Friends of the Earth South Africa appeal to President Jacob Zuma on fracking

Friends of the Earth South Africa and groundWork argue that the South African government is rushing to lift the fracking moratorium without transparent impact studies or meaningful public consultation. They contend that promises of job creation by corporations like Royal Dutch Shell are misleading and that fracking would exacerbate socio-economic inequalities and environmental degradation. The authors highlight the climate risk, noting that methane is a more powerful greenhouse gas than CO2, and urge the president to protect regions like the Karoo and KwaZulu-Natal by pursuing renewable energy alternatives.

• The South African government is accused of accelerating the fracking process by lifting the moratorium without sufficient time for transparent impact studies or stakeholder engagement, with indications that shale gas exploration may be authorised before the following year's elections.
• The document argues that claims of job creation from fracking, specifically research commissioned by Royal Dutch Shell, are misleading and will not benefit the unskilled poor, thereby widening socio-economic inequalities.
• Fracking is presented as a climate risk because methane is a significantly more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide; the document cites the IPCC stating methane is 86 times more damaging than CO2 over a 20-year period.
• The authors express concern that fracking will destroy land and water resources in areas such as the Karoo and KwaZulu-Natal, which they argue have potential for agriculture, tourism, and alternative energy.

APA

Khanyile, S. (2013). Friends of the Earth South Africa appeal to President Jacob Zuma on fracking. Friends of the Earth International. https://www.foei.org/friends-of-the-earth-south-africa-appeal-to-president-jacob-zuma-on-fracking/

Chicago

Khanyile, Siziwe. Friends of the Earth South Africa appeal to President Jacob Zuma on fracking. Friends of the Earth International, 2013. https://www.foei.org/friends-of-the-earth-south-africa-appeal-to-president-jacob-zuma-on-fracking/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Khanyile |first1=Siziwe |title=Friends of the Earth South Africa appeal to President Jacob Zuma on fracking |publisher=Friends of the Earth International |date=21 October 2013 |url=https://www.foei.org/friends-of-the-earth-south-africa-appeal-to-president-jacob-zuma-on-fracking/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{khanyile2013friends, author = {Khanyile, Siziwe}, title = {{Friends of the Earth South Africa appeal to President Jacob Zuma on fracking}}, publisher = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2013}, month = oct, url = {https://www.foei.org/friends-of-the-earth-south-africa-appeal-to-president-jacob-zuma-on-fracking/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }