South Africa P.I.G.: ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS

SA Navy responsible for beached Cape Town whales?

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg08jwT5EDIg1DfIFgY8yvsyGDLHT5xXBqVTefCV9ywXNp7wEGwGHkDIWJedHLRb3FZloMOfkYRjILMHNDD4KJcFANjnuGIJmtkDI98d-kIj1d0-X75xs-6Gc5t_7L0rX0jwEaa5NdOLqY/s1600-h/cape-town-beached-whales.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342475612490976882" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg08jwT5EDIg1DfIFgY8yvsyGDLHT5xXBqVTefCV9ywXNp7wEGwGHkDIWJedHLRb3FZloMOfkYRjILMHNDD4KJcFANjnuGIJmtkDI98d-kIj1d0-X75xs-6Gc5t_7L0rX0jwEaa5NdOLqY/s400/cape-town-beached-whales.jpg" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 250px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 324px" /></a>The South African Navy has rejected claims that its activities caused the beaching of 55 false Killer Whales at the weekend. Commander Prince Tshabalala, spokesman at Navy Headquarters, said of the claims: To be honest, we don’t even use sonars in our ships. There was a gunnery exercise, but the last exercise (was) three weeks ago, so any link would be highly unlikely. The carcasses of false killer whales, shot after a pod of 55 beached at Kommetjie, to be taken to Vissershok dump site where researchers will dissect them. The probability that we would be responsible is negligible. No study has been done to show that gunnery exercises affected the whales. Until such a study is done, until a scientist comes to us … (if a study proved it) then we would take responsibility, but until then we cannot take responsibility. Reports in South African media claimed the Navy’s live-fire exercise in Simon’s Town, which is on the far side of the Cape Peninsula, caused the whales to beach. Still others claimed it was naval sonar that confused the animals. Commander Tshabalala added: Actually, this was not an exercise (with ships). It was three days of practice shooting at the Lower North Gun Battery where we train our students in Simon’s Town. Tshabalala pointed out that most of the firing would not even have been in the direction of the sea. They normally shot in the direction of the air, for two hours at a time. The impact of that is minimal. Media here reported the whales beached themselves on Saturday morning, with local volunteers trying to move them. <a href="http://www.thetimes.co.za/PrintEdition/Article.aspx?id=1009681">The Times</a> reported a spokesman for the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), Craig Lambinon, saying: “ More than five animals died naturally on the beach and others had to be shot.” The whales repeatedly beached themselves after they had been refloated. The Star newspaper quoted an unnamed volunteer: We took one out five times, but it made a U-turn and went back to shore. The decision to shoot the beached whales was taken jointly by Marine and Coastal Management, the Mammal Research Institute, Table Mountain National Park and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), the newspaper said. Post mortems were being done on the dead whales today, seeking a reason why an entire pod, or group, of whales would beach itself. Deadly Impacts of SonarStudies have shown that human-produced ocean noise emanating from such sources as naval sonar equipment, ship traffic, and underwater drilling, among others, causes hemorrhage or other trauma to the marine mammals' auditory system, sometimes leading to permanent hearing loss, and, indirectly, death. Mid-frequency sonar can emit continuous sound well above 235 decibels, an intensity roughly comparable to a Saturn V rocket at blastoff. Marine mammals have extraordinarily sensitive hearing, and there is no scientific dispute that intense sonar blasts can disturb, injure, and even kill them. Whales exposed to high-intensity mid-frequency sonar have suffered physical trauma, including bleeding around the inner ears, brains, lungs and from the eyes, with severe lesions in their organ tissue. At lower intensities, naval sonar has been shown to cause displacement from their natural habitat, and to interfere with the ability of marine mammals to navigate, avoid predators, find food, care for their young, and, ultimately, to survive.In the past two decades, hundreds of stranded sea animals have been discovered on beaches worldwide. All of these instances have been correlated with sonar machinery.

SA Navy responsible for beached Cape Town whales?

The South African Navy has rejected claims that its activities caused the beaching of 55 false Killer Whales at the weekend. Commander Princ...

