Citrus, Marijuana May Replace South African Coal Jobs
- Presidential Commission says new jobs needed in coal belt
- Commission says 24,000 jobs may be lost, 95,000 created
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South Africa could replace coal and power-plant jobs by investing in citrus and marijuana plantations to produce hemp in its coal belt as the nation, the world’s 15th-biggest producer of greenhouse gases, tries to wean itself off dependency on the dirtiest fossil fuel, a study showed.
The eastern Mpumalanga province, which accounts for 87% of the South Africa’s coal production and the bulk of its power generation, could also focus on producing aviation fuel from sugarcane and boosting income from tourism, the Presidential Climate Commission said in the study released Wednesday.