SA 2014: Heupvuur vir Program 9

Erns Grundling

Nick King (NK) (Direkteur: Trust vir Bedreigde Natuurlewe) en Razeena Wagiet (RW) (SA Nasionale Parke: Sosiale Ekologie Eenheid) is twee van die gaste in eerskomende Sondag se SA 2014 om 20:00 op kykNET. Die onderwerp van bespreking is "Ekologie" en die aanbieder is JP Landman.

Nick King	Razeena Wagiet

LitNet het hulle met 'n handvol vrae oor ekologie gepeper:

1. Hoe voel u oor die huidige stand van ekologie in Suid-Afrika?

NK: Whilst we have some of the best environmental legislation in the world, we fall very short in implementation. All of the environmental indicators in SA are still negative; ie despite all the good work underway, we are still losing species and ecosystems, and ecological functioning is being compromised, which will have devastating effects on the country's sustainability. You cannot have economic sustainability without ecological sustainability.

DP: Sou mens die definisie van ekologie aanvaar as: "... die wetenskaplike studie van die interaksies tussen organismes en hul omgewing", is ek bekommerd. Die biosfeer is verrinneweer tot 'n punt waar ons nou drasties moet intree om die aarde te red van onherstelbare skade.

RW: Ecology encompasses the study and, by implication, the conservation, of our national heritage (which includes natural and cultural resources) in South Africa. Previous approaches, embedded in our past of colonialism and exacerbated by Apartheid, adopted a protectionist approach, viewing people as separate from nature. This approach ignored the fact that the sustainability of initiatives through our conservation agencies is not of importance only to conservationists but also, amongst others, to communities and their livelihoods, politicians, agricultural systems and the economy, which affect our broader South African population, especially the people living in and near the borders of the SANParks.

However, after 1994, changes at various levels, particularly in the policy dimension, gave impetus to shifts in thinking, with an acknowledgement that our wealth of environmental assets, including our rich biological and cultural diversity, creates many opportunities for enabling sustainable living in healthy environments. There is a comprehensive and appropriate national policy and legal framework in place to conserve and manage South Africa's natural resources, including biodiversity. This is guided at a high level by the provisions of section 24 of the Constitution.

Despite this policy and legal framework, biodiversity loss continues in South Africa. Unfortunately, translating the proposed new ways of thinking and doing into practice, has been slow, rendering our diverse natural and social capital prone to a number of issues and risks, and diminishing the potential for sustainable social and economic development options available, particularly to the poor, including those in and near our SANParks.

Nevertheless, within the short period since our democracy, South Africa has ratified many of the multilateral agreements in the fields of environment, economy and social development. South Africa is succeeding in putting policies and legal frameworks in place in the area of environment and biodiversity.

The Protected Areas and Biodiversity Act have just been signed into law. The Forest Act and Water Act are in place. The Genetically Modified Act to regulate genetically modified organisms is in place. The National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan is in its final stage and the National Action Program for combating land degradation is being submitted to cabinet for approval.

There are a number of good examples of best practice model projects going on addressing ecosystem approaches, like CAPE in the Western Cape; and land care projects addressing land degradation, conservation and sustainable use of agricultural biodiversity are being implemented. Community-based projects addressing sustainable livelihoods and promoting tourism are in their implementation phase. The Working for Water project, which aims at removing invasive alien species and restoring water supplies while also meeting social objectives through job creation and poverty alleviation, is one of the successful initiatives addressing the three pillars of sustainable development.

2. Doen die parke genoeg om die publiek bewus te maak van hul aktiwiteite - veral aangesien parke ook 'n rol as ekonomiese entiteit moet vervul?

NK: The parks are placed in an unenviable position of protecting our biodiversity whilst having to pay for themselves. No one suggests other national assets such as art galleries etc have to pay for themselves or be closed. Our parks should be sacrosanct - they are the last vestiges of unaltered ecosystems; they should not be Theme Parks trying to maximise visitor numbers.

DP: Veral nasionale parke sukkel steeds om die bestuurstyl van die "ou" bedeling af te skud, maar het intussen groot vordering gemaak met veral bewustheid. Nuwe alliansies met internasionale organisasies het gemaak dat mediadekking van aktiwiteite reusegehore bereik. Ekonomiese onafhanklikheid is moontlik slegs indien alle parke bedrewe bestuur word om sosiaale, omgewings- en ekonomiese volhoubaarheid te verseker.

RW: The rapid loss of our national heritage necessitates urgent responses that address both environmental and developmental issues. Environmental education processes are widely recognised as crucial to address threats to our national heritage. There has been a considerable improvement in commitment to environmental education processes in South Africa, but many initiatives do not necessarily focus on national heritage issues, particularly at school level. Hence, considering the constraints facing the sustainability of our national heritage, the future of the conservation mandate is dependent on educating the public and, moreover, the youth, through the curriculum, with the development of appropriate materials and resources, on the value of our national heritage, whilst developing greater access programmes for previously disadvantaged South Africans.

