Molewa calls for climate progress

About 70million people, and up to 30% of Africa's coastal infrastructure, could be flooded by rising sea levels in 2080, Water and Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa said.

Speaking at a national summit in Durban ahead of COP17, Molewa used rising sea levels to highlight the need for African leaders to put pressure on delegates to the climate change conference to take decisions that would "take the whole world forward".

Durban was expected to highlight its concern about rising sea levels by painting a blue line indicating the level to which it will rise.

But the city has decided against the blue line because of concerns about road safety.

Weekend media reports claimed that several officials of the ANC-led eThekwini municipality had objected because the line would have been the colour of the DA.

Outgoing city manager Michael Sutcliffe rubbished the reports, stating that the organisers shelved the blue line idea because it would confuse motorists, damage road surfaces and cost the municipality money to remove after the conference.

Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe and KwaZulu-Natal Premier Zweli Mkhize will lead a "social mobilisation" walk on Sunday to open the summit.

Molewa said South Africa had a mandate to help force developed countries to heed the calls of underdeveloped nations for them to reduce their carbon emissions. The mandate would be implemented by:

• The development of the South African COP17 negotiating position;
•  Greening and legacy projects which reduce or offset climate change; and
• The Public Climate Change Outreach and Mobilisation programme to increaseunderstanding of climate change.

- Additional reporting by Nivashni Nair