Conservation Legislation and Organisations

Conservation Legislation in South Africa

• Basic Structure and Importance of Legislation:

  • Constitution → NEMA (National Environmental Management Act) → Local

• Purpose of the Constitution of South Africa:

  • Addresses broad aspects and rights of humans to a healthy environment.

  • Does not provide specific guidelines for Environmental Management.

• Purpose of the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA):

  • Addresses various environmental aspects broadly.

  • Serves as a framework for detailed laws.

    • Examples: Environmental Conservation Act, National Water Act.

• Subsidiary Acts under NEMA:

  • Provincial and municipal entities can create provincial legislation, ordinances, and municipal regulations.

Conservation Organisations, Conventions, and Co-operation in South Africa

• Goals and Functions of International and Local Environmental Organisations:

  • Established by concerned individuals in response to requirements not adequately addressed by existing agencies.

  • Can be permanent scientific bodies, professional bodies, or short-term pressure groups.

  • Increased public engagement in conservation.

  • Increased participation of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in conservation efforts.

• Voluntary National Organisations:

  • Students are expected to research the goals and functions of allocated voluntary national organizations and share findings in class.

• International Conservation Organisations:

  • Established to address conservation issues that reach across regional or national borders.

  • Require cooperation between countries with the same problems.

  • Common issues:

    • Pollution

    • Trade in wild animals

    • Destruction of the ozone layer

  • Conservation actions are executed through agreements or conventions signed voluntarily by participating countries.

Specific International Conservation Organisations

• International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN):

  • Promotes and facilitates the conservation and sustainable use of the world's natural resources and biodiversity.

• Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES):

  • Regulates and monitors international trade in endangered and threatened species.

  • Ensures their conservation and prevents overexploitation.

• Ramsar Convention:

  • Convention on Wetlands of International Importance particularly as Waterfowl Habitat.

  • Protects and conserves wetlands and their vital ecosystems for the benefit of both people and biodiversity.

  • iSimangaliso Wetland Park has 4 RAMSAR sites.

• United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO):

  • World Heritage Sites:

    • Belong to all the peoples of the world, regardless of the country in which they are located.

    • Goal: Promote the identification, protection, and conservation of cultural and natural heritage across the world as sites with exceptional value to humankind.

  • UNESCO’s World Heritage Mission:

    • Encourage more countries to sign the Convention and ensure the protection of their cultural and natural heritage.

    • Motivate Parties to nominate more sites for inclusion as World Heritage Sites.

    • Motivate Parties to establish management plans and reporting systems for feedback on the conservation status of listed World Heritage Sites.

    • Assist Parties to secure World Heritage Sites by supplying technical support and professional training.

    • Provide emergency assistance to World Heritage Sites in immediate danger.

    • Support Parties’ public awareness programmes in terms of World Heritage conservation.

    • Promote local community involvement in the conservation of cultural and natural heritage.

    • Encourage international cooperation in the conservation of our World Heritage.

  • World Heritage: Inheritance of how things used to be, how we live now and what we pass on to future generations.

South Africa’s World Heritage Sites

• Cultural

  • Fossil Hominid Sites of Sterkfontein, Swartkrans, Kromdraai, and Environs (Cradle of Humankind) (1999)

  • Robben Island (1999)

  • Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape (2003)

  • Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape (2007)

• Natural

  • Cape Floral Region Protected Areas (2004)

  • iSimangaliso Wetland Park (1999)

  • Vredefort Dome (2005)

• Mixed

  • Maloti-Drakensberg Park (2000)

  • Barberton Makhonjwa Mountains (2018)

  • Khomani Cultural Landscape (2017)

Homework

• Test Yourself Questions (Q.1-6) on page 57