Author Archive
Posted by Angela on 05 Apr 2011 | Tagged as: Eco General
Tuesday, April 5th, 2011
By Marisa Robson
They say, if you put a frog in boiling water it’ll jump out. Put a frog in cool water and set him on the stove with a low fire under him and he’ll boil to death slowly. Maybe frogs are really like that, maybe not. Human beings on the other hand – human beings are definitely like that.
April 20, 2010 gave us a boiling pot with the explosion on the BP operated Deepwater Horizon oil rig causing a massive oil spill that vomited out from the bowls of the earth covering ten thousand square kilometers in its toxic slick. The event burst into the headlines generating worldwide outrage, a hurricane of hate mail and tens of thousands of law suits. Hating BP CEO Tony Hayward became a global hobby amidst a mardi gras of finger pointing, explanation demanding and general bitching about the greedy oil merchants and the evil empire.
All this is merely evidence that we humans love ourselves a good scapegoat.
(more…)
Tags: bp, oil, pollution, recycle, reduce, reuse
Posted in Eco General | 3 Comments »
Posted by Angela on 24 Jan 2011 | Tagged as: Eco General
Monday, January 24th, 2011
Everyone is encouraging you to go green and save energy to do your bit for the environment, but the initial overhead costing is so daunting that many people are not considering it as a viable option. The “industry experts” say that the long term savings of converting to alternative energy sources and using environmentally friendly products are worth it, but they provide averages that are not specific to your household or business.
This is why we at Sustainable.co.za have developed our Sustainable Calculator, which will help you calculate how much money and energy you can save by converting to more energy efficient products.
You don’t need to install solar panels and wind turbines and take yourself completely off the grid. Simple changes in your household products will go a long way in terms of making sustainable savings on your monthly energy bills. By switching from regular light bulbs and showerheads to more energy efficient LED light bulbs and water saving showerheads, you will experience substantial savings.
While changing a couple of light bulbs doesn’t seem like it will do much to save energy and money, you’d be amazed by the actual results. This is where the Sustainable Calculator comes in. All you need to do is enter the product types and quantities, as well as the number of hours that you use them each day, and the Calculator will work out your monthly, annual and 10-year savings if you switch to energy efficient products. It will also provide details on the total cost of switching to these products (installation costs for Solar Water Heating kits included), as well as the payback period of your investment.
Why not try out our Sustainable Calculator to see for yourself how much you can save on your monthly energy bill by making a few simple changes. Many of the energy efficient products that can help you save are sold on our site, making it even easier for you to save money while doing your bit for the environment.
Tags: calculator, energy efficiency, environmental, green, green calculator, LED Bulbs, monetary savings, save, showerheads, solar geysers, solar panels, wind turbines
Posted in Eco General | No Comments »
Posted by Angela on 10 Jan 2011 | Tagged as: Eco General
Monday, January 10th, 2011
South Africa is committed to becoming a low carbon economy and to reducing our carbon emissions by 34% by 2020. The demand for skilled professionals in the carbon and energy sectors is rising. Predictions around job creation from these industries are very promising. The GreenPeace Energy Sector Jobs to 2030 report predicts that the opportunities offered by the renewable energy sector alone could result in the creation of 78 000 direct jobs and thousands of indirect jobs in less than 20 years.
SA’s Water and Environmental Affairs minister, Buyelwa Sonjica, recently signed an agreement with provincial MEC’s responsible for the environmental portfolio. Ensuring environmental assets and natural resources are valued, protected and enhanced is known as “outcome 10″ of government’s 12 outcomes, The environmental sector expanded public works programme (EPWP) would be scaled up to carry out the activities outlined under outcome 10. It was expected that 1,15-million EPWP work opportunities would be created by 2014. Another 325 652 full time jobs were also expected to be created by 2014. (more…)
Tags: environmental careers, environmental training, global carbon exchange, green blog, green careers, green jobs, green training, rocktober challenge
Posted in Eco General | 1 Comment »
Posted by Angela on 13 Sep 2010 | Tagged as: Eco General
Monday, September 13th, 2010
Tariffs Valid With Effect From 1 July 2010
Cape Town’s electricity tariffs have been formulated in accordance with the Municipal Systems Act as well as guidelines established by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa.
There are three possible tariffs available for the City’s domestic electricity consumers. The tariffs are applicable irrespective of whether supplies are metered by credit or prepayment meters.
The Domestic High Tariff consists of an energy charge and a service charge and is suitable for consumers purchasing more than 1500 kWh per month.
The energy charge paid by these customers is 79.97 c/kWh plus VAT = 91.17 c/kWh and recovers the cost of energy which is provided to the particular consumer. (more…)
Tags: consumption, domestic high, domestic low, electricity, eskom, life line, tariffs
Posted in Eco General | No Comments »
Posted by Angela on 03 Aug 2010 | Tagged as: Eco General
Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010
Upon learning of my intention to come to Cape Town for an internship in sustainability from my home in San Francisco, many of my friends and family were congratulatory and jealous, but quite concerned for my safety as well. “You’re heading to the most dangerous country in the world!” I was warned by more than a few people.
From second-hand reports and stories of people being robbed, shot at, killed, and taken advantage of, I understandably had a vigilant attitude upon my arrival. Upon my first inclusion in a round of “Make the Circle Bigga!” in middle of Long Street, all of these negative perceptions began to erode. While talking with a man and his (?) children at a braai in Nyanga, about Apartheid, forgiveness, and the hopeful future of South Africa, they eroded even further. (more…)
Tags: American, Circle, environment, Make the circle bigger, South Africa, Sustainable, world cup
Posted in Eco General | No Comments »
Posted by Angela on 11 Jun 2010 | Tagged as: Eco Products
Friday, June 11th, 2010
For the next installation of Alternative Energy Made Easy I have decided to concentrate on LED Lights. These are fantastic as they are not only eco-friendly, but they also cut down one’s electricity consumption by up to 90%!! Replacing your regular lights with LED lightss is one of the first steps in making your household environmentally friendly.
