SAVE OUR FORESTS OF TABLE MOUNTIAN

Article front page Constantia bulletin JUNE 21 2007 it’s the same kind of stuff about EITHER /OR .....Fynbos or forest

But what stood out most is the disparaging HEADLINE,- Depicts the situation and all the misrepresentation,- spot on......in 4 words!
Headline reads..... "protest against harvesting of pine." ....Its not about harvesting of pine!

Its about the forestry exit strategy and the whole SANParks sneakiness to have kept it all underground for so long.
The forest issue is the tip of a much bigger iceberg...

PROTEST AGAINST HARVESTING OF PINE. How about:- more accurately,- PROTEST AGAINST SANPARKS CAGEY FUTURE PLANS FOR TMNP AND THE CLOSURE OF FORESTRY.
Thars gone, Deer to go, Forestry nearly gone, dogs to follow,- paths to shrink, more mountain access control points, and what and who is next ?

1. This is not a polarized issue of Fynbos & indigenous verse continuation of forestry.
Can they co-exist ?
Of course.
What this does is confuses people who know nothing of the issue. Simplistic and polarized to the extreme.
The opening sentence of the front page should have been:- It seems that non-compliance with the national environmental act (NEMA) which dictates that SANPARKS, the new custodians of the mountain,- by law.... be transparent with the public of cape town, has finally tipped the scales and angered people enough to start protesting on Constantia nek when they would prefer being at work trying to make a living to pay stratospheric salaries of government and especially SANParks officials.

Backup ammunition to the front page came in via smaller typical Rebello articles in the body of the paper. Email me with subject heading rebello and I will send to you.

The real matter is what SANParks/ Dwaf/ MTO can and cant do ?
Could SANParks/Dwaf have designated some part of the old plantation forests as a public forest park ? Could they have even looked at the brilliant DWAF press release by Kasrils who acknowledged the immeasurable value that the forests give to the cape ? The press release is in this email for those who have not read it.

Further what SANPARKS DIDN’T DO,- Designated some parts of the foreigner tree forests for ongoing forestry practice and some pieces as part of an urban forest park AND planted indigenous trees amongst the pine and rehabilitated the ravines for indigenous forests as so carefully presented by UFPG.

Most important is really, - Could SANParks have honored the public when they took control of the mountain and had an open discussion of their plans instead of downplaying everything and keeping everything so cagey?
The forests, the Thars, the deer, dog walking e.t.c ?
Its about what SANParks should have done and didn’t do.............
And that is ......Abide by the law of NEMA which is open transparency with the public about the future vision of the mountain.

But..... its not just abiding by the LAW,- just because the law says something in NEMA (National Environmental Act ....but its about respecting people, the taxpayer who pays their salaries and the locals in Cape Town who love the mountain and outdoors much more than they realize.
Its not just about botanists who love Fynbos but mountain bikers and dog walkers and horse riders who love the sport and recreation that they do out doors in the shade.

TMNP is far more part of our lives than SANPARKS could ever imagine.
I fear what they have in mind for the long term. World heritage or not. National heritage or not. TMNP is the soul of cape town,- and certainly not just for the Fynbos and botanical side but for the lifestyle it gives to everyone from the richest to the poorest of the poor.
From picnics in the forests to mountain walks to horse riding to mountain biking.

And its not just IN the park. Foreigner trees line everywhere. And less and less is trees and forest and more and more are high density developments. Drive from Hout bay to Constantia,- you will see it all is foreigner trees and going fast. There are piles of cement and builders everywhere.

This is also abut respecting the people of cape town because they have built their lives around the mountain which they treasure not because of the Fynbos and the idea of a world heritage site but because Table mountain is part of the very fabric of what cape town is. Forest indigenous and not, rock face, springs, Fynbos, free entry everywhere as well. (Notice that you need a SANParks "wild card" now for Silvermine to take your dogs there,- or its no-entry!).

Table Mountain is not the private property of SANPARKS to build elitist trails and close off sections as they like and quietly remove massive trees that should by now be protected. The plantation forests and for that matter other foreigner species trees add an aspect to urban living cape town that is priceless. It’s a social issue not just botanical. We all know about Fynbos and Biodiversity.

We are talking about trees that, yes are of foreign origin, but beautify cape town immeasurably. From oaks to pine to poplar being quietly ring barked and killed EVERYWHERE.
Its not just decisions made to eject forestry from the cape,- its decisions made that will see the end of many beautiful roads, and walks and rides of poplars to pine to Oak.

Translated,- Fundamentalism.

They harp on and on and on about Fynbos and indigenous forest and biodiversity.
We all know about this. We all feel like Foi Gras geese,- force fed Fynbos!
Its enough. We all know!
We don’t want everything to be Fynbos.
Take a drive up to Silvermine and see the future if the fundamentalists get their way!
The idea of returning table mountain to a former pristine glory and regrowing indigenous as EITHER OR WITH PLANTATION FORESTS. Twists the issue.
Indigenous will grow between plantation forests in the ravines and WILL NEVER cover the same areas as pine forest does today.
Already the [pine forests were very congested.
They are now half the size and more congested.

Why because people love the forests and they are beautiful and a HABITAT that fits with a growing and big city.
A massive volume of people use the forests of foreigner trees. The ravine indigenous forests...we all want back. Obviously. The article makes it look like people want pine to grown in the ravines.
Its misrepresenting the issue
This issue is more about a culture of a city deepening in concrete and still today gifted with massive flat open trail tree walkways amongst giant trees competing with the best urban big tree walks in the world.
Pine forests offer flat walk ways for people.
Indigenous forests will be restricted to wet ravines. To steep for most of the public.
Obviously indigenous forests are way more beautiful than pine in many regards....BUT IT MEETS A VERY DIFFERENT NEED TO PINE.
Pine is about open space walkways now.
Indigenous is about tangled vines and smaller little paths.
Very beautiful and very rich and if that’s all there is in 100 years time,- guaranteed you wont be allowed in it! Because it will be trampled to mud by a population in cape town that is double what it is now.

