Professor Emile van Zyl, Senior Chair of Energy Research: Biofuels at Stellenbosch University, speaking at the Transport World Africa business breakfast held at the Killarney Country Club on 19 April 2012 and hosted by FACE2FACE, an 3S MEDIA interactive forum, gave a frank and rather shocking warning that the human race faces a formidable energy and pollution problem.

For this, a drastic change is needed in the first half of the 21st century to set the stage for extraordinary events in the rest of the century. In October last year we passed the 7 billion people mark. This will reach the 9 billion towards the middle of the century. If we don’t get our house in order and carry on with a “business as usual” attitude, Earth may hardly sustain 1 billion people at the turn of the century! If we do, Earth may sustain civilization beyond the 21st century.

In past 150 years CO2 levels raised from 280 ppm to >390 ppm. That is a 40% increase since the industrial revolution and the highest that it’s been for last 650,000 years!

What is more, our fossil fuels are running out. With known oil and gas reserves our children will be without carbon based fuels by the middle of the century. The answer to the sustainable energy problem is biofuel, but we have to start now and get this industry up and running.

To find out more, read Transport World Africa’s June/July 2012 edition. To subscribe to the magazine, click here.