One of Africa’s leading polymer producers and marketers has officially signed the Operation Clean Sweep® (OCS) pledge. According to Gert Claasen, Technology and Innovation Executive at Safripol, the OCS pledge firmly aligns with their recently launched “Let’s Plastic Responsibly” campaign, which encourages the responsible use of plastics. “From a Safripol perspective, it … [Read more...]
World Frog Day celebrated with successful wetlands restoration
On Saturday, 20 March, the plight of amphibians came into sharp focus with the celebration of World Frog Day. One conservation-driven developer that is creating a safe indigenous habitat to protect the local species from extinction is Renishaw Property Developments, developers of Renishaw Hills, a mature lifestyle estate in the mid-KZN South Coast. In partnership with the … [Read more...]
More education needed on environmental laws in SA
Following the questionable attempt at online public consultation regarding the Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone (MMSEZ) last week, Earthlife Africa Johannesburg says it is more determined than ever to ensure that communities affected by large projects around the country know and exercise their environmental rights, as stipulated in the National Environmental Management Act … [Read more...]
Clarity needed on safety of ‘plugged’ deep sea oil well
Following the announcement, last week, by oil and gas giant Total that it has “demobilised its Deepsea Stavanger drill rig along with all support vessels, after concluding its drilling activities on the exploration well Luiperd-1X in Block 11B/12B on 23 November 2020”, the Green Connection’s Neville Van Rooy says he is concerned about who will be held responsible for any … [Read more...]
Major climate impacts destroy another coal power plant
Major climate impacts and exorbitant costs have sounded the death knell for one of the last new proposed coal-fired power stations in South Africa: Thabametsi in water-scarce Limpopo. Last week, environmental justice groups Earthlife Africa and groundWork, who have been challenging the Thabametsi power station in court since 2016, secured agreement from both Thabametsi and … [Read more...]
Somkhele environmental activist Fikile Ntshangase murdered
“I refused to sign. I cannot sell out my people. And if need be, I will die for my people.” Tragically, grandmother Fikile Ntshangase’s words became a reality when she was gunned down in her home at Ophondweni, near Mtubatuba, on the evening of 22 October 2020. Mama Ntshangashe was the Vice-Chairperson of a sub-committee of the Mfolozi Community Environmental Justice … [Read more...]
Community re-imagined in a social VR World
The annual Nature, Environment & Wildlife Filmmakers (NEWF) Congress will take place in a real-time virtual world from 25 – 30 October. NEWF adapted to the reality of the times and have created a truly virtual congress. Delegates will represent themselves as Avatars, and literally interact, engage and network with other delegates and speakers at the … [Read more...]
Community owned reserves collaborate to protect elephants
In a historic translocation in 2016, Somkhanda Community Game Reserve welcomed a herd of 13 elephants donated by Nambiti Game Reserve. This was hailed as an epic collaboration, as, for the first time, two community owned reserves had successfully worked together to extend elephant range and distribution. This illustrated the importance of community conservation, not only in … [Read more...]
Youth empowerment and capacity building for conservation
With the unemployment of youth in South Africa standing at just over 50%, it is not surprising that the Youth employment sits high on the agenda of our government and the world at large. As we close off the Youth Month theme for 2020, “Youth Power: Growing South Africa together in the period of Covid-19,” Somkhanda Community Game Reserve has collaborated with Bhejane Nature … [Read more...]
Giant leap for SA amphibian conservation recognised
A conservation biologist from South Africa has won a prestigious Whitley Award worth £40,000 to support her quest to save threatened amphibians. Dr Jeanne Tarrant works for the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), where she manages the Threatened Amphibian Programme. The EWT is the only NGO in South Africa to include frogs as a conservation focus. The Whitley Awards, often … [Read more...]
Climate change review: humbling lessons from Australia
Australia, like South Africa in the last week and so many other regions across the globe before, has instituted strict lockdown measures to combat the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). Though this is not the first large scale crisis the country has been faced with since the start of the year, as just a few short months ago Australia was still making international headlines … [Read more...]
Marine waste project removes a ton of litter from KZN lagoon
The KZN Marine Waste Network South Coast was launched at Amanzimtoti Lagoon last week. The event attracted 150 participants who joined in a clean-up at the lagoon to celebrate the network's launch, removing more than 200 bags of litter (weighing more than 1 ton in total) from the area in an hour. Explaining the importance of launching the KZN Marine Waste Network South … [Read more...]
KZN conservationist now a Royal Geographical Society Fellow
Well-known KwaZulu-Natal conservationist Sheelagh Antrobus has just been accepted as a Fellow of the prestigious Royal Geographical Society, the professional body that advances geography and supports related fields of interest across the globe. Antrobus, the founder of conservation organisation Project Rhino, is one of the integral members of the Kingsley Holgate Foundation … [Read more...]
