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As ordinary people begin to realise the effects of global warming, governments are also gearing up to develop solutions to the problems associated with this phenomenon. National Cleaner Week early in September and National Car Free Day in October are examples of such interventions by the South African government to increase awareness about the impact of global warming.
Kevin Cilliers, a project manager at the National Cleaner Production Centre–SA (NCPC-SA) - managed by the CSIR and funded by the Department of Trade and Industry - believes that saving water and energy as well as reducing waste production, can dramatically turn the tide in many sectors of the economy. Cilliers is responsible for the development, roll-out and implementation of a Cleaner Production Programme in the chemical sector.
He hopes to implement further energy projects in other sectors and municipalities over the next two years. He says if industry knew about the benefits cleaner production has on the environment and, in the long run, on its profits, it would swiftly implement it.
Cleaner production is a methodology used to determine where and how much waste is produced during a production process and identifying possible options to reduce it. “Essentially, cleaner production focuses on reducing or eliminating waste at source and taking a holistic approach when considering options for implementation,” says Cilliers.
He says they look at the possibility of recovering waste heat from an exhaust stack to preheat raw materials or water for use elsewhere in the process, rather than extending the capacity and demand on the existing boiler and heating systems.
“Ultimately this energy is available freely and is then used to heat up the environment. Much of the waste management up to now has focused on ‘end of pipe treatment’ where emphasis is placed on treating the waste so that it is safe enough to dispose to landfill or drain.”
Cilliers explains that if they question where the waste is coming from and deal with it at source, it allows them to reduce the amount of waste generated that requires end of pipe treatment.
“This translates into savings for the company in that the required effluent treatment facility can be smaller in size, for example lower capital investment will be required, and less waste has to be treated. This, in turn, will reduce the chemical treatment costs,” says Cilliers.
He says companies would save money, contribute to the drive to conserve water and save energy if they optimised the internal recycling of process streams within the production process. This could entail something as simple as reusing a rinse process stream as a feed to a first stage dirty wash or even floor cleaning purposes.
“Even in households we can play our part by reducing the amount of waste that goes to land fills by separating our waste and ensuring materials that can be recycled, are. Thinking twice about turning on that light or air conditioner can also impact on the carbon dioxide emissions that we send into the atmosphere,” he says.
Yet companies and people continue to do things the way they have always done them: wasting. “Wasting has become part of people’s lives. Many people seem to take the approach that if I can afford it then I can use it as much as I like,” says Cilliers.
He says that apart from saving money and the environment, the different industry sectors could also be more sustainable if they reduced the energy and water wasted during production.
Cilliers says the aim is to throw away as little as possible. “Cleaner production is not first and foremost about the financial benefits, but about the environmental implications. But the financial advantages do make it even more attractive,” he says.
Since its launch in 2002, the NCPC has been creating awareness in the chemical, clothing and textile as well as the agro-processing sectors. And since his appointment as project manager in 2005, the centre has carried out 16 cleaner production assessments in the chemical sector alone, with further assessments completed in the clothing and textile as well as agro-processing sectors.
Recently, the centre had six projects that focused particularly on energy in support of the industry’s initiative to reduce energy consumption by 10%. These projects were undertaken on behalf of the NCPC by local energy experts in South Africa. “The projects entailed undertaking an energy audit of the selected companies to understand what their consumption was and where opportunities existed for possible improvement and reduction in energy consumption,” he explains.
The assessments also involved a briefing session with each of the companies to help them understand their consumption patterns and highlight behaviours or activities that were costing the company money.
“The results thus far have been very encouraging,” declares Cilliers. He explains: “The six projects have identified potential savings in energy of 48 335 979 kilowatt hours with a combined electricity and fuel cost saving of R8 858 357. If we consider that a small household can use 1000 – 1200 kWh per month, this adds up to a number of additional houses that can be supplied with electricity. The assessments have demonstrated possible reductions in energy consumption ranging from 6,5% to 65% with an overall reduction of 13%. This bodes well for future planned energy audit programmes and if correctly implemented, could go some way to alleviate the current shortage experienced in supply, until such time power producers can bring more capacity on-line.”
Cilliers believes that not only will such projects help to alleviate the supply shortages, but any reduction in energy consumption will also reduce the country’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.
“With the country’s heavy dependence on fossil fuel for power generation, South Africa is currently one of the top 20 CO2 emitters per capita,” he says.
His preference for cleaner production results from the potential that he sees in industry to become a better competitor in the global market.
Though he is no longer in the core research and development arena, Cilliers is well positioned to advise researchers on areas that need attention.
He has a Diploma in Chemical Engineering from the Durban University of Technology (previously Natal Technikon) and has been working at the CSIR for 15 years, where he started as a trainee chemical engineering technician. It is his experience in chemical processing and engineering that qualifies him to advise industry on what to do.
“You must think out of the box. There will always be concerns about financial lay-outs up-front and other barriers, but we need to constantly challenge whether there are other ways of doing the same thing,” he says.
When he is not saving the environment, Cilliers coaches the under 13 girls’ hockey team of the Pretoria High School Old Boys Club’s primary school league, where his two daughters also play. “Our team has gone unbeaten in the league this term, so it’s looking promising - as a coach too,” he concludes.
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