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NEWS: Coastal wetlands are unable to adapt to the rate of sea-level rise and are constrained by infrastructure

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Wetlands, precious ecosystems that shield coastlines, safeguard drinking water from saltwater contamination, and nourish diverse wildlife, face a dire threat from the accelerating pace of sea-level rise, driven by global warming. Wetlands have historically adapted to rising sea levels by expanding upward and inland. However, predictions indicate that the waterline will soon shift far too rapidly for wetlands to keep pace. Consequently, future decades may witness the tragic loss of these vital wetland ecosystems. Wetlands along coastlines have historically played valuable roles for people and wildlife, but are now facing the threat of sea-level rise. As temperatures rise, sea levels are rising at an accelerating rate, and wetlands are unable to keep pace by building upward and migrating inland. This is due to human-induced climate change and the burning of fossil fuels, which has warmed the oceans and melted glaciers. Sea levels are now rising at about 10 millimeters per year, and are
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Smart city developments planned for Gauteng, North West

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The investment and infrastructure unit has begun working on a smart-city that will be home to almost half a million people said President Cyril Ramaphosa at the SONA 2020.

Smart city developments planned for Gauteng, North West

The unit, which was established in the Presidency after Ramokgopa was axed from Gauteng premier David Makhura’s cabinet, has, according to Ramaphosa, identified places around Gauteng and North West that will be the first projects to benefit from the smart-city developments.
Infrastructure will be rolled out in Lanseria, Tshwane and Madibeng in preparation for the smart city development.
“Working with development finance institutions we have put together an innovative process that will fund the bulk sewerage, electricity, water, digital infrastructure and roads that will be the foundation of the new city,” Ramaphosa said.
“It will not only be smart and 5G ready, but will be a leading benchmark for green infrastructure continental and internationally.”
Ramaphosa first punted the idea of smart cities in his last year’s Sona, where he asked if it was perhaps not the time to take bold steps by doing what may seem impossible by building cities founded on technologies of fourth industrial revolutions.
“Last year, I asked the nation to join me in imagining a new smart-city, a truly post-apartheid city that would rise to change the social and economic apartheid spatial architecture.
 “A new smart-city is taking shape in Lanseria, which 350,000 to 500,000 people will call home within the next decade,” Ramaphosa said.

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