National Wetlands Day was celebrated on the 2nd of February. You may well ask whether this is not old news and why write about it now. The fact is that Whale Coast Conservation (WCC) has been very busy over the months of February and March teaching learners at schools all over the Overberg about the importance of wetlands.
One of the WCC Eco-School coordinators, Estelle, visited Kleinmond Laerskool on the 6th of March and presented an illustrated talk about wetlands and what each learner can do to take care of these precious wetlands. This topic is particularly important to those living in the Kleinmond area, as the wetlands, particularly the Lamloch Swamps, are critically important eco-systems. To consolidate learning, the children visited the Kleinmond wetlands for an on-the-spot practical experience.
When they arrived at the wetland, they were horrified to see an upturned dustbin with contents strewn about. They immediately put their learning into practice, collected all the rubbish and put it back where it belonged.
This attitude of making a difference did not change once they left the wetland. As they walked back to school, some of them spontaneously carried on picking up papers and bottles that were lying around. These young Grade 6 and 7 students from Kleinmond Laerskool showed that the future for the environment in the Overberg looks very bright indeed.