The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF), in collaboration with its service providers, the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) and the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) developed the Greenhouse Gas Emission inventory and capacity building for the agricultural sector in South Africa. The project was initiated by the DAFF and funded by the British High Commission (BHC).
As a signatory to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol, South Africa is obliged to compile and periodically update an inventory of greenhouse gas emissions and sinks.
South Africa is particularly vulnerable to climate change. An increase in the number of droughts and rising temperatures will have a severe impact on food availability. Drought also negatively affects national economies and reduces the country's ability to export crops and generate foreign currency. Food security is important to South Africa’s economy as it has a huge impact on the country's poverty alleviation plans.
The first greenhouse gases (GHGs) inventory was compiled by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) under the coordination of the Department of Environmental Affairs (formerly the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism or DEAT). While relevant work in the area of GHG emission inventories was undertaken in the past and coordinated by DEAT with regard to climate change, it did not address the issue of agricultural emissions in detail because of the lack of capacity in the agricultural sector. The three main GHGs are carbon dioxide (CO 2), methane (CH 4) and nitrous oxide (N 2 O).
This new project produced a greenhouse gas inventory for agriculture for 2004 using more current data. Another major aim of the project was to build capacity within the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) and this was done by holding three training workshops over the duration of the project. A toolkit was also produced to allow for easy updating of the agricultural GHG inventory in the future. The project's progress was monitored by a technical committee comprising representatives of the DAFF, Agricultural Research Council (ARC), BHC, the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) and the CSIR. The project team also collaborated with Dr Cardenas of the North Wyke Research Department in the United Kingdom (UK), who is responsible for compiling the agricultural GHG inventory for the UK.
For further information contact:
Tsotso Sehoole
Tel: 012 319 6043/7317
Cell: 083 265 8728
E-mail: HCM@daff.gov.za
Issued by: Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
21 May 2010
Source: Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (http://www.daff.gov.za/)
