Campaign pushes for a clean Kruger Park
THE Kruger National Park, together with Total South Africa, this week hosted the “Keep Kruger Clean” (KKC) campaign at Luphisi, a village outside Nelspruit, with the aim of creating awareness about the dangers of spoiling the environment.
The campaign was a continuation of World Environmental Day (WED) that was observed last month.
Park spokesperson William Mabasa said biodiversity was important, as plants and animals could be negatively influenced by habitat loss and degradation due to human activities such as pollution and poaching.
“This year’s WED theme ‘Beat plastic pollution – if you can’t reuse it, refuse it’, urges people to explore sustainable alternatives meant to reduce the production and excessive use of single-use plastic products.
The government raised the price of plastic a few years ago to beat pollution, and continues to raise the price to encourage recycling,” Mabasa said.
The campaign has allowed organisations and school children from the neighbouring communities to take part by collecting litter in the areas in which they live.
Mabasa also focused on poaching, as “we must realise that the extinction of species can also have a negative economic effect on a local community’s tourism industry.
“Communities that rely on their wildlife for employment and to attract tourists are at great risk for economic hardship if the prevalence of poaching continues,” Mabasa said.
‘‘This is a socio-economic issue as tourists could stay away if poaching is a real threat, and it could have a detrimental effect on a community’s economy since local business structures would suffer. I encourage everybody to speak up.
“Whenever we have gatherings in our communities, let us encourage each other to always ask questions and get the facts before accepting any wildlife or plant product offered to us,” Mabasa said.
With Total SA as a sponsor since the inception of the KKC campaign, the partnership has had a positive impact, as awareness-building materials such as brochures, and rubbish bags with litter messages, are handed out to guests on entry to the park.
SANParks is also celebrating its 60-year partnership with Total SA this year.
Various activities and competitions are in place to encourage everybody to take a minute out of their day to do something good for the environment.
Communities relying on wildlife tourism are at risk if poaching continues