St Lucia dune mining ban could be overturned
If eco-tourism cannot provide a viable solution to poverty in and around the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, the government's 1996 decision to ban dune mining could be overturned, reports The Witness.
This is just one of the disclosures in the iSimangaliso Park's integrated management plan (IMP), which is available for public comment until 18 February. According to spokesperson Roland Vorwerk, the IMP consolidates the extensive planning, public consultation, assessments and strategic and legal decisions, starting with the 1996 no-mining decision. The plan takes a gloves-off look at the challenges facing one of KZN's two world heritage sites and includes the vision, policy and planning framework for the next five years. The IMP suggests that, despite conservation achievements and growth in tourism, the region remains underdeveloped. While IMP outlines tourism development as an imperative, it warns that iSimangaliso is not an economic panacea for KZN and calls for multi-levelled interventions to ensure sustainable conservation. Full report in The Witness