Following a well-earned break, the WCC programmes swung into gear again in February.
In this issue:
- Schools Expo Programme
- February talk by Prof William Bond
- Notice of our March talk by Dr Lauren Waller
- Alien Clearing at WCNR Chameleon Sanctuary
- WCC’s comments on the proposed lifestyle development in Voëlklip
Schools Expo Programme
The WCC schools expos kicked off in high gear with two schools in Stanford and three in Gansbaai.
The expo topic is the very concerning plight of African Penguins. The African Penguin (Spheniscus demersus) is the only penguin species native to Africa. But it is on the brink of extinction. Once thriving in the millions along the southern African coast, its population has plummeted by over 97%, with projections indicating that it may vanish from the wild by 2035 if drastic action is not taken. The decline is driven by overfishing, habitat destruction, climate change, pollution, and human disturbances. Despite ongoing conservation efforts, governmental inaction and economic interests continue to drive the extinction.
Education, especially of young people, is critical if we are to ensure that these penguins have a fighting chance of survival.
The expos highlighted what the problems are and encouraged learners to think of innovative ways that they can help, each in a small way.
But it was not all doom and gloom. A lighter note was introduced by challenging the learners to don flippers, tie their knees together and “walk like a penguin”
Talk by Dr Lauren Waller
Our talk in March will be by Dr Lauren Waller of the Endangered Wildlife Trust. She will update us on the latest efforts to save African Penguins from imminent extinction.
This talk will feed into our penguin education programmes in the schools.
All are welcome – Thursday 20 March @ 17h30 at the GreenHouse.
Talk by Prof William Bond
A near full house of members and learners from Hawston High attended our first public talk of the year on 20 February.
Prof Bond spoke about the peculiar nature of wildfires and why they sometimes jump the urban
edge where there is no continuous fuel. Escaped fires can caused major damage to property and people. Fires during berg winds cause disproportionate damage and nearly all the most damaging fires in the Western Cape occurred during extreme berg wind conditions.
The firefighters’ rule of thumb is 30, 30, 30 = uncontrollable fire weather: If air temperature is above 30oC; relative humidity is below 30%; and wind speed is greater than 30 km/hour, fires cannot be extinguished by ground crews.
Wind is the key factor in the most devastating urban fires. Wildfires produce embers and these embers are wind-blown, sometimes hundreds of meters away, and fall on an “ember trap” which ignites. Such ember traps are flammable trees (such as Cyprus and palm trees), gutters that are not cleared of leaves and open eaves. On the other hand, indigenous trees with leafy canopies may protect us against fires.
One of many references you can check: Forsyth, G., Le Maitre, D., Van den Dool, R., Walls, R., Pharoah, R., & Fortune, G. (2019). The Knysna fires of 2017: learning from this disaster. Stellenbosch: CSIR, Stellenbosch University and Santam.
Alien Clearing continues ..
The clearing of Port Jackson seedlings on the chameleon sanctuary is now more pressing than ever. A veld fire a few months ago, stimulated the germination of millions of Port Jackson seeds lurking in the ground. This is both good and bad. It’s bad in that it necessitates a large and very urgent response to eradicate the seedlings before they get too big. It’s good in that there are now fewer seeds left in the ground to sprout again.
The volunteers are working on 3 specific areas in the reserve and a project total of 117 588 aliens have been removed so far. They sent us an update:
The Chameleon Sanctuary is looking promising with plenty of Restios, Bietou and Blombos. Here, we target the larger Port Jacksons with stubborn roots up to 4 meters long, and their seasonal flowers. In the recently burned area just below the R43, we hand-pull and uproot a forest’s worth of approximately 2000 new sprouts of Port Jackson every alternate week. We are keen to compare how our cordoned-off area might restore differently from the surrounding field of alien plants which have been sprayed with herbicide.
Chameleon volunteers have now hand-pulled a total of 117 588 alien invasive plants since September 2020.
WCC Comment on Development Proposal: 17th Ave Voëlklip
WCC is of the opinion that the proposal under consideration is fatally flawed in a number of areas and should be rejected outright, together with the BAR, for reasons that include:
No basis is given for the need or desirability for the development of an upmarket retirement home, beyond the statement that it is “much-needed”.
The proposal is in conflict with urban planning requirements for the area, being a green-field, high-density development in an area of high ecological sensitivity. This is a clear contradiction of many principles consistently outlined in a number of approved planning documents.
The boundaries of the erf overlap with those of FNR, which is protected under environmental legislation. The erf boundaries would need to be redefined to exclude the overlap before any proposal could be considered.
Adequate provision of bulk services such as water (together with the capacity of the OM to supply sufficient water) and sewage by the OM is assumed, with no reference to past and current problems in this regard.
The predicted impacts of climate change on the area are ignored. These will be profound and will be amplified still further by the topography of the area. The very high and increasing risks of flood and fire are underplayed and no management plans are supplied for these. The proposal will expose vulnerable residents to these risks and is likely to hamper disaster risk response efforts.
The development will destroy the ecosystem services of the erf in question, which are vital to mitigate the effects of (in particular) heavy rainfall.
The erf consists of Agulhas Limestone Fynbos, which is classified as Critically Endangered. It is also within a Critical Biodiversity Area (CBA2) with excellent prospects for full restoration. The proposal will destroy a large area of this highly vulnerable and irreplaceable vegetation.
The country and the province have committed to targets and protocols aimed at protecting biodiversity and slowing biodiversity loss. The development will impact these negatively.
The Botanical Impact Assessment (BIA) concluded that the major part of the area is a no-go for development. This vital conclusion is consistently ignored in the BAR.
The Freshwater Impact Assessment (FIA) concludes that there are no wetland areas on the site and that development may therefore proceed. This contradicts the BIA, which found at least one large wetland area. No further opinion was sought, as should have been done, but the FIA conclusion was given precedence.
There are no mitigation measures that could be put in place to lessen the impact of the proposal. Both the BAR and the proposal should be rejected in their entirety.
We acknowledge and thank our sponsors.
