Mark New

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Emissions from the Sappi-Saiccor paper pulp mill in uMkhomazi, south of Durban, South Africa. Gift777/Getty Images

South Africa’s carbon tax should stay: climate scientists explain why

Britta Rennkamp, University of Cape Town; Andrew Marquard, University of Cape Town; Gina Ziervogel, University of Cape Town; Harald Winkler, University of Cape Town; Mark New, University of Cape Town; Melanie Murcott, University of Cape Town; Ralph Hamann, University of Cape Town, and Wikus Kruger, University of Cape Town

Polluting companies in South Africa have had to pay a tax on their carbon emissions since 2019. This gives them a good incentive to reduce emissions.
Alien trees threaten biodiversity, increase the risk of wildfires and also guzzle water. Photo courtesy Cape Winelands Biosphere Reserve

Removing alien plants can save water: we measured how much

Alanna Rebelo, Agricultural Research Council; Karen Joan Esler, Stellenbosch University; Mark New, University of Cape Town, and Petra Holden, University of Cape Town

Clearing alien trees from mountain catchments is a more cost-effective approach to providing water than building and maintaining desalination plants.
Alien pine trees, which use substantially more water than the native vegetation of the Cape Mountains, reduce river flows to dams that supply the city’s water. Martin Kleynhans

Clearing alien trees can help reduce climate change impact on Cape Town’s water supply

Petra Holden, University of Cape Town; Alanna Rebelo, Agricultural Research Council; Joyce Kimutai, University of Cape Town; Kamoru Abiodun Lawal, University of Cape Town; Mark New, University of Cape Town; Piotr Wolski, University of Cape Town; Romaric C. Odoulami, University of Cape Town, and Tiro Nkemelang, University of Cape Town

Clearing alien trees before the drought hit could have reduced the impact of climate change on water supply during the ‘Day Zero’ drought.
The road leading to the Etosha National Park East Gate at Fort Namutoni, Etosha National Park, Namibia. Getty Images/ Alexander Hafemann

Africa’s growing road network may affect ecosystems: we reviewed the evidence

Lavinia Perumal, University of Cape Town; Mark New, University of Cape Town; Matthias Jonas, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), and Wei Liu, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)

The presence of roads, even inside protected areas, may pose a significant threat to species.
Cape Town residents queueing to refill water containers at the Newlands Brewery Spring Water Point in January 2018. GettyImages

Dimming the sun could reduce future drought risk in Cape Town – but there’s a catch

Romaric C. Odoulami, University of Cape Town; Christopher Trisos, University of Cape Town, and Mark New, University of Cape Town

Artificially dimming the sun, by injecting reflective particles into the upper atmosphere, could reduce the risk of Day Zero level droughts in Cape Town by more than 90% in the future.
A fire rages through wetlands close to Cape Town in February 2017. EPA/Nic Bothma

What science tells us about fire hazards facing Cape Town and its surrounds

Alanna Rebelo, Stellenbosch University; David Carlyle Le Maitre, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research; Mark New, University of Cape Town; Peter Johnston, University of Cape Town; Petra Holden, University of Cape Town; Tiro Nkemelang, University of Cape Town, and Tony Rebelo, South African National Biodiversity Institute

The danger of fires in the Cape region this season is partly dependent on how the Fynbos has been managed over the past few decades.
Les habitants du Cap faisant la queue pour obtenir de l’eau, en février 2018. Shutterstock

En Afrique du Sud, un risque de sécheresse multiplié par trois avec le changement climatique

Mark New, University of Cape Town; Friederike Otto, University of Oxford, and Piotr Wolski, University of Cape Town

Les systèmes d’approvisionnement en eau n’ont pas été conçus pour répondre aux évolutions météorologiques provoquées par le changement climatique. Il est désormais nécessaire de les adapter.
Opter pour des énergies modestes en carbone, à l’instar du solaire, devrait permettre à l’Afrique de ne pas aggraver l’impact du réchauffement climatique planétaire. www.shutterstock.com

Pourquoi l’Afrique doit faire profil carbone bas

Mark New, University of Cape Town

Comment soutenir la croissance en Afrique pour éradiquer la pauvreté ? En adoptant dès aujourd'hui des politiques énergétiques pauvres en carbone.

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