Month: October 2019

Spearheaded by Helga du Preez and Melissa Lee, of Soul of South Durban (SODURBA) Community Tourism Association, the campaign to bid for Whale Heritage Site status for eThekwini has seen fruition.  Inspired by the World Whale Conference held in Durban in June 2017, du Preez, supported by WILDOCEANS’ Rachel Kramer, Matthew Cocks of WESSA and Bluff ward councillor JP Prinsloo worked assiduously with the Bluff Steering Committee to meet the criteria required by the World Cetacean Alliance (WCA) to apply for certification.

Established by the WCA, Whale Heritage Sites are an initiative aimed at increasing the protection and conservation of cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises) and their habitats while also contributing to sustainable livelihoods, the arts, science and education.

Whale Heritage Site (WHS) status is granted to those places around the world where cetaceans are celebrated through art, education, research and cultural events; where sustainable practices and livelihoods are continually improved to ensure the health of cetacean habitats and the long-term economic health of human communities; and where respectful coexistence with cetaceans is supported through law, policy and cooperation.

Whale Heritage Sites are high sea or coastal marine areas, and less often freshwater rivers and lakes, where cetaceans live, and the associated land areas. Whale Heritage Sites are identified against criteria that interweave natural and cultural elements and acknowledge critical places that, for reasons of physical and social geography, are sites where people can coexist with cetaceans in an authentic and respectful way.

“Whale Heritage Sites are becoming the gold standard for responsible whale watching destinations worldwide,” said Jean-Michel Cousteau, honorary president of the World Cetacean Alliance, which runs the certification initiative.

Accreditation as a Whale Heritage Site brings regional, national, and global attention to the area and helps to promote sustainable tourism, marine conservation, and the whale-related cultural heritage of coastal communities.  Out of nine international applications only two where successfully, the Bluff in Durban (South Africa) and Hervey Bay in Australia.  The potential economic impact on the South Durban Basin and eThekwini as a whole is tremendous and will be embraced by all stakeholders who will benefit from the steering committee’s achievement. Only two such sites exist in the world and the Bluff is one of them. “This can be a strategic job creator and investment opportunity in our city and community. Given the difficult economic climate and high unemployment rate such an opportunity should be widely embraced. This is also a chance for us to keep building towards our vision of making the Bluff a Green Community,” said JP Prinsloo, ward councillor for the Bluff area.

The Bluff offers an historic whaling station and many opportunities for whale and dolphin watching along the extensive coast.  This presents an opportunity for tourists to take a cultural and environmental journey from the cruel, irresponsible activities of commercial whaling to the respect these magnificent animals now deserve from conservation authorities around the world.

The future success of the Whale Heritage Site status will rely heavily on building partnerships and getting private investment. Another key success factor will be the response by the city of eThekwini and their drive towards supporting this fledgling industry. The combined efforts of SODURBA, WILDOCEANS (a programme of the WILDTRUST), WESSA Treasure Beach, councillor JP Prinsloo and local municipal officials has proved successful. These successes include an annual Welcoming of the Whales Festival attended by more than 6000 people in 2019, a Whale Sports festival, establishing view sites, whale themed art installations along the whale heritage route and a 3m whale sculpture called Destiny.

Dylan Walker, CEO of the World Cetacean Alliance said, “We would like to thank The Bluff Steering Committee for the outstanding work undertaken that has culminated in this certification.  We view the Bluff as a wonderful example of how a small, but dedicated, group of people working tirelessly can develop responsible and sustainable tourism with associated benefits for local human and cetacean communities in an area that faces many other environmental and social challenges.”

Woolworths has partnered with WILDLANDS to establish a recycling village at Watercrest Mall to encourage citizen-action to improve our environment.  The Watercrest Mall recycling village is the third recycling village of this partnership with two more to follow, all in the KZN area, with the aim to increase recycling rates in South Africa.

WILDLANDS recycling villages, which are at the forefront of recycling and the recycling circular economy in South Africa, are part of a well-established WILDTRUST programme.  Other partners include Dow Chemicals, Nedbank and YES (Youth Employment Service).

Feroz Koor, Woolworths Holdings Group Head of Sustainability, says, “Last year on World Environment Day, we announced our ambitious ZERO packaging waste to landfill commitments.  While we are working to phase out single use plastics and make all our packaging recyclable or reusable by 2022, we also want to make it as easy as possible for our customers to efficiently recycle. Their support of very accessible, well-run WILDLANDS recycling villages is not just good for the environment but the village concept also supports viable youth employment while connecting local schools and community-based
waste-preneurs.”

The Woolworths’ sponsorship included the upgrade of existing WILDLANDS recycling villages at the Hayfields Mall in Pietermaritzburg and The Quarry Centre in Hilton, the establishment of this new recycling village at Watercrest Mall in Hillcrest, Durban, with two more new recycling villages to follow in popular KwaZulu-Natal shopping centres where there are Woolworths’ stores.  The investment covers not just upgrades to infrastructure but vital public messaging to raise awareness of what substrates are recyclable.

Andrew Venter Chief Executive Officer of the WILDTRUST says, “It is a privilege for us to be partnering with Woolworths on their ZERO waste to landfill journey.  Our vision of a sustainable future for all is well-aligned to Woolworths’ strategy, ensuring that customers are offered more convenient options for preventing their waste from going to landfill.  With Woolworths ability to reach a large number of consumers with quality products and credible messaging, and our recycling expertise, our hope is that together we will encourage more South Africans to see that there is an alternative for their waste.  If we work alongside each other we can start to prevent the devastating impact that we now see along our coastlines and in all other ecosystems.”

“We are delighted that our store has been chosen for this trial as it leads the way in offering convenient, world class recycling facilities to our customer.  We know that care for the environment is close to our customers’ hearts and are looking forward to joining hands with them to increase recycling in our community,” says Nathi Sishi, Woolworths Watercrest Mall store manager.

“Watercrest Mall is proud to be a part of this incredibly important initiative. We are fully committed to working hand in hand with Woolworths and WILDLANDS to ensure the success of this project. Watercrest Mall already recycles our Mall waste, so we are delighted to be able to assist the public with recycling theirs.” Said Elizabeth Roux, Marketing Manager of Watercrest Mall. The Watercrest Mall WILDLANDS recycling village will accept: glass, paper, plastic, metals & e-waste. Customers can find the entrance to the recycling village off Brackenhill Road (using the second entrance to the mall, on the left).