The Noordhoek Ratepayers Association is working with local organisations to protect their wetlands, and they need the help of everyone who loves the area.
Noordhoek, South Africa (27 January 2021) – The Noordhoek Wetlands are an oasis for animals and plants, and a major ecological corridor of critical environmental importance. However, it is under extreme pressure, not only from planned development and poachers who kill animals but also from pesticides, litter and invasive alien species.
The following tips are applicable to wetlands all over South Africa, so keep these tips in mind, even if you do not live in the Noordhoek area.
Animals and plants rely on the wetlands for their survival.
The Noordhoek wetlands support a range of plant and animal species that are endemic to the Peninsula, some limited to the South Western Cape. Caracals, genets, owls, buzzards, cape clawless otters, greysbok, frogs, lizards, toads, porcupines and snakes are some of the animals that rely on the Noordhoek Wetlands for their survival.
Never use pesticides or rat poison.
Dr Laurel Serieys, the coordinator of the Urban Caracal Project, says one of the major problems faced by animals and birds of prey, is pesticides.
Serieys says, “People use pesticides, like rat poisons, around their homes. Rodents eat it and can wander into the wetlands before they die, where predators, like caracals and owls, eat them,” she says. “In 2015, a young female caracal kitten died in the wetlands from eating a rat exposed to rat poison. Another caracal we found that had died from disease in the Noordhoek wetland, was also exposed to rat poisons,” she says. Owls that eat poisoned rats will almost certainly die from the poison.
“We’re also finding that caracals using wetlands all around Cape Town, including Noordhoek, have high levels of DDT in their bodies. This is an illegal pesticide that people are probably using to control mosquitoes,” she says.
Use natural chemicals in your garden and toilet.
It is also important to be mindful of which chemicals you flush down your toilet and use in your garden. These can get into the water system and ultimately affect the wetland and other nearby natural areas. Check that the products you use are natural and biodegradable.
Take responsibility for your waste: recycle, donate, compost, reuse, reduce
Littering is unsightly, but it can also be dangerous to animals if they ingest it or get caught in pieces of plastic. If you see litter, please pick it up.
Noordhoek Environmental Action Group’s (NEAG), Andrea Marais, says, “When we do clean-ups in the wetlands, the litter we find is usually near the pond close to the Friendly Grocer, where people sleep. We’ve found the normal rubbish types (plastic, cans, bottles), but shockingly we’ve also found lots of clothes, photo frames, toys and other stuff that people are giving away or that bin pickers take out of bins. This rubbish then gets discarded in the wetlands where it poisons the soil and water or gets ingested by animals. A lot of it ultimately lands up in the ocean or in the wetland ponds,” she says.
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Give your unwanted items to charities, do not leave them out with your bin.
“Please use charity channels, like TEARS, HOSPICE and Living Hope, when you give away items you no longer want, to make sure they don’t end up dumped in the wetlands,” says Marais.
Here is a video the ToadNUTS made showing some of the stuff they found in the wetlands on a recent clean-up:
(Please note the cleanup took place in January 2020, prior to any COVID-19 cases in South Africa).
#Treadlightly: the 2030 Noordhoek Vision
The Noordhoek Ratepayers Association (NRPA) urges everyone who loves Noordhoek, whether you live here, ride your horses in the area or visit for recreation, to work together to conserve this significant ecosystem.
#Treadlightly is one of the six 2030 Noordhoek Vision goals that the NRPA is working towards achieving, in this case, by supporting and funding local environmental organisations such as Project Noordhoeked, NEAG and ToadNUTS.
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