and industry.

Commenting on the award, Polyflor SA CEO Tandy Coleman said they were honoured by the industry recognition.

'Polyflor is committed to reducing our impact on the environment as much as possible, and being an accountable producer, supplier and installer of vinyl flooring that adheres to SAVA's Product Stewardship Commitment (PSC). We see recycling as being a vital part of the role we play in establishing a vibrant yet responsible industry, which makes economic and cultural sense to anyone involved in this industry,' Tandy says.

For more information, visit www.polyflor.co.za

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YOUR LEADER IN ECO-BUSINESS & LIFESTYLE

LOOK OUT FOR EDITION 4 COMING SOON

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