The media must be brought on board to ensure greater public awareness regarding national policy and implementation for national heritage conservation. The public needs to understand constraints facing government and the trade-offs involved in meeting development needs without harming the environment. Given the wide and far-reaching legislative changes over the past decade, it is not surprising that there is a lack of understanding and, in some areas, resistance on the part of the general public, farmers, landowners and others regarding new regulations, roles and responsibilities. There is a need to develop awareness and capacity among the public (urban and rural, individuals and communities), for example through awareness campaigns and explanatory materials on new regulations, especially targeted to affected sectors, and awareness days (with specific interest groups/economic sectors), such as youth days and, perhaps, farmer days. Where possible, these should be hosted by more than one agency to promote co-operative governance

SANParks is trying, through various media channels, to raise the levels of awareness of our conservation efforts. We have a dedicated manager to oversee environmental education and awareness, and our Marketing and Tourism Development department is also assisting in various ways. Regarding our mandate to generate an income from tourism, SANParks have embarked on strengthening our marketing drive through various media avenues.

3. Watter rol het die toerismebedryf en internasionale organisasies te speel by ekologie in Suid-Afrika?

NK: Tourism is our fastest growing industry sector and second only to manufacturing in terms of GDP. Tourists visit SA for our biodiversity - but are we investing enough in maintaining our natural capital, which has the potential to fuel job creation and growth like no other sector? We are not referring to parks here, but to the country as a whole.

DP: Kyk mens na lande soos Costa Rica en Kenia, kan eko- en ook gewone toerisme reusebydraes maak by die bewaring van natuurlike hulpbronne.

RW: South Africa has enjoyed a surge of tourism since democracy, although the rapid post-1994 growth has slowed in recent years. Given our wealth of bio- and cultural diversity in South Africa, millions of people from other countries visit our country to view and experience our natural capital. Thus tourism, as one of the key economic growth sectors of South Africa, has a huge role to play in generating funds to enable us to fulfil our conservation mandate and thus also to contribute to economic growth, job creation and poverty alleviation. Nature-based tourism is thus an important market niche for the communities bordering the Parks, and can provide significant opportunities to diversify local economies and alleviate poverty; it is, therefore, an important component of community-based conservation.

Despite the scope for nature-based tourism to enhance livelihood benefits to the poor, there is little sign so far that small-scale, local enterprises are being seriously promoted through our Park programmes. Tourism as an industry suffers from a similar past to that of conservation, being owned and enjoyed mainly by whites. The international community, especially funding organisations, can assist in terms of project funding to address the constraints that preclude the development of locally-based nature conservation and ecotourism initiatives, especially in terms of capacity building initiatives at community levels. All conservation agencies and institutions acknowledge a lack of funding as a limiting factor. Funding shortages result in, for example, identified projects not being implemented, infrastructure not being maintained, staff shortages and excessive workloads for remaining staff members. There are also inadequate funds at provincial level to purchase land for conservation.

4. Hoe is boere se samewerking tot dusver by bewaring? Watter rol het hulle te speel in die toekoms?

NK: Over 90 percent of our land is in private ownership of some sort, thus the future of conservation success is in the hands of these landowners. We cannot expect islands of conservation, like the parks, to maintain sustainability in a sea of devastation around them. Some landowners are good and the conservancy model is great; others are appalling and simply see the land and its resources as something for them to exploit and then move on and to hell with anyone else.

DP: Boere bly maar eenmaal boere, en soos mens kan verwag, maak sommige reusebydraes tot bewaring, maar daar is ook dié wat verwoesting saai. Indien mens aanvaar dat die grond die allerbelangrikste element is in die boustene van lewe, het boere sekerlik 'n sleutelrol te speel in die toekoms van bewaring.

RW: If we want to meet our target to have about 16 percent of the land under protection by 2010, then the role of farmers becomes increasingly important. Co-management options are currently being explored, as well as the encouragement of sustainable agricultural practices, notwithstanding the fact that agriculture poses major ecological threats to the environment.

Chapter 6 of the Biodiversity Act of 2004 aims to ensure that farmers' and community rights are respected, and to regulate benefit sharing. We need an agricultural policy that incorporates sustainable development as its cornerstone and need to implement it at all levels: while various statements have been made since 1994, the flux and uncertainty in the sector needs to be managed through development of broadly agreed policy principles that embody the country's commitment to sustainable development and Agenda 21. A participatory policy development process could be harnessed for awareness raising, airing of debate and movement towards greater consensus.

