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National Water Week
| 01 Apr 2007 | During this week we celebrate water which brings Earth to life. Water is one of Southern Africa´s most precious but limited resources, unevenly distributed over space and time. Water availability is disrupted by frequent droughts. Springs and rivers are the lifeblood of our land. Industrial, argricultural and domestic. It has been estimated that by the year 2005 South Africa´s human population will have doubled, and there will be insufficient water for domestice use, agricultural, and industry. |
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World Day for Water
| 22 Apr 2007 | By celebrating water on this day, we hope to become more conscious of our responsibility to work to protect and preserve our water resources. If each of us saves a little we can save a lot. We must make every drop count. |
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Earth Day
| 22 Apr 2007 | On 22 April 1970 more than 20 million people in the United States celebrated the first Earth Day. Some believed this day heralded the modern environmental movement.
Earth Day is a global attempt for international cooperation to address such issues as the greenhouse effect, the hole in the ozone layer, toxic waste, groundwater contamination, shrinking rainforests, expanding deserts and ocean pollution. The premise of Earth Day is that people can make a great difference. It was humans who caused the problem and humans who must now find the solutions. "Think Globally, act locally". The dayprovides the opportunity for individuals and organisers to get involved and develop their own projects towards bettering their local and ultimately global environment, making the Earth a better planet. |
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National Environment Week
| 01 Jun 2007 | To celebrate and give thanks to our magnificent and unique planet. To encourage communities to discover more about the world in which they live. To teach people that they are not set above or apart from nature, but that they are part of and dependent on it. |
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World Environment Day
| 05 Jun 2007 | World Environment Day is celebrated internationally on 5 June. In South Africa the day is incorporated into national Environment Week. It is a time and celebration and thanksgiving for our magnificent and unique planet. It is also a time when communities are encouraged to discover more about the world in which they live. People need to relearn that they are not set above or apart from nature, but they are part of and dependent on it. |
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World day to Combat Desertification and Drought
| 17 Jun 2007 | Approximately one-third of the earth is arid or semi arid. With the modern problem of global warming, it is predicted that in the next century, the areas of desert climates will increase and every year more and more arable land becomes unproductive.
On 17 June 1994, the United Nations proclaimed 17 June World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought. There was acknowledgment that desertification and drought affect all regions of the world and that international co-operation should be enlisted to combat the problem, which is especially evident in Africa. The purpose of this day is to promote awareness of the implications of desertification and land degradation as well as the problem of drought and the need for international co-operation to contend with these problems.
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World Population day
| 11 Jul 2007 | There are 45 million people in South Africa and the population is increasing at an growth of 2,3%. The most crucial factor, which undermines any national effort to improve the social, economic and environmental lot of human existence, is the ever increasing number of people in our country. Although South Africa is at last achieving democratic rule and people now have the opportunity to strive for a better livelihood, we are reaching a stage when there will simply not be enough resources to provide for everyone’s basic needs let alone their aspirations for a better standard of living.
World Population Day reminds us of the problem and challenges us to seek solutions. These do not lie simply in ‘controlling birth rates’. They lie in improving the dignity of all people and in particular, the status of women. They lie too in improved health, education, housing and employment opportunities.
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Arbor Week
| 07 Sep 2007 | This is a day on which we honour and celebrate trees. They offer places of safety, shelter and shade. They are a source of food, fuel, medicine, timber and countless other resources upon which people have depended through the ages. They replenish our supply of oxygen and help clear the earth’s atmosphere of carbon dioxide, a pollutant which is causing global warming. They bind the soil, preventing soil erosion and help feed it with leaf litter. Apart from all this they offer inspiration and immeasurable pleasure for their variety and natural beauty is boundless. Arbor Week, in early Spring, is an occasion when we are reminded of the importance of trees in our lives and when many are inspired to plant indigenous trees as practical and symbolic gestures of “earth keeping”. |
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International Ozone Day
| 16 Sep 2007 | The ozone layer is an invisible layer in the atmosphere that protects the earth from harmful ultra violet rays from the sun. This layer has started to degenerate because of the use of ozone-depleting substances used all over the world.
A Protocol was signed in Montreal on the 16th September 1987 by governments for international co-operation to phase out the use of ozone depleting chemicals. This Protocol was adopted by South Africa in 1990. In 1994 the UN designed 16 September as International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer. The day is an opportunity for the world to deliberate on the progress that has been made and to reaffirm the importance of preserving this natural shield around our planet.
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World Habitat Day
| 04 Oct 2007 | Habitats are the dwelling places of communities of plants and animals together under a set of environmental conditions. Often unwittingly, in the name of progress and development, people have changed so much of certain natural habitats that some species have been driven out and have become extinct. In southern Africa, World Habitat Day comes in early Spring when all things are renewed. It reminds us of the importance of maintaining a balance in the natural world of which we are still so much apart. For own survival and for the well-being of our planet on which we depend, we must ensure that a certain number of all the different habitats are preserved so that species and biodiversity (the complete variety of all living things) are maintained. |
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Alien plant Buster Week
| 12 Oct 2007 | Invading alien plant species are causing billions of rand’s damage in South Africa and are the single biggest threat to our exceptional variety of plants and animals. They already cover some 10% of our country – an area greater than the size of Kwazulu Natal and they are increasing at 5% per annum.
Their damage is considerable.
They waste 7% of our vital water resources.
They reduce our ability to farm or to harvest indigenous natural resources.
They increase the problems associated with flooding and fires.
They cause erosion, the destruction of rivers, siltation of dams and estuaries and poor water quality.
They can cause a mass extinction of indigenous plants and animals.
The Working for Water Programme is a multi-departmental alien clearing initiative led by Department of Water Affairs and Forestry. It is a flagship programme that reflects Government’s commitment to training, the job development and poverty alleviation.
The Conservation of Agricultural Resources Act contains a set of regulations that have been designed to protect landowners and ultimately to protect the South African environment.
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World Wetlands Day
| 02 Feb 2008 | Wetlands are important for their biological, hydrological and economic importance. They serve as sponges that regulate river drainage flow by absorbing excess water during wet periods and then releasing that water during dry periods. They also break the power of floods thereby protecting developments along the river banks. Wetland vegetation purifies water by absorbing silt and pollutants. Wetlands are being degraded by damming, nearby afforestation (exotic plantations require vast amounts of water), removal of plants and drainage of wetlands for developments, waste water pumped by industries, and seepage of argicultural residues.
World Wetlands Day recognises the value of wetlands in maintaining environmental health and biodiversity. |
Conservation