Chairperson, hon Minister, the ACDP agrees that we must be good stewards of our environment, and we share concerns about the poor state of our environment, particularly if one has regard for the 2007 report highlighted by the Minister. We, as MPs, need to appreciate that an investment in protecting the environment by managing air quality and waste will also result in long-term savings on health costs.
Against this background, the department is expected to enforce compliance with the growing number of environmental laws with dwindling financial and personnel resources. As a former member of this portfolio committee, this is unacceptable to me and must be addressed, particularly as this department is one of the best-performing departments, as pointed out by my colleague, Mr Greyling, earlier today.
As far as the Copenhagen climate summit is concerned, it is regrettable that it turned out to be a damp squib, although the accord did include an agreement that richer countries should raise funds to assist poorer countries to adapt to climate effects and green their economies. In this regard, the ACDP agrees that governments that meet at global forums such as the United Nations, UN, should be held accountable, not only through their individual parliaments but also through the Inter-Parliamentary Union, as indicated by the Minister. This includes monitoring climate change and the raising and spending of the US$100 billion required.
We can be proud that South Africa is the only country that has admitted that it is a large emitter of greenhouse gases and has set ambitious targets to address this. Clearly the challenge will be to meet these targets.
In this regard, much has been said about the World Bank loan to Eskom, inter alia, to complete the Medupi coal-fired power station. Last year the bank financed more than US$8,2 billion worth of energy projects, of which 76% was for non-fossil fuels, and less than 3% for coal. The bank would, no doubt, have closely monitored South Africa's environmental record, and one must remember that the loan is part of a package that includes funding for alternative energy products using wind and solar power.
It is also significant that Medupi will be the first in Africa to employ cleaner-coal "supercritical" technology. So, while there are environmental concerns, we can clearly be proud of some of these achievements.
As the ACDP, we clearly say that we need to achieve energy security for sustainable economic development. However, this does not detract from the need to implement a suite of renewable energy projects.
In conclusion, as pointed out in this morning's Financial Mail:
Now that government and Eskom have made their commitment, they can expect close international monitoring of South Africa's environmental performance, and this is clearly where this portfolio committee and the department come in. They ...
that is, Eskom and government -
... must deliver on their promises and ensure that tighter emission controls are affordable.
We, in Parliament, will have a very important oversight role to play to ensure that this is achieved.
Lastly, the ACDP would like to express its gratitude to the Minister, the management and officials, and CEOs of public entities and thank them for their hard work in ensuring that, notwithstanding the financial challenges they face, our environment is protected for present and future generations. The ACDP will support this Budget Vote. Thank you. [Applause.]