We also need to develop a technical support programme for both emerging black commercial farmers and the more subsistence-oriented producers, and should focus on technologies that both enhance productivity and conserve the natural resource base. This will involve co-ordination at national level of key existing initiatives like the National Agricultural Research System (NARS) and the development, testing and transfer of sustainable agricultural technologies. Furthermore, we need to develop and implement policy mechanisms for conversion to sustainable agriculture; such policy mechanisms, including rebates and incentives, could go a long way towards providing economic motivation for change and tangible support during conversion of farms to more sustainable methods of production such as integrated pest management (IPM) and organic production.

5. Watter inisiatiewe is daar om meer kennis in te win oor die komplekse ekologiese prosesse wat in die natuur afspeel?

NK: Many initiatives are underway, from the NBSAP process lead by DEAT, though the work of the NGOs. For example, the EWT managed, raised the funds and facilitated the drafting and publication in May this year of the Red Data Book for Mammals of South Africa: A Conservation Assessment. Totally private sector funded, with participation by some 35 organisations and over 100 individuals, this is a bench-mark work, for the first time giving an assessment of all 295 mammal species. However, this is not enough. We don't have up-to-date assessments of any other groups other than frogs, and we know very little about reptiles, freshwater fish, plants etc, let alone invertebrates and other smaller organisms, including the critically important pollinators. Further, why should these processes be left to NGOs to undertake and business to fund when they are a national responsibility? This is where I emphasize that we are doing too little, too late and the political awareness and allocation of resources is not there. We are losing ground on environmental issues, despite all the good work being undertaken.

DP: Daar is onlangs reuseprogramme geloods om knelpunte in die bewaringsekologie te ondersoek. Suid-Afrika is aan die voorpunt van veral langtermynstudies in die natuurwetenskappe.

RW: A range of organisations and institutions are implementing or supporting initiatives and providing information on projects and programmes in South Africa, with support from government, business, industry and overseas development assistance. The government sector includes the departments of Education (DoE), Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEA&T), Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF) and Agriculture (DoA), and statutory bodies like the South African National Parks (SANP), the National Botanical Institute (NBI) and the National Research Foundation (NFR). Non-governmental and community-based organisations include the Wildlife and Environment Society (WESSA) and Botanical Society. Among the institutions of higher learning are Rhodes University, Stellenbosch University and the University of Cape Town.

6. Watter rol behoort die regering te speel by bewaring? Hoe was die regering se betrokkenheid oor die afgelope 10 jaar?

NK: As above, I believe over the past 10 years we have drafted good legislation and raised awareness. Not enough, but it has happened. What we need in the next 10 years is to bed this down, and ensure that environmental awareness is the basis of all education curricula - we are talking of human livelihoods here - the environment is not something "out there". The government has a huge role to play in allocating the resources now to build institutional and human capacity to implement everything. We are lagging behind, for example, in delivery on our obligations under the Convention on Biodiversity.

DP: Die regering moet die leiding neem, omdat dit die opdrag van ons Grondwet is.

Everyone has the right:

a) to an environment that is not harmful to their health or well-being; and

b) to have the environment protected, for the benefit of present and future generations, through reasonable legislative and other measures that

i) prevent pollution and ecological degradation;
ii) promote conservation; and
iii) secure ecologically sustainable development and use of natural resources while promoting justifiable economic and social development.

RW: There is a comprehensive and appropriate national policy and legal framework in place to conserve and manage South Africa's natural resources, including biodiversity. This is guided at a high level by the provisions of section 24 of the Constitution. A broad distinction can be drawn between development of policy and legislation, implementation and monitoring. Policy and law are essentially the main responsibility of national government, while implementation rests largely with statutory bodies, and at the provincial and local spheres of government. There are overlapping or unclear mandates between departments (horizontally) as well as between the three spheres of government. Where these mandates impact on budgets, performance assessments and service delivery, tensions and conflicts have arisen which need to be clarified. The issue of "unfunded mandates" is particularly acute at local government level.

As the roll-out of new policy and legislation occurs, from national to provincial to local spheres and the implementation imperative becomes more urgent, local government is increasingly finding itself responsible for functions for which it does not have an adequate budget. It is at the local government level that countless decisions about land use change for development are made.

Because roles and responsibilities for the environment are shared between a number of national departments and agencies as well as all three spheres of government, and because the activities of all sectors, the private sector and citizens impact significantly on biodiversity, the principles of co-operative governance and partnerships are essential for the effective implementation of policy and laws.

