Farm watch asks for power to protect forests
NON-PROFIT organisation Drakenstein Farm Watch (DFW) is appealing to stakeholders in the Cape Winelands District to consider sharing responsibility in protecting and conserving the area’s fields and forests from any further damage by the public.
Speaking to the Cape Argus, the organisation’s Daan van Leeuwen Boomkamp said the organisation was asking to be given some form of authority to stop visitors to the area setting fires deliberately, and to enable it to host awareness campaigns and education drives.
Boomkamp said: “Although we are a non-profit organisation, we share a passion to protect and preserve the environment surrounding us. To ensure the safety and upkeep of the forests and fields around us, we are not asking for anything more than the ability to initiate several projects that will work to preserve and conserve our district.
“The big issue we see as a massive accelerator for the cost of fire fighting and the loss of valuable property or crops is twofold: garbage and religious groups.
“We have reported many times about it, and daily we see people dumping garbage and setting it alight, and especially the mountain and religious groups lighting ceremonial fires, which get out of hand in no time.
“This is costing the community dearly, hence our desire to act and initiate sustainable solutions, such as zero tolerance of any littering, zero tolerance of making fire during the fire season, and the appointment of fire investigators and peace officers 24/7 to enforce the law regarding littering and fire setting,” said Boomkamp.
Last month, the non-profit organisation wrote an open letter to the police, Cape Nature, Drakenstein Municipality and other stakeholders involved in the upkeep and maintenance of the area, calling for them to consider the impact of some “unrestricted allowances” that have seen fires set and eventually flare up into disastrous incidents that could have been avoided.
Answering an allegation that it refused to engage with the DFW, the Cape Winelands District Municipality said it has an open-door policy and has had engagements with the DFW on several occasions.
Spokesperson Jo-Anne Otto said: “The Cape Winelands District Municipality (CWDM) has held several engagements with the DFW. These have taken place in person, as well as via email, and all their queries were attended to.
“About the DFW’s other request: unfortunately, the DFW is only allowed to appoint peace officers who are in the employ of the municipality. The CWDM is not involved in the establishment or funding of neighbourhood or farm watches. However, there are criteria in place for the funding of these organisations.”
Drakenstein Municipality’s community services executive director, Gerald Esau, said: “We have always maintained a good working relationship with the DFW, where all of us contribute to the safety of the residents of Drakenstein.
“In fact, the DFW is a partner of the municipality’s Smart Safety Network, and we are always open to discuss proposals or initiatives they might have.”