Garden Route National Park
19 October 2007
Minister van Schalkwyk on 27 August 2007 announced the intention to proclaim
a Garden Route National Park. He today received a briefing from SANParks in the
Garden Route on the progress being made in this regard.
The Minister said at the briefing that "South African National Parks is
currently undertaking planning processes which will inform the realisation of
the proposed Garden Route National Park (GRNP). This park will include the
following:
* the currently proclaimed Tsitsikamma and Wilderness National Parks
* the Knysna National Lake Area
* the Southern Cape Indigenous Forests
* the associated fynbos Mountain Catchment Areas (MCA's) and Mountains to
Oceans (MTO) plantation exit areas.
The function of managing the indigenous forests under the Forest Act (84 of
1998) is currently delegated to SANParks with a vision to change this status to
an assignment so that the management responsibilities are fully transferred to
SANParks. The assignment of these areas will then lay the foundation for a
process towards the proclamation of all these protected areas as components of
the Garden Route National Park by the end of March 2008."
The Minister further said that "currently these areas are managed as
separate entities under different legislation, systems, processes and financial
arrangements. The idea is to integrate the management of these areas so as to
lay a better foundation for protected area management, and for the management
of eco-systems within the wider Garden Route bioregional landscape."
The proposed GRNP is entirely within the Garden Route Initiative (GRI)
planning domain, which comprises the six local municipalities in the region
from Mossel Bay in the West to Kouga in the East. The GRI is a Global
Environment Facility (GEF) funded partnership programme and forms part of
SANParks strategic bioregional projects. Partners include local municipalities,
other state agencies, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and other potential
beneficiaries. The GRI aims to conserve and restore the unique biodiversity and
sense of place of the Garden Route while supporting the sustainable management
of the region and the delivery of benefits to local communities.
Through this process, a number of planning products are being developed over
a period of five years. These include a land consolidation strategy with
associated maps, alien clearing mapping, fire management mapping, tourism plans
and identification of benefits for local communities. The GEF project will be
completed in 2009. The GRNP falls within the footprint of this planning domain,
and together with other partners in the Region it is envisaged that there will
be a suite of socio-economic development initiatives which will be accrued from
this process, including opportunities for public or private and community
partnerships.
"Currently SANParks in the region has a number of initiatives that are in
place and a variety of tourism products in the pipeline. As custodians of these
national assets, SANPARKS, with the support of national departments, Department
Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT) and Department of Water Affairs
Forestry (DWAF), is currently implementing a number of Expanded Public Works
Programmes (EPWP), including Working for Water, Working for the Coast, and DEAT
Social Responsibility Programmes. These programmes are geared towards
conservation of our natural coastal environment by eradicating alien vegetation
and improving tourist facilities, whilst at the same time they contribute
towards poverty relief, and job skilling of workers through training. Since
2004, all these programmes collectively, have employed about 800 people from
local communities, said Dr David Mabunda, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of
SANParks.
This year only, the tourism products which will be finished include Forest
Camping Decks in the Diepwalle forests, upgrading of the famous Outeniqua
hiking trail, new chalets in the Wilderness National Park, boardwalks and the
groundwork for the development of infrastructure on Thesen's Island.
Enquiries:
Riaan Aucamp
Cell: 083 778 9923
Issued by: Department of Environmental and Tourism
19 October 2007
