As part of its mission to address the issues of clean and sustainable energy, the South African National Energy Development Institute (Sanedi) will be participating in this year’s global Earth Overshoot Day, taking place on August 1, by urging South Africans to check their ecological footprint and be mindful of this where possible.
Earth Overshoot Day, the institute explained, marks the day in a given year when humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what the planet can regenerate in that year.
“Globally, we use more ecological resources and services than nature can regenerate by overfishing, overharvesting forests and emitting more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than ecosystems can absorb,” Sanedi interim CEO Dr Thembakazi Mali explained, adding that the overshoot is the equivalent of 1.7 Earths.
Sanedi believes that if organisations and people can be informed, educated and committed to their contribution and steps to combat the overshoot impact on the planet, the date can be moved back several days through personal and organisational efforts.
The institute called on industry to investigate the existing, off-the-shelf commercial technologies for buildings, industrial processes and electricity production that could move back Earth Overshoot Day by at least 21 days, without any loss in productivity or comfort.