Various research materials were used to gain an insight into ecological modernisation, environmental justice and sustainable development in South Africa. Various policies and participants were engaged with, and form the basis of data gathered for this research. Below is a description of each of the research materials used in this study.
3.3.2.1. Policy reviews
The first step in conducting this research project was to determine if South Africa has in fact embraced ecological modernisation. In order to do this five energy polices and two Acts were analysed using Hajer’s (1995) six policy principles for ecological modernisation. These six principles being: prevention of environmental degradation is preferred over dealing with resultant environmental degradation; internalising the costs of environmental degradation; requiring the party responsible for pollution to pay; the importance of the promotion of science in policy; economic benefits for pollution prevention; and lastly promoting participation within the governance of the environment (Hajer, 1995). The five policies and two Acts included:
1. White Paper on the Energy Policy of the Republic of South Africa (Department of Minerals and Energy, 1998).
2. The White Paper on Renewable Energy (Department of Minerals and Energy, 2003b). 3. The Integrated Energy Plan for the Republic of South Africa (Department of Minerals
and Energy, 2003a).
4. The Nuclear Energy Policy for the Republic of South Africa (Department of Minerals and Energy, 2008).
5. The Radioactive Waste Management Policy and Strategy for the Republic of South Africa 2005 (Department of Minerals and Energy, 2005).
68 7. National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998 (Revised on the 18 December
2014) (Republic of South Africa, 1998).
Each of these policies and Acts were chosen as they are the governing documents that inform energy governance in South Africa. In order to gain the suite of policies and Acts analysed, the Department of Energy website was perused for all relevant documents (Department of Energy, 2016b).
In addition to analysing these documents for evidence of ecological modernisation, they were also analysed to gain an understanding of the environmental justice principles enshrined therein. This study aimed to analyze the applicability of this framework when applied to the case of energy in South Africa. Upon completion of developing the framework the very same five energy policies and two Acts were analyzed. This time each of these documents was analyzed in order to ascertain whether or not South African energy policies hosted any of the environmental justice principles put forward by civil society. By doing this it could be determined if the absence of such principles could be the very reason for injustice in the country. If the absence of these principles is the reason for injustice, then perhaps the solution lies in embracing the principles in this developed framework.
3.3.2.2. Study Population and sampling procedure
The second step for this research study was to develop an environmental justice framework for ecological modernisation. Thematic content analysis was deemed a useful methodology to employ. For thematic content analysis, participants are generally comprised of a smaller group of key informants who hold specific knowledge on the issue under investigation (Flick, 1998). As such purposive samples are ideal and were used here. In this instance the smaller group of key informants are members of civil society organisations. In order to develop the policy framework the study population is comprised of civil society groups active in the field of environmental justice. These civil society groups are not concentrated in one geographic area, but are spread out across the country, this means that if civil society groups are to form the sample for this research study the study site would have to encompass the whole of South Africa. The only mandate for participation in this study was that the civil society group be active in environmental justice campaigning. As such the sample population is made up of civil society organizations that campaign within the energy sector, urban landscapes, and basic services to name a few. In
69 addition to this, through participant interviews the technique of snowballing was used to find further potential participants (Noy, 2008). These further participants were added to the database and contacted for a potential interview.
Once the sample group was identified the question of sample size was raised. Baker and Edwards (2012) have put together a most helpful publication that addresses just this question, however the consensus amongst a number of authors and experienced researchers is that ‘it depends’. The scope of the project, the field the research is being conducted in, the point of saturation, and the potential size of the group under study all play a role in determining the sample size that should be obtained (Adler and Adler, 2012; Back, 2012; Baker and Edwards, 2012; Bryman, 2012; Charmaz, 2012). Unlike quantitative studies, qualitative studies seek to delve deeper into understanding a specific aspect of social life, and thus often times do not require the vast numbers in order to attain significance that quantitative studies do (Adler and Adler, 2012).
