The City developed the Energy Plan during 2016-17 financial years, and it was approved by Council in 2017. Since approval the City embarked on implementing the promotion of projects that advocate for the efficient use of energy resources, for example Demand Side Management and Energy Efficiency.

Some of the projects implemented included:

Energy efficiency lighting programme: the location will be along the M1, M2, Golden Highway, Corlette Drive, J Swart, Motsoaledi Nancefield road

• The City has retrofitted over 5 000 street lights, through the replacement of High Pressure Sodium (HPS) rated 250W with Light Emitting Diodes (LED) rated 100W and 80W. These lights provide the same luminance and lux intensity, if not better than the HPS.
• Over 1 500 lights along the main roads, such as the M1, M2 and the Golden Highway, have been retrofitted with LED lighting. The City is committed to continuing with the programme through the luminaire replacement programme of City Power and the Energy Demand Side Management (EEDSM) programme of the Department of Minerals and Energy (DMRE).
• The DMRE is in the current financial year supporting the City with additional financial support for the retrofitting of lights along various A2 and A3 roads, namely Corlette Drive, J Swart, the Motsoaledi Nancefield corridor, etcetera. 

The City is engaged in a study, in partnership with the University of Johannesburg (UJ), C40 Cities and Climate Leadership Group to assesses the numbers of photovoltaic systems (PV) and solar water heaters (SWH) that are deployed within the City of Joburg geographic area. The Vice-Chancellor of University of Johannesburg Professor Tshilidzi Marwala recognised this project as ground breaking, in that it uses Artificial intelligence (AI) superimposed on a GIS system to determine, recognise and count SWH and PVs installed in the City of Johannesburg, and also confirms of these PVs and SWH installed, how many are correctly oriented for maximum efficiency and how many are still in working order. The system will generate data that will be used for policy development for this and similar projects to be executed by the City in future.

City of Johannesburg Council Chamber – Council Chamber

The City has developed a Green Building Policy that is out for public comments to accelerate green buildings in the city. The Council chamber is one of the City’s important landmarks, where the City is displaying exemplary leadership in energy efficiency buildings. The building has been awarded a Green Star rating by the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBSA). Sustainable features of this building include the following interventions:

• An underfloor displacement system with Co2 sensors to measure the quality of air in the building;
• The glass façade allows for natural light and views of the outdoors. Efficiency lighting together with occupancy sensors reduce the energy required for the occupants of the building;
• All energy and water systems are metered;
• A large proportion of products are locally manufactured, thereby supporting the local economy; and
• The project focused on creating job opportunities for priority groups such as the youth and women, ensuring that a Training and Development structure was in place to increase the technical skills of employees.

The City is currently auditing two wastewater treatment plants, namely Olivantsvlei and Ennerdale, both located in the South of Johannesburg. These wastewater works are assessed with the purpose of replacing inefficient energy consuming components with more energy efficient options. The aim of the project is to help reduce the energy consumption. The project will be implemented with the support of the DMRE.

The City of Johannesburg is playing a leadership role in managing waste through recycling. Recycling is a growing industry in the country and has the potential to reduce unemployment. In the last reporting period, recycling initiatives diverted about 218 000 tonnes of waste from the City’s landfills, saving over R40-millions in disposal costs.

In an effort to inculcate a culture of recycling among the residents of the City, Pikitup has introduced the Separation at Source programme. The programme encourages residents and other stakeholders to separate recyclable materials at source. Plastic bags are given to residents to ensure that the recyclable materials are placed inside the recycling bags for collection.

This programme has been made mandatory in certain residential areas in the City. Consequently, in the last financial year ending in June 2020, the following waste diversion tonnages were recorded:

• Green waste diversion resulted in 70 007 tonnes being diverted from landfill sites;
• Building rubble reduced by 13 232 tonnes; and
• Dry waste diversion resulted in 135 385 tonnes being diverted away from landfill sites, both by Pikitup and private sector initiatives.

The City of Johannesburg is playing a leadership role in managing waste through recycling. Recycling is a growing industry in the country and has the potential to reduce unemployment. In the last reporting period, recycling initiatives diverted about 218 000 tonnes of waste from the City’s landfills, saving over R40-millions in disposal costs.

In an effort to inculcate a culture of recycling among the residents of the City, Pikitup has introduced the Separation at Source programme. The programme encourages residents and other stakeholders to separate recyclable materials at source. Plastic bags are given to residents to ensure that the recyclable materials are placed inside the recycling bags for collection.

This programme has been made mandatory in certain residential areas in the City. Consequently, in the last financial year ending in June 2020, the following waste diversion tonnages were recorded:

• Green waste diversion resulted in 70 007 tonnes being diverted from landfill sites;
• Building rubble reduced by 13 232 tonnes; and
• Dry waste diversion resulted in 135 385 tonnes being diverted away from landfill sites, both by Pikitup and private sector initiatives.