What are LED Lights?
LED is an acronym for Light Emitting Diode. Basically, as the name suggests, this is a little diode that emits light when in an excited or active state. Each LED light bulb is made up of a number of diodes, dependant on their respective wattage. (more…)
Tags: eco, eco friendly, energy, energy efficiency, environmental, green, LED, Lights Diodes
Posted in Eco Products | 2 Comments »
Posted by Angela on 17 May 2010 | Tagged as: Eco Products
Monday, May 17th, 2010
I’ve decided to take a little break from my Alternative Energy Made Easy series (although expect another great installation soon ) and list some of my favourite products and great deals that have been listed on our site.
TENESOL<TENESOL<TENESOL!!
Our latest special on Tenesol Panels is AWESOME – you won’t find them cheaper anywhere else! From R45 p/Wp to R25 p/Wp – that is 45% off on very good quality Solar Panels. I know I sound like a bit of a salesman, but seriously, this is a fantastic deal, so don’t miss out!
The New PowerTraveller Range
Now these are great little gadgets, beautifully packaged and of a very high standard! We have some samples in the office and most of us have taken time out to marvel at these mobile chargers, especially the men (you know, boys with their toys and all that 
) (more…)
Tags: eco friendly, Eco products, energy efficiency, Environmantal, Grey Water, phone chargers, Power Traveller, Recycle water, solar, Solar Battery chargers, solar panels, solar power, Time switch monitors, wind power, wind turbines
Posted in Eco Products | No Comments »
Posted by Angela on 31 Mar 2010 | Tagged as: Eco Products
Wednesday, March 31st, 2010
For the next installation in Alternative Energy Made Easy (has a nice ring to it – he he), I’ve decided to write about Solar Water Heating as it is very relevant in South Africa today and Eskom offers rebates on it too, which is great! 
So, in a nutshell, Solar Water Heating is water heated by means of thermal energy. This is incredibly cost effective in sunny South Africa, especially when we all know how expensive geysers can be!
Solar thermal energy differs from solar electrical energy as there are no photovoltaic or PV cells (solar panels) to convert energy into electricity. Instead, thermal energy makes use of a solar collector to capture and store heat .
A Solar Water Heating System is generally made of the following components:
a) Solar Heating Collector
A collector basically takes energy directly from the sun and converts it to a more usable/ storable form. There are two types of collectors most commonly used in domestic environments: (more…)
Tags: Circulation pump, Direct Geyser, environment, eskom, geysers, Indirect Geyser, Site Assessment, solar geysers, Solar Heating Collector, solar water heating, Thermal Controller
Posted in Eco Products | 2 Comments »
Posted by Angela on 05 Mar 2010 | Tagged as: Eco General
Friday, March 5th, 2010
After Eskom’s announcement, electricity is fast becoming something of a luxury. Nowadays more and more people are turning to Solar Power. Although this alternative may seem costly at first (especially if you want to completely remove yourself from Eskom), harnessing the sun’s energy (which is certainly abundant in Sunny South Africa) will definitely pay off in the long run.
If you do not have the finances to become completely independent of Eskom, you can slowly build up your home solar power system by buying smaller (and thus cheaper) solar panels each month. Each panel you buy can run a selection of electrical appliances in your home, effectively cutting your electricity costs each month. (more…)
Tags: battery, controllers, eskom, inverters, panels, pv sytems, sinewave, solar, solar panels, solar power
Posted in Eco General | 2 Comments »
Posted by Angela on 03 Mar 2010 | Tagged as: Eco Products
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010
The ESKOM Solar Rebate Programme is an initiative that is driven by the South African government. Eskom, realizing that Solar Water Heating is the most effective means of renewable energy sources, is participating in this initiative by means of solar water heating rebate programme.
This means:
Eskom will pay a percentage rebate on the installation of approved solar water heating systems directly to the consumer.
This is a significant incentive to install a solar water geyser, which itself can reduce your heating bill by as much as 70%.
The rebate amounts granted by Eskom are subject to the performance and durability of the different systems available on the market.
To make sure that high standards are maintained, all systems that partake in this initiative has to pass SABS tests to determine that it is safe, mechanically sound and how effective each system is.
Originally the installer was responsible for claiming the rebate, but there was resistance to this as it was perceived that the installer is actually financing the client for the duration it takes for the claim to clear. So it has now changed to the client having to make, and wait for the claim, often after having paid for a more expensive system.
We are proud to be able to be accredited distributors of
ITS- Solar 200 litre PV pumped solar water heating system
ITS 200L Home standard Complete
• 200 Litres
• Vacuum Tubes
• Pumped
• Direct – Frost Resistant
• Average cost for supply and installation R 21,000.00
• Rebate amount R 5,222.00
Solardome 200 / 300 thermo-siphoned solar water heating systems
Solardome 200d
• 200 Litres
• Flat Plate
• Thermo-siphon
• Direct
• Average cost for supply and installation R 22,500.00
• Rebate amount R 6,331.00
Solardome 300d
• 300 Litres
• Flat Plate
• Thermo-siphon
• Direct
• Average cost for supply and installation R 28,500.00
• Rebate amount R 12,116.00
For more information or to book your installation please contact us on 021 701 2029 / 28 or email ian@sustainableprojects.co.za
Tags: eskom, geysers, heating, rebate, rebates, solar, solar geyser, solar geysers, solar water heating, water
Posted in Eco Products | 2 Comments »
By Marisa Robson
