GEORGE NEWS - The annual Garden Route Environmental Forum (GREF) event, to be hosted on 7 June to mark the devastating wildfire that ravaged Knysna and surrounds in 2017, will broaden its scope to also look at the effects of climate change in the region. This is according to Garden Route District Municipality (GRDM) Municipal Manager, Monde Stratu.
"Not only the Knysna wildfire disaster but also regional wildfire disasters before and after the dramatic 7 June 2017 event, hint at a vulnerable environment grappling to deal with a change in climate, and a region exposed to risks associated with drought, wildfire and a constant loss of biodiversity and natural habitat. What we want to achieve is to support and promote efforts for a better prepared, more resilient and climate-ready Southern Cape and Garden Route," says Stratu.
Cobus Meiring, representing the GREF secretariat, says natural disasters on an unprecedented scale, such as the Outeniqua fires and the recent tropical cyclone *Idai that raised havoc in Mozambique, must serve as a clarion call for communities and authorities alike.
"Climate change is real and no one is immune to its effects. Vulnerable communities, such as those living in the Great and Klein Karoo, continue to suffer the long-term knock-on effect of extended periods of drought, with farmers abandoning their operations, leaving reliant communities destitute."
More detail on the commemoration event will be made available in due course on the GREF website.
Natural disasters such as the 2017 Knysna fires, perpetual drought in the Klein and Great Karoo, and the more recent cyclone Idai in bordering Mozambique, show that the effects of climate change are real. The Garden Route must plan for survival.
- The Garden Route Environmental Forum (GREF) is a regional forum for collaboration in conservation, environmental adaption and community interaction. The forum aims to coordinate regional conservation efforts, serve as a catalyst to drive climate adaption practices in the Southern Cape and strive to establish a better-coordinated approach to environmental management.
* Cyclone Idai was one of the worst tropical cyclones on record to affect Africa and the Southern Hemisphere. The long-lived storm caused catastrophic damage in Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Malawi, leaving more than 1 000 people dead and thousands more missing. According to Wikipedia, Idai is the second-deadliest tropical cyclone recorded in the South-West Indian Ocean basin, behind only the 1892 Mauritius cyclone. In the Southern Hemisphere, it currently ranks as the third-deadliest tropical cyclone on record, behind the aforementioned 1892 Mauritius cyclone and the 1973 Flores cyclone.
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