• The City is implementing the landfill gas to energy project at Robinson Deep, Marie Louise, Linbro Park, Goudkoppies and Ennerdale landfills to implement a landfill gas to energy Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) project. Through the implementation of a CDM project, the City will contribute to the country’s achievement of the Kyoto Protocol commitments and simultaneously generate revenue through the sale of Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) and the sale of electricity generated from the project.
• The CoJ’s Infrastructure and Services Department initiated the landfill gas-to-energy CDM project in 2007. The main aim of the project is to mitigate the harmful greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted from the landfills. It is anticipated that the renewable energy generated from the project will be fed into the municipal grid, thus off-setting largely coal-derived electricity.
• The project is therefore in support of Government’s 2002 agreement to the Kyoto Protocol on under the United Nations Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which aims to reduce the amount of GHG emitted in countries and the implementation of supportive CDMs in Third World countries. The project is also in support of the City’s GDS 2040 outcome of shifting to a low carbon economy. Approximately 19MW of electricity will be generated from the project, generating electricity for approximately 12 500 middle-income households.
• In May 2009 the City entered into an agreement/contract with Ener-G Systems Joburg (Pty) Ltd to construct and operate the landfill gas to energy CDM project at no cost to the City for a period of 20 years. The agreement also gave Ener-G Systems exclusive rights to mine gas and generate electricity at the five landfill sites.

Progress to Date

Construction is complete on three sites (Robinson Deep, Marie Louise and Goudkoppies) with the following generation MWh:

• Robinson Deep – 4.4MWh
• Marie Louise – 1.2MWh
• Goudkoppies ­– less than 1MWh

The total tonnages of GHG emissions reduced from the three landfill sites combined for the period July-September is  2 262 tonnes, resulting in an average percentage of GHG offset being 16%.

Cedar Lofts urban wetland conservation

• Cedar lofts development in Fourways is an estate with 425 residential units, situated on four hectares of natural wetland, known as the Witkoppen wetland.  The site is located within a rapidly developing node, established around the intersection of some major transportation routes. The node has some major commercial and retail developments surrounded by dense residential estates, which has substantially altered the drainage patterns and placed considerable stress on the downstream catchment.   The condition of the wetland was deteriorating rapidly with diminishing biodiversity and habitat.
• The site was also subject to uncontrolled stormwater and runoff from surrounding development while downstream areas were also experiencing flooding.  Loss of the wetland would have exacerbated flooding hazards for properties below the wetland site.
• The design approach to the development of the site came about as a result of some fortuitous regulatory conditions which were imposed through the development approval process.  The wetland study found that the wetland area occupied a substantial portion of the site, which together with the required wetland buffers threatened the feasibility of a development on the site.
• The City was faced with refusing any development on the site which would then remain vulnerable to ongoing degradation and urban management problems, or considering relaxation of certain policy provisions.
• Ultimately a concession was granted whereby the requirement for physical wetland buffers could be waived provided that the developer could ensure the sustainability of the core wetland by mimicking the natural hydrology of the site and the surface and sub-surface water flows upon which the wetland depended.
• A subsequent hydrological study found that the stormwater volumes being discharged onto the wetland site were so onerous that the wetland would suffer channelization and erosion over time with ultimate loss of wetland functionality.

Development of Cedar Lofts began in 2014.  The design that was finally implemented on site actually improved considerably on the initial proposal, and ultimately managed to conserve a large portion of the original wetland without any major disturbance or excavation.

• This came about as a result of collaborative problem solving between members of the professional team together with the site contractor and landscaper, supported by a developer who allocated sufficient resources to enable the professional team to engage and find innovative solutions to problems encountered.
• One example is the decision to raise the ground level of the developable parts of the site, in order to achieve the required attenuation or storage capacity within the wetland area itself, rather than having to undertake costly excavation and invasive re-engineering.    This not only resulted in conservation of a substantial component of the wetland in its natural state, but also brought about huge cost savings in reduced earthworks.
• The design also incorporated a simple litter trap which can be cleared manually and serves to remove some of the pollution inherited by the site from surrounding developments.
• The end result was impressive. The design sought to mimic both the subsurface lateral flows of water to the wetland, through careful design of drainage under and between buildings, as well as through landscaped berms and soak-aways. It mimicked the natural hydrology of the site, while also accommodating the increased stormwater volumes from upstream areas.

Outcomes of the case study:

• Management of excessive stormwater from the upstream catchment
• Created sufficient attenuation capacity
• Mitigated flooding to the downstream catchment
• Conserved the wetland and associated habitat on site
• Ensured sustainability of the wetland and the hydrology supporting it.

The Cedar Lofts development case study demonstrates the potential application of green infrastructure and adaptive design responses to address a range of challenges relating to wetland and biodiversity conservation, flood mitigation, and the balancing of the need for a compact city and densification with retention of natural assets and greening components as the city develops.

The City of Johannesburg’s food resilience programme began in 2013. The Food Resilience Unit was developed to help food-insecure urban residents in Johannesburg’s seven regions grow their own food. The programme has achieved remarkable success in a short number of years. Today, the unit provides 37 000 homesteads, 50+ co-operatives, four farms and one urban agri-zone with an enabling environment for urban farmers to grow and sell their own food.

In addition to feeding the poorest citizens, the programme has shifted the landscape from one dominated by food-parcel donation to one of greater self-reliance. There are multiple additional benefits: access to improved nutrition and subsequent health benefits; individual self-reliance; and economic opportunities for a new breed of urban farmers in a model of urban agriculture that addresses poverty alleviation.

Captions

• Caption 1: Landfill gas to energy project at one of the CoJ Landfills
• Caption 2: CDM compliant flare at Robinson Deep
• Caption 3: An aerial view of the Cedar Lofts development in Fourways, Johannesburg
• Caption 4: The design approach to the development of the site
• Caption 5: Stormwater volumes being discharged onto the wetland site
• Caption 6: A simple litter trap to remove pollution
• Caption 7: wetland mimicking natural hydrology to accommodate increased stormwater volume