Integration of climate change considerations into local air quality management plans in South Africa
Year: 2007
Type: article
Abstract: In recent years there has been considerable advancement in our scientific understanding of the \nlinkages and interactions between climate change and air quality. A warmer, evolving climate \nis likely to have severe consequences for air quality due to impacts on pollution sources and \nmeteorology. The issues of poor air quality and anthropogenic induced climate change further \nshare common sources of pollutants and thus options for control. The possibility to include \nthese complex linkages to climate change in South Africa’s air quality policy, the National \nEnvironmental Management: Air Quality Act (Act No.39 of 2004) (the AQA), includes the use \nof local air quality management plans (AQMPs). The extent to which South African cities are \ncurrently incorporating climate change concerns into existing AQMPs and the opportunities for \nimproved integration of these two issues was investigated using the eThekwini Municipality or \nthe city of Durban as a case study. Climate change and air quality issues are currently dealt \nwith separately in Durban, overlooking an opportunity to derive multiple benefits from \nintegrative policies. This case study primarily focused on understanding the role that the AQMP \ncould play in support of creating a low carbon resilient city through its influence on greenhouse \ngas (GHG) emissions. Emission inventories focusing on both air pollutants and GHG emissions \nwere developed for two of the areas for intervention prioritised in Durban’s AQMP, namely the \nroad transportation and industrial sectors. The emissions inventories were used as a basis to \nexplore air pollution interventions that are likely to result in trade-offs or synergies (or co-benefits) \nfor GHG mitigation. For the industrial sector it was found that the implementation of \nindustrial energy efficiency and fuel switching measures would be favourable for co-benefits. In \nthe case of road transport, reducing the vehicle kilometres travelled by privately owned motor \nvehicles and improving the efficiency of road freight transport offers the greatest potential for \nachieving co-benefits. The case study further illustrates that in the short-to medium-term air \nquality management (AQM) planning may help to promote climate change awareness and \naction toward climate change mitigation through improved co-ordination of industrial, energy \nand transport plans. The introduction of voluntary programmes, municipal by-laws and or \nregulatory guidance from the AQA, that support strategies with co-benefits is critical to ensure \nthat local AQMPs can be used to promote reductions or avoidance of GHG emissions. In the \nlong-term, climate change impacts on meteorological factors that influence air quality also need \nto be considered in AQMPs so that the most effective interventions can be selected to support \nthe local government’s climate change adaptation goals.
Source: Clean Air Journal
Authors: T Thambiran, R Diab, M Zunckel
Language: English
Subfield: Environmental Engineering
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W1563555439