Illustrator retains unsavory namespaces in SVGs, can't open it's own export

Question

Hello again!
Illustrator 17.1, Win 8.1.
I've got trouble with a part of a bigger artwork I got from an unknown source in an AI file. It seems that even though it is an Illustrator file, AI retained parts of code from an SVG that contributed to creation of this AI file. When I save the file in Illustrator as an SVG not only it won't render in any browser, but also Illustrator won't open it ("This SVG is Invalid. Validate it before opening."). I am at a loss. I've tried all possible combination of SVG saving options.
That is a problematic part of an SVG save:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<!-- Generator: Adobe Illustrator 17.1.0, SVG Export Plug-In . SVG Version: 6.00 Build 0)  -->
<!DOCTYPE svg PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD SVG 1.1//EN" "http://www.w3.org/Graphics/SVG/1.1/DTD/svg11.dtd">
<svg version="1.1" id="Layer_1" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" x="0px" y="0px"
     width="44.9px" height="44.9px" viewBox="0 0 44.9 44.9" enable-background="new 0 0 44.9 44.9" xml:space="preserve">
<g>
    <g id="g3852" transform="matrix(0.83334944,0,0,0.83334944,-15.22385,-132.01121)">
        <path id="sickle_handle" sodipodi:nodetypes="cccccccccccc" inkscape:connector-curvature="0" fill="#FCC443" d="M30.9,186.7
            c7.8,7.2,20.3-5.8,4.3-15.2l0,0c12,13.3,0.5,17.4-3.7,13.3l-0.2-0.2c-0.2,0.2-0.3,0.4-0.5,0.6c-0.3-0.3-0.8-0.4-1,0.1
            c-0.6,0-1,0.3-1.2,1c-1.2,0.8-2.4,1.5-3.2,2.7c-0.4,1.3,0.4,1.9,1.3,1.8c1.5-0.6,2-2,2.8-3.2c0.6-0.2,1.1-0.4,1.2-1"/>
    </g>
</g>
</svg>
If you save the above code (that is a direct result of saving from AI) as a plain text file with an SVG extension Illustrator won't open it.
I have found that opening it in Inkscape and saving as Plain SVG (getting rid of sodipodi and inkscape namespaces) makes it readable again, but for all sorts of reasons I need Illustrator to be able to deal with it on its own.
Is there any way for Illustrator to "forget" the non-standard code from placed/opened SVGs? I've tried copy&paste, export as PDF... nothing. Maybe a script?
Thank you very much!
Regards
m.

Answer 1

I was having a similar problem - I was saving an SVG from Illustrator, only to find that when I tried to open it or place it back in Illustrator, I got the error "This SVG is Invalid. Validate it before opening."
You can run the SVG through the W3C validator, remove all the parts causing errors using a simple text editor like Notepad, and then Illustrator should be able to open it. This is a laborious process though if you have a lot of SVGs to save.
After a discussion with Apple support, I learned that it was actually one of my graphics in the Illustrator file that was causing the issue. I had placed an SVG I received from a co-worker, changed the colors, and was trying to save it as an SVG again, but for some reason I kept getting that error, even when I tried save other icons/layers in the same document. When I deleted the two layers that were corrupt, the Save As SVG worked perfectly, no errors when opening the file.
I don't know details, but if you are getting this error, try the Flatten Transparency thing like witkacy suggests. If you're still having problems, it may be caused by an SVG you placed in your file. After a little bit of trial and error, you may be able to find the culprit. You may then have to re-create the graphic yourself (like I did). Converting it to outlines or a shape or something may work as well, but I'm not sure.
Hope this helps someone else!