11:57 AM

Proposed mega-development a mockery of environmental legislation

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE1HkUCyZPzL7FLH9upe47h1SmVYWXVUF70rLDU_nJqc2GFXTgRJQLJAQcWM4_tmnAi3-msdxrxLsCBk-M5jMmnNTn2GQeZAkSfBvn0kaDeUoXIHCDDDStq2j7sagVaKqt42YJOHYwYqMM/s1600-h/hangrock-dev-plett.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324290473465159074" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE1HkUCyZPzL7FLH9upe47h1SmVYWXVUF70rLDU_nJqc2GFXTgRJQLJAQcWM4_tmnAi3-msdxrxLsCBk-M5jMmnNTn2GQeZAkSfBvn0kaDeUoXIHCDDDStq2j7sagVaKqt42YJOHYwYqMM/s400/hangrock-dev-plett.jpg" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 299px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 235px" /></a>THE proposed R1.5-billion Hanglip Golf Estate along the Wittedrift road on the outskirts of Plettenberg Bay inches closer towards becoming a reality, as indicated by approval of its latest rezoning application. After what appeared to be an abrupt change of heart by MEC Pierre Uys of the Department of Environmental Affairs & Development Planning (DEA&DP), to approve the initially denied Guide Plan application on December 24 last year, the area earmarked for the development has now received the go-ahead to be rezoned by Bitou Municipality, before receiving approval for the environmental Record of Decision (ROD). Confirmed during a March 9 Bitou mayoral committee meeting, the decision to rezone the area from agricultural to township development before the ROD has been issued, has been hailed by legal experts as highly unconventional. But the municipality claims that the process is taking place within legal parameters. Says Bitou town planner Ludolph Gericke: "This is not common practice, but it is also not against the law. The municipality has an obligation to look at the environment independently of the DEA&DP." The proposed Hanglip Estate - said to be the biggest foreign investment development in the Southern Cape - will be undertaken by Maponya Developments and a consortium of True Motives 46, a South African company owned by main shareholders of MWB in London. The development, to be situated on 1086 hectares of existing farmland, forest and fynbos in the Bitou Valley, consists of 720 houses, a five-star hotel, a golf course and polo field, as well as a separate village featuring a commercial centre, offices, apartments, a school and community hall. At present the development is still in the planning stages and the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) has yet to be approved, leaving some room for public appeal. "There is nothing the EIA does not comply with - our English partners made sure we went the extra mile in this regard," says Maponya Developments director Neil Lurie. Environmentalists are not satisfied, though, and are calling for the DEA&DP to seriously consider the environmental impact on the area and surrounds. According to Garden Route Initiative's critical biodiversity areas map, Hanglip - which has been identified as a priority corridor by the Eden to Addo Corridor Initiative in conjunction with SANParks - is listed as a critical biodiversity area. "If this development goes ahead it will make a mockery of our environmental legislation and international organisations such as the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund in Washington, who have invested in the Bitou Corridor and newly proclaimed Garden Route National Park," says Eden to Addo director Joan Berning. Although the developers have promised to rehabilitate certain areas of the Bitou River wetlands, their focus seems to be humanitarian and Maponya Developments have insisted that, as a condition of the ROD, a house to the value of R80 000 be built on municipal designated land, for every house that is sold in Hanglip Estate. "Houses will also be built in the estate for the top echelons of municipal staff," says Lurie, who is confident that jobs created during the building process would be sustained afterwards for maintenance purposes. Bitou Town planner Ludolph Gericke Contact Details: Mobile: 083 461 9941. Email: <a href="mailto:lgericke@plett.gov.za">lgericke@plett.gov.za</a>. Related links - <a href="http://news.propertyplettenberg.com/2009/04/13/hanglip-development-destroying-plettenberg-for-the-sake-of-some-municipality-staff-pockets/">Hanglip development: public interest trashed the sake of some municipality staff </a> <a href="http://news.propertyplettenberg.com/">http://news.propertyplettenberg.com/</a> Hat-Tip Sara

Proposed mega-development a mockery of environmental legislation

THE proposed R1.5-billion Hanglip Golf Estate along the Wittedrift road on the outskirts of Plettenberg Bay inches closer towards becoming a...

1:45 PM

South Africa P.I.G.

SA Navy responsible for beached Cape Town whales?

Proposed mega-development a mockery of environmental legislation

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