How Has Climate Change Brought France and South Africa Together?

Though climate change represents perhaps the most significant risk facing our planet today, it has served to bring people together. The historic agreement reached at last month’s COP21 climate summit talks in Paris is testament to that fact, uniting 196 countries with the common aim of avoiding a 2°C rise in the global temperature.

In particular, France and South Africa used the conference to more closely bond ties between the countries by signing a cooperation agreement. The agreement, which encourages the advancement of new technologies with respect to the nuclear power industry, signals both countries’ intentions to share findings from their respective experts on the topic.

An Ongoing Agreement

The latest contract is an extension of one which was inaugurated back in 1976 at the construction of South Africa’s first and only nuclear power station to date, the Koeberg power plant. It was signed by Dr Rob Adam of the Nuclear Industry Association of South Africa (NIASA) and Valèrie Faudon of the French Nuclear Society (SFEN) at the Paris talks.

“The fact is that, thanks to the long cooperation between France and South Africa, nuclear energy is a low-carbon and efficient industrial solution, already available in South Africa,” explained NIASA in a statement. “The development of nuclear power technology must be encouraged if we are to meet climate targets. Therefore, South Africa’s National Integrated Resource Plan for Electricity (IRP2010) plans for the coming years massive new renewable energies, as well as nuclear build.”

Following the French Example

France has long been one of the most stalwart proponents of nuclear energy in the world. They launched their nuclear programme as far back as the 1970s and now boast 58 nuclear reactors. These supply around 75% of the country's electricity needs, with 17% of this tally coming from recycled nuclear sources.

Combined with hydropower, France can claim as much as 90% of its energy is completely free of carbon emissions – one of the highest figures in Europe. South Africa is looking to learn from this example by revolutionising the way they produce energy.

At present, the nation consumes around 44GW annually (2010 figures), but this is expected to more than double to almost 90GW by 2030. Since the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC) has stipulated that 80% of all energy production must engender low-carbon emissions by 2050, South Africa sees nuclear as the natural solution.

Other Solutions to Explore

The time is now to move beyond simple carbon measurement and reporting and take affirmative action to curb emissions. While nuclear power may well comprise part of the solution, it should not be relied upon solely to replace our dependency on fossil fuels. The reasons for this are manifold.

Firstly, uranium (while currently abundant) is also a finite resource and so a switch from fossil fuels would really only be delaying the inevitable. Secondly, uranium may not emit carbon, but it does generate an amount of highly volatile waste, which could provoke disastrous consequences if not properly stored. And finally, disasters at Chernobyl and Fukushima prove that such catastrophes could be caused by unforeseen circumstances, making nuclear an unpredictable and potentially dangerous proposition.

Therefore, investment in other green energies is also needed. Renewable energy, landfill gas and energy from waste (EfW) represent several avenues worth pursuing to supplement the power provided by nuclear, to ensure we avoid the harshest consequences of climate change without putting all of our eggs in one basket.