Transcript Overall progress on climate change

OVERALL PROGRESS ON CLIMATE
CHANGE: MITIGATION AND
ADAPTATION PROGRAMMES
14 JUNE 2013
FOR PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE MEETING
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Outline
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BACKGROUND
PRIORITIES AND POLICY DIRECTIVES FOR PLANNING
ADAPTATION RESPONSE
HOW DOES THE SECTOR CONTRIBUTE
CLIMATE CHANGE PROGRAMMES
PROGRESS: CLIMATE RELATED PROJECTS
CLIMATE NEGOTIATION THEMES AND POSITION: UNFCCC
CONCLUSION
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Background
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There is, even under present climatic conditions already, great concern about climate
related problems among farmers and the authorities alike, as testified by the wide range of
factors to which South African farmers have been shown to be vulnerable to.
Adaptation to climate change implies a range of measures by which to essentially cope with
and even try to overcome the challenges of, and vulnerabilities to, climate change, in this
instance by the South African agriculture sector.
South Africa – regarded as a low-forest cover country. Natural forest and woodland
ecosystems provide vital ecosystem services and forest goods for the benefit of society as
a whole and in particular to neighbouring communities. In the 2000 GHG Inventory forest
lands removed about 13 Million tonnes of CO2 , which makes it the single largest sink of
greenhouse gasses in the country.
Much of the natural forests and woodlands have been degraded and transformed over past
decades, although the exact extent and nature of this loss and degradation is poorly
quantified.
Both commercial and small-scale recreational fisheries contribute minimally to the South
Africa’s GDP, however, aquatic living resources have high nutritional value and harvesting
thereof contributes to the livelihood of coastal. communities.
The main challenge to the Fish industry in general is overall decline in catches. The
question is this decline due to overfishing or does climate change play a role? Research will
address these challenges.
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Priorities and policy directives for planning
adaptation response
Adaptation: reduce vulnerability
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Adaptation is essential: we cannot prevent climate change altogether so we must
adapt by reducing vulnerability in the sector. That means integrating risk reduction
strategies into humanitarian and development strategies.
DAFF: Currently developing a Mitigation and Adaptation Plan- 2012/13 strategic
deliverable. The plan identifies and proposes relevant Adaptation strategies
Adaptation to climate change implies a range of measures by which to essentially
cope with and even try to overcome the challenges of, and vulnerabilities to, climate
change, in this instance by the South African agriculture sector.
By formal definition adaptation includes “initiatives and measures to reduce the
vulnerability of natural and human systems against actual or expected climate change
effects”. Various types of adaptation exist, e.g. anticipatory and reactive, private and
public, and autonomous and planned (IPCC, 2007).
The key to enabling communities to deal with an uncertain future climate is to
understand what makes them vulnerable and to work towards reducing those factors,
so that adaptation for the future is about staying ahead and being progressive
(Andersson et al., 2009).
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Priorities and policy directives for planning
adaptation response
Mitigation: reduce greenhouse gases emissions
Agriculture: emitter of greenhouse gas emissions:
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About 5-8% of the total emissions come from the sector.
 DAFF Mitigation and Adaptation Plan underway: aimed at facilitating adaptation
and mitigation to climate change in the sector; minimising the vulnerability to the
impacts of climate change; as well as minimising greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The plan identifies and proposes relevant Mitigation strategies
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Climate-Smart Agriculture: Mitigation, Adaptation and Food Security
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CSA projects – research projects identified
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HOW THE SECTOR CONTRIBUTES
• Agricultural practices such as:•
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Agricultural burning
Agricultural soil
Manure management
Livestock feedlots
Inorganic fertilizers
Climate Change programmes
1. Policy development
The Climate Change Sector Plan was gazetted on January 2013 for public comments
and inputs. Public comments and inputs were received from ordinary people, public and
private organisations including organized agriculture and non-governmental
organisations.
DAFF is NOW in the process of
• synthesising inputs and comments received in response to the gazetting of the Draft
Climate Change Sector Plan for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and update the
Sector Plan with inputs received;
• facilitating three (3) workshops with Provincial groupings, and one national workshop,
explaining the process and sector plan development as well as soliciting additional
insights and inputs.
• A final draft sector plan, incorporating all inputs received will be produced before the
end of the current financial year.
DAFF is currently developing the CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION AND MITIGATION
PLAN FOR THE SOUTH AFRICAN AGRICULTURAL AND FORESTRY SECTORS
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Climate Change programmes
2. Awareness
• Capacity building and awareness on climate change is an on-going activity. The
department. New mechanisms for raising public awareness levels will also be required,
and these need to be deliberated. They could include billboards, pamphlets, short
courses aimed at specific audiences, etc.
Key criteria for an awareness programme
• In addition to the requirement for high quality information and an understanding of
distribution channels and communication tools, several other requirements should be
identified during the planning of public awareness campaigns. The department is
currently using the following criteria for an awareness programme.
For example:
• What is the target audience?
• What are the key messages for each type of audience?
• What are the time frames?
• Who will take overall responsibility?
• Who will perform the campaigns and how will they be trained?
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Climate Change programmes
2. Awareness continue…
• Who will be responsible for funding?
• How can researchers, the public and private sectors and the media liaise more
effectively with one another?
• How will the success of awareness campaigns be measured? (both i.t.o. awareness as
well as behavioural change)
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Awareness campaigns at DAFF are conducted through various departmental and
provincial structures such as workshops, farmers’ days, extension services, etc.
The farming communities are capacitated also through projects by translating climate
change awareness into mitigation and adaptation actions.
