South Africa could replace coal with marijuana

A study showed that South Africa could replace coal and power-station jobs by investing in citrus and marijuana plantations to produce hemp in its coal belt.

The nation, which is the world’s 15th-biggest producer of greenhouse gases, is attempting to wean itself off dependency on the dirtiest fossil fuel.

The Eastern Mpumalanga province, which accounts for 87% of South Africa’s coal production and the bulk of its power generation, could also focus on producing aviation fuel from sugarcane and boosting tourism income, the Presidential Climate Commission said in the study released Wednesday.

The researchers wrote in the study that as coal mines and power plants close in the province, which has an unemployment rate of 38%, as many as 24,000 jobs could be lost by 2030. Jobs will need to be found to replace them.

“Against a backdrop of low growth and high employment, the energy transition away from coal has the potential to deepen existing socio-economic challenges,” the researchers said.

South Africa and the Mpumalanga province are in focus as an $8.8 billion climate finance pact, known as the Just Energy Transition Partnership.

Some of the world’s richest nations are prototypes for similar projects being pursued in Indonesia, Vietnam, and Senegal. Key to those deals is how coal-dependent communities will be shielded from the impact of the transition.

The researchers said sectors that could provide jobs in the future, should they attract investment, may provide as many as 95,000 jobs.