Structures to facilitate co-operative governance exist at national level. Clusters MinMEC/MinTech, A Working Group on Biodiversity and Conservation has been established under MinTech, comprised of representatives of DEAT, SANParks, NBI, provincial conservation boards and conservation departments. In addition, NEMA makes provision for the establishment of institutions for co-operation, the Committee for Environmental Coordination (CEC) and for participation, the National Environmental Advisory Forum (NEAF). A Biodiversity Sub-committee has been established under the CEC, and includes representatives of DEAT, science councils and national departments such as Agriculture, Science and Technology, Water Affairs and Forestry.

Within the short period since our becoming a democracy, South Africa has ratified many of the multilateral agreements in the fields of environment, economy and social development. South Africa is succeeding in putting policies and legal frameworks in place in the area of environment and biodiversity.

7. Hoe voel u oor die jagbedryf, en watter implikasies hou dit in vir bewaring?

NK: This is a complex question. There is nothing wrong with hunting per se if you are not ethically concerned by it - humans have always hunted; it is the way some people conduct the hunting. And canned hunting, for example, should be banned outright with very severe penalties imposed. Further, whilst hunting can contribute significantly to the economy, if commercialisation is the only objective of game farms, then we have severe negative impacts on conservation as species get moved into areas they never naturally occurred in, and only the large mammals are catered for, thus these literally are "game farms" and contribute almost nothing to conservation.

DP: Gemeet aan Europese standaarde bestaan daar byna geen tradisie in die Suid-Afrikaanse jagbedryf nie, nog minder sterk etiese inslae. Die ideale verband tussen jag en bewaring behoort intiem te wees, en daarom hou dit verreikende implikasies in vir bewaring.

RW: Information on formal commercial industries based on biological resources e.g. hunting is available, and well documented because they are regulated and managed through permit and licensing systems. This trade is regulated largely through the provincial conservation agencies. Efforts to outlaw activities such as "canned" hunting should be formalised and the practice eradicated. Examples in this regard include problems in Limpopo where hunters lure game from reserves using live donkeys or other bait.

8. Hoe sal die ekologie in Suid-Afrika daar uitsien in die jaar 2014?

NK: It depends on political will to implement. The NGOs can only do so much. If the understanding is not there that our economic sustainability is dependent on environmental functioning, then we will continue to see increasing degradation, loss of ecosystem functions like water, and loss of species. Sustainable livelihoods will not be generated by short-term industrial and infrastructural developments, but only by investing in our natural capital to ensure it remains functional. Tourists aren't not going to come to SA because there aren't enough golf courses, but they certainly won't come if we have lost our natural assets, our rich biodiversity which attracts them. So, either the government dramatically ramps up investment in conserving our natural assets, or we kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.

DP: Hopelik sal "die ekologie" in 2014 min verskil van vandag. Wat wel sal verskil is dat gemeenskappe (the people), baie meer insette sal lewer oor besluite wat hul omgewing beïnvloed of bedreig.

RW: Managing our biological and cultural diversity is crucial for a sustainable development agenda, thus for eradicating poverty and hunger and ensuring environmental sustainability as stated in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) adopted at the Millennium Summit of the United Nations in September 2000.

The World Parks Congress held in Johannesburg in 2003 also reaffirmed the important role of protected areas in sustainable development through protection and maintenance of biological diversity and of natural and associated cultural resources. The World Parks Congress also agreed that protected areas should not be viewed as islands of conservation, divorced from the social and economic context within which they are located. A sense of urgency was reinjected when the continuing biodiversity loss prompted the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable development (WSSD) to set a deadline for results. The JPOI requires a more efficient and coherent implementation of the three objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the achievement by 2010 of a significant reduction in the current loss of biological diversity.

Hence, en route to 2014, we have to acknowledge the critical role that biological resources play in sustaining human life. The Plan of Implementation adopted by the World Summit on Sustainable Development represents a clear endorsement of the Convention process and the need for action at all levels to achieve a significant reduction in the current biodiversity loss by 2010.

The WSSD addressed a number of thematic and cross-cutting issues, including forest biological diversity, marine and coastal biodiversity, access to genetic resources and benefit sharing: the protection of traditional knowledge, innovations and practices; enhancing synergies with relevant multilateral agreements and international trade agreements; the integration of the objectives of the Convention into global, regional and national programmes and policies; and the promotion of concrete international support and partnership for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. The JPOI has reinforced some of the decisions of the Conference of the Parties to the CBD. During the WSSD, world leaders stood together to reaffirm their commitment to eliminating poverty through environmentally sound and socially responsible economic development. They stressed that a healthy environment is central to the international development agenda and an integral part of meeting Millennium Development Goals. Reversing degradation of land, water catchments and biodiversity is essential for agricultural productivity and reduction of rural poverty, which in turn strengthens the foundations for healthy, educated and equitable societies, which we hope to show considerable evidence of in 2014!



LitNet: 28 Augustus 2004

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