Blaauwberg Conservation Area is Becoming a Reality

The City of Cape Town has successfully purchased an adjoining plot on the western side of Blaauwberg Hill which will be added to the conservation area which is located between Bloubergstrand and Melkbosstrand, just 25 km from Cape Town's city centre.

According to the Mayoral Committee Member for Health, Amenities and Sport, Cllr Tozama Nomsa Mlanjeni, the newly purchased 20 hectare vacant plot, known as Holiday Farms, forms a strategic portion of the core conservation area.

"The Blaauwberg Conservation Area is considered a 'developing reserve' as boundaries and land ownership east of the west coast road remain unresolved. The envisioned boundaries however will result in a nature reserve of over 2 000 ha in extent.

Currently, City owned land constitutes 600 ha with a additional 300 ha owned by Province.

"In City terms this constitutes a very large conservation area and could in fact allow for the reintroduction of large mammals to the area such as the black rhino, bontebok, eland and red hartebeest. However this will have to be done in terms of a faunal management plan," says Cllr Mlanjeni.

"With the urban sprawl spreading northwards along the City's western seaboard, the BCA has become a popular multi-use area where residents can enjoy recreational activities in a spectacular setting. These include angling, surfing, kite boarding, dog walking and braaiing.

"We need to integrate as many compatible activities as possible to create an ecologically and financially sustainable reserve that will become a valuable asset to the people of Cape Town.

"Most importantly, the reserve must create jobs and provide skills training, especially for residents of Du Noon, just 13 km away," she says.

Thanks to a R1,3 million grant from the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, facilitated by the City of Cape Town and the Wildlife and Environment Society of SA, 16 residents from Du Noon were recruited for an intensive skills training programme.

According to Cliff Dorse, BCA reserve manager, the team were trained in fire-fighting, first aid and primary health care, basic financial management, literacy and numeracy, as well as the appropriate use and maintenance of tools.

"With supplementary funding from the City's operational and capital budgets, various conservation management programmes are being implemented. These include erosion control, alien vegetation clearing, law enforcement, development of hiking trails, environmental education, compiling a biodiversity inventory and habitat rehabilitation," says Mr Dorse.

"The exciting part of BCA's ongoing programmes is that we are starting to see the return of several mammal species which are rarely seen so close to an urban environment. These include the white-tailed mouse - one of 16 mammals on the red data list - the aardvark, and honey badgers.

"This confirms the need to conserve the many different habitats within the BCA which together make it one of the biodiversity hot spots in South Africa," says Mr Dorse.

"To conserve, protect and enhance the unique natural, historical and cultural resources of this area for the enjoyment and education of present and future generations"

The Blaauwberg Conservation Area (BCA) is located between Bloubergstrand and Melkbosstrand on the Cape West coast, 25 km from the city centre of Cape Town.

The area is home to a unique tapestry of natural, cultural and historical treasures that date back to the later Stone-age. In addition it offers iconic views of Table Mountain, with Robben Island, Table Bay and the City Bowl in the foreground. The fauna and flora of the area are varied and many rare and endangered species occur here.

Uniquely the BCA conserves three threatened vegetation types, as well as the transition zones between them. Due to the varied habitats within the reserve about 535 plant species have been identified, of which 47 are red data species.

The BCA boasts a treasure chest of cultural-historical assets. These include later Stone-age KhoiSan middens along the coast, to World War II buildings on Blaauwberg Hill, to the site of the 1806 Battle of Blaauwberg - which changed the rule at the Cape and is seen by many as a watershed event in South African history.

Spectacular marine life within sight of the BCA include Cape fur seals, Southern Right whales (along the coast between Milnerton Lagoon and Melkbosstrand), hump backed whales, dusky dolphins, and the diminutive Heaviside's Dolphin which is endemic to the west coast.

As a key node of the City of Cape Town's Biodiversity Network, the BCA offers environmental education, recreation and tourism opportunities in addition to the conservation function.