WC govt ramps up response to climate & environmental threats

The Western Cape government is ramping up its response to climate and environmental threats, with nearly R950 million set aside for water and energy resilience, animal disease outbreaks, and wildfire management.

Finance MEC Deidré Baartman said the province is acting decisively as disasters become more frequent and more severe.

Baartman tabled the province's budget in the Western Cape Provincial Parliament on Thursday.

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She said R177 million will be allocated for water resilience and drought response in the province.

Baartman added that another R452 million will go to energy resilience, including solar installations at public service facilities such as schools and hospitals.

"To protect the province’s agriculture sector, R139 million is being spent to curb foot-and-mouth disease for vaccines and scaling veterinary capacity to protect our dairy and meat industries."

Moreover, with wildfire risks rising, R65 million is allocated for integrated fire management operations in the province.