Papers by Detlof von Oertzen
Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG eBooks, 2022
Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG eBooks, 2022
State of the Namibian Electricity Sector - 2019, 2019
The book summarises the main developments shaping Namibia’s electricity sector in 2019, and provi... more The book summarises the main developments shaping Namibia’s electricity sector in 2019, and provides a brief overview of the key policy, legal and regulatory underpinnings. It also aims to inform and stimulate debate on the multitude of decisions needed to strengthen Namibia’s security of electricity supplies, and with it, support further deliberations on many of the country's most pressing development needs and challenges.
Institute for Social-Ecological Research (ISOE), 2008
This paper provides an introduction to some of the most common
desalination technologies suitable... more This paper provides an introduction to some of the most common
desalination technologies suitable for small to medium-scale desalination which could be of interest to future village-level desalination plants. It then focuses on select past and present Namibian desalination
examples and describes actual experiences in small-scale desalination
in Namibia. The paper furthermore identifies the critical issues and aspects that need to be considered for the further introduction and dissemination of desalination systems in rural Namibia.
The paper concludes with a summary of the critical issues and some suggestions to be considered
when planning for the introduction of such plant in Namibia.
Issues, Challenges and Opportunities to Develop Green Hydrogen in Namibia, 2021
This introductory paper discusses how Namibia can participate and benefit from global decarbonisa... more This introductory paper discusses how Namibia can participate and benefit from global decarbonisation efforts. It is intended to inform and contribute to rational and fact-based deliberations on the many issues, challenges, and opportunities for green hydrogen production in the country.
Summary in English. Photocopy of typescript. Thesis (M.Sc. (Theoretical Physics))--University of ... more Summary in English. Photocopy of typescript. Thesis (M.Sc. (Theoretical Physics))--University of Cape Town, 1987. Includes bibliographical references.
Global and Planetary Change, 2008
Zeitschrift f�r Physik C Particles and Fields, 1992
Zeitschrift f�r Physik C Particles and Fields, 1992
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Papers by Detlof von Oertzen
desalination technologies suitable for small to medium-scale desalination which could be of interest to future village-level desalination plants. It then focuses on select past and present Namibian desalination
examples and describes actual experiences in small-scale desalination
in Namibia. The paper furthermore identifies the critical issues and aspects that need to be considered for the further introduction and dissemination of desalination systems in rural Namibia.
The paper concludes with a summary of the critical issues and some suggestions to be considered
when planning for the introduction of such plant in Namibia.
desalination technologies suitable for small to medium-scale desalination which could be of interest to future village-level desalination plants. It then focuses on select past and present Namibian desalination
examples and describes actual experiences in small-scale desalination
in Namibia. The paper furthermore identifies the critical issues and aspects that need to be considered for the further introduction and dissemination of desalination systems in rural Namibia.
The paper concludes with a summary of the critical issues and some suggestions to be considered
when planning for the introduction of such plant in Namibia.
A critically important risk facing Namibia’s development is the country’s exposure to climate change. Key to managing the multitude of impacts brought about by a changing climate is that local resilience is further enhanced. Systemic shocks that affect the supply of water, energy, and food include, among others, learning to cope with less rainfall and higher average temperatures, having to live through prolonged periods of drought and increased aridity, and coping with occasional floods, all of which are manifestations of increased climate variability.
Future-proofing Namibia cannot be achieved without enhancing the security of water, energy, and food supplies. As such, national development ambitions can only be realised if adequate water, energy, and food is and remains accessible, available and affordable for local use. Namibia’s core development imperative should therefore focus on creating the conditions required to further improve and secure water, energy, and food supplies.
The country’s inherent resource blessings, including coastal access to near-infinite seawater, excellent solar and wind energy resources, and most generous land endowment for food production are the key requirements on which to build a sustainable water-energy-food nexus, and holds the promise to keep stomachs filled while creating plentiful new jobs.
Strengthening each nexus pillar necessitates the deliberate integration of planning, governance and management across the water, energy, and food sectors, rather than addressing these essential development ingredients on their own, as has often been the practice in the past.
Leveraging Namibia’s national endowments to create local value is essential for crafting a liveable future. This entails, among others, safeguarding our limited water resources, rapidly expanding the portfolio of local energies, and enhancing local food production. This will create much-needed new jobs, improve livelihoods, and expand decentralised economic development, thereby strengthening the country’s fabric and enable broad-based national development.
on many of the country's most pressing development needs
and challenges.
The Symposium held at Gobabeb, Namibia, on 24 and 25 October 2007, entitled “Hybrid electricity systems powering mini-grids: a southern African perspective” focused on the experiences and lessons learnt with hybrid systems in southern Africa. The Symposium provided participants with an opportunity to exchange views, and reflect on issues such as the costs and benefits of hybrid systems, technical and managerial aspects, institutional arrangements, and the roles that hybrid electricity systems can play in the continued electrification in southern Africa.
Life, as we know it, depends on the presence of radiation. Yet, if radiation carries sufficient energy to be ionising, it can be harmful. Exposure to such radiation must therefore be managed. This is done to ensure that exposure doses, which are a measure of the potential risk of exposure
to radiation, remain as low as reasonably achievable (ALARA).
Many contemporary applications in which radiation is important – ranging from medical and personal X-ray scanners or those used for baggage control, XRF instruments, uranium exploration and mining,
the use of sealed radioactive sources, nuclear power stations, and others, may cause exposure to ionising radiation. Often unnoticed, and sometimes involuntary, exposure to radiation occurs, whether we like it or not. Radiation is therefore a key factor shaping the environment
in which we live, as well as ourselves. Because ionising radiation cannot be seen, tasted, or otherwise detected using our bodily senses, it is often difficult to objectively quantify the inherent risk of exposure to such radiation. And a risk that is not quantified is difficult to manage.
The intangible risk of exposure to radiation has contributed to create a sense of unease, or outright fear and anxiety, when issues relating to radiation exposure are considered. Also, the images of nuclear bomb blasts at Nagasaki and Hiroshima, or the nuclear accidents at Chernobyl
and Fukushima and other nuclear power installations, disturb most people, and seem to imply that all matters relating to the use of ionising radiation are inherently unsafe, and therefore undesirable. This is certainly not the case: numerous applications exist where the use of ionising radiation is important and beneficial, even though exposures must be managed to keep them ALARA. A few examples include the use of ionising radiation in the field of medical diagnostics and therapy, safety scanning, as well as the multitude of applications and uses of radioactive materials in industry, medicine, agriculture, the water and food sciences, research, and many other activities.
The above is testimony that one does not need to be in favour of smoking, airline travel, uranium mining, nuclear power or other applications which are associated with ionising radiation to be interested in radiation protection or wanting to apply contemporary radiation safety practices.
It is this realisation that defines the main purpose of this book: radiation protection is the systematic endeavour to ensure that applications involving radiation are managed and undertaken in a way that ensures the safety of workers, members of the public, and the environment. Nothing less.
Radiation protection, in the context of this book, focuses on ionising radiation only. This is not to say that non-ionising radiation is entirely benign or does not necessitate active management. However, as many contemporary applications as occur in industry, medicine, mining, science, and other fields necessitate a thorough understanding of how the exposure to ionising radiation can best be managed, and minimised,
this book focuses on ionising radiation only. As such, the principal goal is to understand where and how ionising radiation is likely to occur, and what the key safety measures are that will ensure that exposures are and will be kept as low as reasonably achievable.