| Landfill gas sites to Offset Carbon Emission | |
 The state owned Central Energy Fund (CEF) wants to build several landfill gas sites in Gauteng and the Western Cape in a bid to offset emissions from coal-fired power stations. Owing to its over-reliance on coal, SA produces more than 40% of Africa's fossil fuel-related carbon dioxide emissions.
But the global move to curb climate change has seen the country throw cleaner sources of energy into its energy mix.
The government has set a target of 10000GWh renewable energy contribution to final energy consumption by 2013. Environment assessment consultancy WSP Environment and Energy has given notice of its intention to carry out the scoping and environment impact assessment for the extraction and utilisation of landfill gas and the use of the recovered gas to produce electricity from landfill sites in Cape Town, Vanderbijlpark and Vereeniging. WSP is conducting the assessment on behalf of the CEF. The government's mandate to the CEF is to search for energy solutions to meet SA's future energy needs. According to the consultants, the Cape Town projects -- in Bellville South, Brackenfell, Muizenberg, Blue Downs, Khayelitsha and Morning Star -- would collectively generate up to 9MW of electricity, "which will offset emissions from coal-fired generation plans and provide further reduction of (greenhouse gas emissions)". The projects at the Emfuleni municipality -- two in Vanderbijlpark and one in Vereeniging -- would collectively generate up to 2,8MW. Article continues : http://www.businessday.co.za/Articles/TarkArticle.aspx?ID=3521241
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