Erika van der Westhuizen, Dana Bay Conservancy's chairperson, writes:
With the many new residents who moved to the Garden Route in the past few months, it would be a solid approach to share some information about conservancies, what they do, and why it is important to join your local community conservancy.
Mossel Bay likes to pride itself on being huge on conservation. For that to continue, we need the greater Mossel Bay residents to buy into the conservation practice.
At its core, a conservancy is an organisa-tion dedicated to protecting and preserving natural resources, including fauna, flora and ecosystems. They play a crucial role in maintaining the balance between human activities and our natural environment.
These urban conservancy organisations are voluntary associations of landowners working together to manage their properties and the integration into open spaces, greenbelts and beaches - all in an environmentally friendly manner, trying to curb the damaging effects of human activities.
The community is the backbone of these conservancies and the objections are achieved through various means, including conservation efforts, awareness, education, community involvement and sustainable practises.
Examples include beach clean-ups, eradication of alien invasive plants, awareness events, collaboration with other conser-vation entities, youth education, and collec-ting plastic bottle tops and bread tags to curb plastic pollution, to name just a few.
Lately, the biggest threats in Dana Bay are plant poaching, animal poaching, illegal fires and hunting with dogs. We care for the environment and need the help of volunteers, not always just in a monetary way, but people who actively support our efforts by spreading the word, assisting on projects, and being our eyes and ears on the ground, reporting any suspicious activity.
By taking responsibility, you will help to ensure that our natural resources will be here for future generations to appreciate. That is mainly why we love what we do.
Get involved today by contacting your local conservancy.
WhatsApp the Dana Bay Conservancy on 067 490 8396 or send an email to [email protected].
