Sanparks leads effort to curb estuary litter
After numerous complaints, Sanparks has launched multiple efforts to address littering in and around the Knysna estuary.
In addition to working with Knysna Municipality and other partners, Sanparks has dedicated teams who work from Monday to Friday to pick up litter around the estuary.
Sanparks Knysna area manager Megan Taplin elaborates: “We have two dedicated teams of people (22 people altogether) who work from Monday to Friday, cleaning up litter around the estuary as well as the five main culverts draining from the CBD areas to the estuary.
About 130 people were employed in the last contract which ended in July 2017. This figure will increase in the new financial year starting in April 2019, when 190 people will be employed by Working for the Coast and this will be for the Source to Sea project which will be managed by Sanparks,” she says.
Taplin mentions that 12 designated hotspots are cleaned, including culverts around the Knysna Angling Club, the station, Thesen, Queen Street and Food Lover’s Market. This means they clean from the watershed, all the way down to the estuary.
“The Sanparks honorary rangers also organise weekly litter cleanups of the estuary with volunteers. Any concerned citizen is welcome to join these regular efforts and be privy to records of litter collected daily,” adds Taplin. She asks that members of the public who spot litter in and around the estuary alert Sanparks. –