South African National Carbon Sink Assessment: Assessment: suggested ...

South African National Carbon Sink Assessment:

Assessment: suggested future amendments to policy

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Contents

Introduction ................................................................................................................................................147

Section 1: Creating an enabling environment for formal climate change mitigation activities........................................................................................................ 148

1.1 Addressing common barriers: support for a NFU and long-term finance ..................................................................................150 1.1.1 Addressing common barriers through policy reform....................................................................................................................................... 151

1.2 The policy environment of the top 8 activities and potential barriers ........................................................................................153 1.2.1 Restoration of sub-tropical thicket, woodlands and forests ............................................................................................................................ 154 1.2.2 The restoration and management of indigenous grasslands.......................................................................................................................... 155 1.2.3 Community-based commercial afforestation .................................................................................................................................................. 158 1.2.4 Biogas energy production .............................................................................................................................................................................. 161 1.2.5 Biomass energy generation ........................................................................................................................................................................... 163 1.2.6 The roll-out of biochar.................................................................................................................................................................................... 165 1.2.7 The adoption of reduced tillage practices ...................................................................................................................................................... 166 1.2.8 Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+) ............................................................................................................. 168

Section 2: Guiding current and future land-use beyond the scope of targeted mitigation activities....................................................................................................... 172

2.1 Policies influencing the expansion of built environments..........................................................................................................175 2.2 Policy considerations relevant to the mining sector ..................................................................................................................177 2.3 Agriculture ? commercial, smallholder and subsistence ...........................................................................................................182

Appendix A: Policies providing broad support for Top 8 mitigation opportunities ........................ 211

References .....................................................................................................................................................................185

NATIONAL TERRESTRIAL CARBON SINKS ASSESSMENT

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List of Figures

Figure 1

Figure 2 Figure 3

The components of the terrestrial carbon stock of South Africa. Top left: soil organic carbon to 1m in depth. Top right: the above- and below-ground woody-plant biomass pool Lower left: above- and below-ground herbaceous biomass pool. Lower right: aboveground litter (Scholes et al. 2013)

The relative contribution of each of the principle land-cover types in South Africa in terms of (a) spatial area and (b) terrestrial carbon stocks (input data from Scholes et al. 2013)

The anticipated change in the extent of each land-cover type in South Africa during the period 2010-2020. For further explanation and assessed changes for the 2000-2010 period, please see GTI (2013).

List of Tables

Table 1 Table 2 Table 3 Table 4 Table 5 Table 6 Table 7 Table 8 Table 9 Table 10

The eight principle land-use based climate change mitigation activities in South Africa Barriers shared amongst the Top 8 implementation opportunities Overview of policies supporting restoration of forests and thicket biomes Overview of policies supporting restoration and management of grasslands Overview of policies supporting commercial small-scale afforestation Overview of policies supporting implementation of biogas digesters Overview of policies supporting implementation of biomass to energy Overview of policies supporting the implementation of biochar A list of policies supporting reduced tillage practices A list of policies supporting REDD+ activities

List of Appendices

Appendix A Policies providing broad support for Top 8 mitigation opportunities

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Acronyms

AFOLU ARC CARA CDM COP DAFF DEA DFID DME DMOSS DNA DTI DWA EIA GHG IPAP IPCC LUPO MTSF NAMA NCCRP NDP NEMA NERSA NFA NFU NGO NGP NPAES REDD REDD+

REIPPPP SANBI SDF SEA SIP SPLUMA UNESCO UNFCCC VCS

Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use Agricultural Research Council Conservation of Agricultural Resources Act Clean Development Mechanism Conferences of the Parties Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Department of Environmental Affairs Department for International Development Department of Minerals and Energy Durban Metropolitan Open Space System Designated National Authority Department of Trade and Industry Department of Water Affairs Environmental Impact Assessment Greenhouse Gas Emissions Industrial Policy and Action Plan Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Land use planning ordinance Medium-term Strategic Framework Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions National Climate Change Response Policy National Development Plan National Environmental Management Act National Energy Regulator of South Africa National Forests Act National Facilitation Unit Non-governmental organization National Growth Path National Protected Areas Expansion Strategy Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (through planning and regulation) Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries; and the role of conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks in developing countries Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme South African National Biodiversity Institute Spatial Development Framework Strategic Environmental Assessment Strategic Infrastructure Projects Spatial Planning and Land Use Act United National Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Verified Carbon Standard

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Introduction

Building on the previous section, this analysis focuses on creating a policy environment that enables and encourages a reduction in emissions from the land-use sector and stimulates activities that lead to an increase in the size of the national terrestrial carbon stock.

In terms of the scope of the analysis and its boundaries, the aim is to provide Government with an understanding of potential changes that may need to be made to policy to create an enabling environment for the rollout of climate change mitigation activities. The decision to include the changes or how they may be incorporated into a specific policy document is beyond the scope of this analysis.

Two broad areas in which policy may need to be reviewed, were identified during the development of the two initial components and extensive stakeholder engagement:

? The first focuses on creating an enabling environment for the eight principal land-use based climate change mitigation activities identified in the second section of the project.

? The second aims at guiding current and future land-use decisions in a manner that reduces release of carbon into the atmosphere and maintains and increases the size of the national carbon pool over the long-term.

The distinction between these two broad areas is due to the nature of required activities. The first focus area is driven by the outcomes of the mitigation option analysis in Section 2 of the National Carbon Sink Assessment (NCSA). It is more immediate and specifically focuses on creating an enabling environment for the eight identified implementation options as well as creation of a National Facilitation Unit (NFU) and National Payment Facility. The second focus area is far broader in scope, considering the management of carbon stocks and land-use based GHG emissions in all landscapes, beyond the boundaries of formal mitigation activities. Stakeholders repeatedly identified this area as a missing element and therefore it has been give clear separate consideration below.

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