The department developed and published a document on “Climate Change and the
Agricultural Sector in South Africa", which sought to synthesise activities in the sector
and create awareness on the current perceptions and follow-up actions necessary to
address the risks and challenges relating to the impacts of climate change on
agriculture.
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Climate Change programmes
2. Awareness continue…
Best farming practices: example
Awareness programme: Diversifying:
• Drought resistant crops & flood management strategies,
• Crops with shorter germination period and shorter growing season.
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Selection of varieties that are naturally resistant to specific disease causing organisms.
Farmer benefits
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Improved water management in agriculture, reduced energy consumption for irrigation.
Reduced CO2 emissions, increased yield and biomass production.
success of awareness campaigns be measured? (both i.t.o. awareness as well as
behavioural change)
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Climate Change programmes
3. Research
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Through the gazetted CCSP, department has made initiatives with regard to identifying
research needs and priorities within the sector. Another DAFF initiative was funding the
“Atlas of Climate Change and the South African Agriculture Sector: A 2010 Perspective”
(Schulze, 2011), from which large amounts of information are drawn in the present
document.
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Despite financial constraints and capacity challenges, DAFF commissioned the
following research projects during the financial year 2012/13:
 Sensitivity to crop suitability,
 Mitigation and adaptation (Biogas generation from crop-livestock) as well as
Mitigation and adaptation plan projects).
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Climate Change programmes
4. Climate negotiations under the UNFCCC
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DAFF attended the COP18 and position paper reviewed and finalized and incorporated
into country position.
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DAFF to form part of SA delegation in meetings leading up to COP19 later this year in
Warsaw, Poland.
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DAFF NEGOTIATION THEMES & POSITION
ITEM
STATUS
SA POSITION/ DAFF
LINKAGES
Agriculture
SBSTA agrees to continue South Africa recognises the Sectoral
consideration of this agenda importance of adaptation and discussed
item at its 37th session.
approaches
under
Ad
Hoc
its relative priority compared Working Group on Long-term
to mitigation, the need to Cooperative Action under the
achieve food security and the Convention (AWG-LCA)
importance
of
technology
transfer. However, this would
best be addressed taking into
account
the
agricultural
diversity
systems,
of
the
differences in scale and in
accordance
with
the
principles of the Convention
and actions undertaken under
the Convention should not
jeopardize food security.
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ITEM
STATUS
Land-use,
Change
Land
and
SA POSITION/DAFF
LINKAGES
Use In its conclusions, SBSTA initiates its SA will continue to It appears that there could be a number
Forestry consideration of the issues related to support the position of of approaches and concepts within
(LULUCF):
LULUCF as referred to in Decision Africans
in
the REDD+, and the linkage between these
LULUCF under the CDM
2/CMP.7 (LULUCF), paragraphs 5, 6, treatment
of
forest and LULUCF accounting rules will need
7 and 10 for reporting on progress to management (that is, to be explored in depth in future
COP/MOP 8. The SBSTA also invites combining the net-net meetings.
parties and observers to submit their accounting
with
views for compilation by SBSTA 37 reference
on:
levels);
stressing
Issues
related
to
modalities
the
and importance
of
procedures for alternative approaches accounting
to
addressing
permanence
the
under
risk
the
of
non- that
CDM,
an
system
ensures
in environmental integrity
accordance with Decision 2/CMP.7, (i.e.
paragraph 7;
Modalities
the
transparency,
accuracy,
and
procedures
for comparability,
possible additional LULUCF activities consistency,
and
under the CDM in accordance with completeness).
Decision 2/CMP.7, paragraph 6; and
Issues
related
comprehensive
to
a
accounting
more
of
anthropogenic emissions by sources
and removals by sinks from LULUCF,
including through a more inclusive
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ITEM
STATUS
SA POSITION
Reducing Emissions
On the way forward, it was decided that the South Africa is of It appears that there could be a
from Deforestation and
secretariat will prepare a technical paper, as the
Forest degradation in
well as efforts to organise the REDD+ REDD+
Developing countries
workshop before Doha, despite financing important
(REDD+)
difficulties.
view
LINKAGES
that number of approaches and concepts
is
an within REDD+, and the linkage
between
component
these
and
LULUCF
of accounting rules will need to be
NAMAs.
explored in depth in future meetings.
Consistent with our
general
approach There is a linkage between REDD-
to NAMAs, South Plus under the UNFCCC and the
Africa
is
of
view
that
the REDD-Plus
Environmental
the Social safeguards discussed under
specific category of the UNCBD.
NAMAs
being
discussed
under
REDD+ should be
publicly funded.
Forests in Exhaustion
(FIE)
In its conclusions the SBSTA takes note of FiE should not be
the
summary
report
in
FCCC/SBSTA/2012/MISC.10
LULUCF / CDM
document considered under
and
has SBSTA
agreed to continue consideration of this It should either be
agenda item at SBSTA 38.
and
shifted from the
SBSTA to LULUCF
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Conclusion
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Climate change is across-cutting issue that affect us ALL.
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Lack of funding – a barrier to implementing Climate Change - There is need for a new
funding mechanism so that depts can be assist to tap into available international funding.
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Capacity constraints – a challenge that must be addressed urgently.
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Uncertainties about the extent of climate change impacts make it even more difficult to
quantify the levels of vulnerability of different communities.
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Broadened Knowledge Systems need to be integrated with other sciences to maximize
benefits from both systems.
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Awareness of climate change issues by ordinary people could be improved – strong
extension services
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Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management - Climate change mitigation and adaptation
have to be harmonized with integrative disaster risk reduction.
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TAKE CARE OF THE ENVIRONMENT
AND THE AIR WE BREATH FOR THE
BENEFIT OF OUR CHILDREN AND
GRAND CHILDREN!
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