intsika yethu local municipality - Provincial Spatial Development plan

5.3.8 Environmental ManagementIYLM has a functional environmental unit in place lead by the Assistant Manager: EnvironmentalManagement and an Environmental Management Officer, dealing with environmental challenges withinthe municipal area. Currently the Environmental Management Unit is implementing a R5 millionGreening and Beautification Project within Tsomo and Cofimvaba. The project is sponsored by theDepartment of Economic Development Environmental Affairs and Tourism.In addition to these specific initiatives, IYLM is also cognisant of the global issue of climate change whichmay have important implications on all climatic variables, especially temperature and rainfall. Althoughthe direction and degree of climate change and its impact at municipal level is still unknown, it is expectedthat temperatures may increase and while rainfalls may become less frequent, yet more intense, leading toa greater frequency and intensity of draughts and floods. Given the rural nature of the municipality,climate change has a potentially serious impact on agricultural activities. IYLM’s proactive role in localeconomic development thus means that drought resistant crops may need to be investigated in mitigationof the potential effects of climate change. Consequently a disaster management plan for the municipalitywill also have to respond to severe climate conditions e.g. thunder storms’, lightning and hail.A Climate Change Strategy has become a necessity in IDPs for the category A (Metros) and C (DistrictMunicipalities). It is however advisable that category B (Local Municipalities) also adopt the DistrictClimate Change Strategy Framework and determine exactly how they integrate into the District’s plans.Climate change is however defined in the National Climate Change Response Policy as an ongoing trend ofchanges in the earth’s general weather conditions because of an average rise in the temperature of theearth’s surface often referred to as global warming. This rise in the average temperature is due, primarily,to the increased concentration of gases known as greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere that areemitted by human activities. These gases intensify a natural phenomenon called the “greenhouse effect” byforming an insulating layer in the atmosphere that reduces the amount of the sun’s heat that radiates backinto space and therefore has the effect of making the earth warmer.5.4 Economic Development and Planning Cluster5.4.1 Local Economic DevelopmentLocal Economic development (LED) occurs when communities, government and the business sector act inpartnership to engage in local activities to improve local social-economic conditions by making use of localresources and opportunities. In the MFMA Municipal Budget Circular No.58 for 2012/13, for the MediumTerm Revenue and Expenditure Framework, it suggests that municipalities focus on maximizing theircontribution to job creation by supporting labour intensive LED projects. This necessitates that, themunicipality plays a critical role in creating an enabling environment for investments and other activitiesthat lead to job creation: This can be obtained by;Ensuring that service providers use labour intensive approaches;Ensuring that service delivery and capital projects use labour intensive methods whereverappropriate;Participating fully in the Expanded Public Works Programme; andImplementing interns programmes to provide young people with on-the-job training.74