And forests compared with a Mielie fields ...I have never heard of mountain biking, horse riding or walks or ;picnics amongst the Mielies. Maybe I am not in touch with current trends.

And the big picture of SANParks taking control of the Table mountain,- its much more sinister than that.
sleepy anaesthetized Capetonians who trust authority like children do teachers,- should catch a mega wake-up.
There is no smoke without a fire.....
Dog walking, Deer, Thars, Forests, mountain trails ?
What else must reach front page before people wonder who owns the park and what is to become of it ?
The forests is one part of it !!!

Here is a tiny little piece of straight walk talk from some-one in the park that appeared on the official SANParks forum.
This is the truth and this is the policy that should be very carefully balanced with the idea of an URBAN PARK FOR ALL,- NOT JUST AN URBAN PARK FOR BOTANISTS!

See attachment.
what I question was the original plans and mandate when the mountain was given to SANParks...did they say ....
These are our terms if we manage it ...XYZ ??? ( our way or the hi- way) .....
or were there .......certain conditions strictly laid out (Kasrils letter possibly amongst others) ?

Mark
THE BRILLIANT KASRILS DWAF PRESS RELEASE FOR THOSE THAT HAVEN'T SEEN IT.

MEDIA RELEASE BY MR RONNIE KASRILS MP,
MINISTER OF WATER AFFAIRS AND FORESTRY
ON THE TRANSFER OF MANAGEMENT CONTROL OVER TOKAI
AND CECILIA PLANTATIONS FROM THE SOUTH AFRICAN FORESTRY COMPANY LIMITED (SAFCOL) TO SANPARKS
(CAPE PENINSULA NATIONAL PARK)

The Department of Water Affairs and Forestry has agreed to transfer management control over the Tokai and Cecilia State Forests situated within the area identified for the establishment of the Cape Peninsula National Park. The forestry operations will be managed by a special purpose vehicle company of SAFCOL, which is known as Mountains to Oceans (MTO) and SANPARKS will manage the recreation and conservation functions.

In terms of the transfer, SANPARKS will continue to accommodate MTO’s commercial forestry activities, but will manage the plantations on a multiple use and sustainable basis within a broader conservation framework. They have committed to preparing a publicly accepted plan, which will strive to find a balance between conservation, timber production outdoor recreation and the cultural landscape values. "We have made it very clear that a balance must be achieved between the interests of the Cape Town community and the important conservation objectives which SANPARKS is expected to achieve" said Director-General Mike Muller.

SAFCOL is in the process of withdrawing from forestry in the Southern and Western Cape including recreational and eco-tourism areas such as the Tokai and Cecilia plantations on the slopes of Table Mountain as well as within the Cape Peninsula Protected Natural Environment.

SANPARKS has expressed keen interest in incorporating the Tokai and Cecilia plantations as a going concern, into the Cape Peninsula National Park. Their intention is in line with a 1997 decision, to pass the management of all public land within the proposed Cape Peninsula National Park to SANPARKS.

The Department has emphasised that the intention is not to remove plantation forests. SANPARKS for its part has indicated that they would retain the commercial forestry areas, as an integral part of their conservation efforts. The plantation areas provide for high impact tourism activities, diverting significant volumes of visitor traffic and thus helping to conserve very sensitive ecosystems.

As with the lease agreements for other State forests in the Cape, MTO would retain access to the timber producing sections of the two plantations for the next 70 years. Conservation and commercial timber production would therefore co-exist on the same area, managed in an integrated and mutually beneficial manner by a single management authority. Timber production plans would be co-ordinated with conservation management plans in a manner, which should benefit the greater Cape Town community.

Due to their location, Tokai and Cecilia plantations are an outdoor refuge for thousands of nearby city dwellers, particularly for previously disadvantaged communities living in the nearby Cape Flats area. Exceptionally huge pine and eucalyptus trees that were planted at the inception of the plantation in the 1880s create a unique environment of scenic beauty and tranquillity within the city boundaries of Cape Town. The plantation areas are used for various sporting and recreational activities, such as jogging, mountain biking, and horse riding as well as hiking. The formalised picnic areas are exceptionally popular with people from areas around Cape Town with more than 100 000 visitors annually. These activities should remain part of the plantations' management plan allowing public access and enjoyment of the area as well as commercial forest activities.

The public’s interest in the two plantations has been formalised with the establishment of a community interest group, Friends of Tokai, which regularly meet with both SAFCOL and SANPARKS on developments affecting the plantations.

Tokai and Cecilia plantations also represent a significant part of South Africa’s forestry heritage. The first forestry training college in South Africa was established at Tokai, although the buildings have since been demolished. The arboretum has been declared as a National Monument and contains some of the original species samples brought to South Africa during the nineteenth century, from which many of the commercial timber species found today in plantations across the country were developed. Some of the trees in the arboretum are also unique from an international perspective, as they have remained separate from their original, but evolving habitat and subsequently changed gene pool, for instance the Australian Eucalyptus trees.

Enquiries: A M Muller
Director-General: Water Affairs and Forestry
Tel: (021) 464-1501

Or

Ms L Mossop
Chief Director: Forestry
Department of Water Affairs and Forestry
Tel: (012) 336-7212
Cell: 0828012310
E-mail: lindam@dwaf.gov.za