Qualitative studies do not require the vast numbers of participants as do quantitative studies, however adequate sample size is still a cause for concern. Given that the scope of this project deals with a very specific group of people it is inherent that the sample size will be smaller than studies where the sample group could compromise an entire society. Adler and Adler (2012), Becker and Bryman (2012) all allude to saturation being the key to knowing when you have your ideal sample size. Saturation is the point at which no new themes emerge when interviewing candidates, and again varies depending on the scope and nature of the study (Bryman, 2012). Adler and Adler (2012) pronounce that the number of participants required can vary from one to a hundred and in some cases can exceed this, but they advocate for a sample that ranges between 12 and 60 with a mean of 30 participants as the ideal to reach saturation. A sample size of 30 participants allows for a deeper look than a very small sample size without excessive unnecessary data gathering (Adler and Adler, 2012).
In order to find potential participants to build the initial framework an extensive internet search was conducted. This framework in intended to be a generic framework and therefore civil society organizations from all sectors were consulted. Only later on during the testing of this framework in the energy sector were civil society participants confined to those who operate within this sector. Key words used in this search included: environmental groups South Africa; South African non-governmental organisations; environmental justice groups South Africa; and
70 South African non-profit organisations. The South African government also hosts a database of all registered non-profit organisations, with contact details, this database can easily be searched through using key words such as environment and justice (Department of Social Development, 2014). A list of 66 organizations was compiled for potential participation. An attempt was made to contact each of these organizations via email. If there was a direct contact in the organization this person was then emailed, if no direct contact information was available the administrator of each organization was contacted and asked to advise on potential participants; this proved rather a useful method. In the initial contact an information letter detailing the study and a letter of consent was sent (see appendix 1 for a copy of the letter). Reminders were sent out in cases where no response was had. Seven of these organizations did not have relevant contact information and thus could not be contacted, the sample was therefore reduced to 59. Upon being contacted one respondent said they did not feel able to comment on issues of environmental justice and refused participation. A further two respondents felt that they had been out of civil activism for too many years to make a relevant contribution and as such declined. One organization claimed to have no staff available due to excessive workloads and therefore could not assist. A further respondent had the same problem and could not assist, but was very willing to receive the questions by email and if possible would send written responses back, the respondent unfortunately did not manage to do so. In some instances respondents were willing, but then continually failed to firm up appointments for the interview to take place.
A limitation encountered during the setting up of interviews and meeting with respondents is that of safety. One respondent requested to meet at a location that was deemed unsafe and so the interview was cancelled and as a result that participant was lost. This combined with the aforementioned problems meant that of the 59 viable participant organizations only 26 successful interviews were had. These 26 interviews were conducted across a broad spectrum of 17 organizations campaigning various issues in various locations around the country. A further one participant who did decline to be interviewed, but in her declining gave a valuable response, and upon consent this participant and the response gained was included in the study. As such the sample size grew to 27, this therefore comes fairly close to the mean recommended sample of thirty participants by Adler and Adler (2012), who acknowledge that reaching this number is not always possible. Given that only 27 participants were able to participate the recommended sample size was used to underscore this methodology rather than saturation. The geographic distribution of each of the participants and participant organizations across South Africa has been mapped and can be seen on Figure 3.2.
71 Raosoft sample size calculator and the SurveyMokey sample size calculator were used to verify the validity of the results gained from these twenty six interviews (Raosoft, 2004; SurveyMonkey, 2016). With a sample size of 57 possible representatives, having 26 respondents, if we assume that the margin of error is 10% (this is the range that the populations responses may deviate from the sample), the confidence level of responses is 82 percent (this indicates that there is a 82 percent probability that all individuals in the sample would respond that same way). The mean of the standard deviation of responses within the sample is 3.33, therefore accounting for a 10% deviation here is rather generous. When we look at the response rate of the various organisations, representatives from 21 organizations relative to 57 organizations participated in this study, therefore, for a 10% margin of error a 74% confidence level can be expected between organisational responses.
In addition to these initial interviews, civil society organizations who originally participated, and who specifically campaign within the energy sector, formed the basis for participants who would analyze the framework and its applicability for use in the energy sector. When the first interview was conducted participants were asked if they were involved in the energy sector and if so would they be willing to participate in a follow up questionnaire. Fourteen (14) participants agreed to this. Each participant was sent the developed framework and asked four short questions regarding the appropriateness of the framework, and also if they would add or remove anything in the specific context of energy governance. Only six (6) responses (43% response rate) were gathered. Two (2) participants no longer work at their respective organizations and so contact could not be made. Three (3) participants could not engage as their workloads did not allow them time, and the remaining three (3) simply did not respond.