Speech by Marthinus van
Schalkwyk, Minister of Environmental Affairs &
Tourism, at The Launch of South Africa’s Biodiversity
Strategy and Action Plan on International Biodiversity
Day, Eastern Cape, 22 May 2006
Introduction
The vast web connecting all
life on Earth is starting to show signs of unravelling.
From melting polar ice-caps to the aggressive
advance of deserts, from oceans with ever-decreasing
fish stocks, to skies travelled by fewer and fewer
species of birds. On all continents, in all oceans,
and across all habitats, natural warning flares
are starting to flicker. Humanity cannot afford
to ignore the growing proof of the frequently-irreversible
erosion of our living environment.
The destruction of forests that
have stood for millennia - home to more than half
of all land species; the shrinking of natural
ranges as populations grow and city sprawl expands;
the sharp drop in the numbers of our great wild
mammals; and countless other warning signs all
indicate the urgency of acting now to meet our
biodiversity responsibilities. We share a duty
that affects the fate of all life. Our generation
is undoubtedly the last with the ability to stop
this destruction of our own design, and to do
so before we cross the threshold of no-return.
It gives me great pleasure to
address you this morning as we celebrate the International
Day of Biological Diversity. South Africa, as
you know, is a country unmatched not only in terms
of it’s scenic beauty, cultural heritage, and
unique tradition, but also in terms of our remarkable
biological resources and ecology. Indeed, South
Africa has one of the world’s richest troves of
plants and animals. Our country occupies only
about 2% of the world’s land area, but is home
to nearly 10% of the world’s plants and 7% of
the reptiles, birds and mammals on Earth.
Three globally recognised biodiversity
hotspots occur in our country; in the south we
have the Cape Floristic Region, which falls entirely
within our boundaries; the Succulent Karoo, which
we share with our neighbour Namibia, occurs in
the dry interior and along the western coast;
and in the east, we have the Maputoland-Pondoland
hotspot, which also extends into Mozambique and
Swaziland. Our seas straddle three oceans: the
Atlantic, the Indian and the Southern Oceans.
These include an exceptional range of habitats,
from cool-water kelp forests to tropical coral
reefs. Our southern African coast is home to almost
15% of all known coastal marine species.
SA Biodiversity In Danger –
Protected Areas Not Enough
One of the most important recent
achievements in addressing South African biodiversity
concerns was the publication last year of the
National Spatial Biodiversity Assessment, a partnership
between our Department and the SA National Biodiversity
Institute. The assessment revealed that 34% of
our terrestrial ecosystems are threatened with
5% critically endangered; 82% of our 120 main
rivers are threatened; and 44% are critically
endangered. Three of our thirteen groups of estuarine
biodiversity are in critical danger; with 12%
of marine bio-zones under serious threat.
Given the geographic spread
and extraordinary diversity of our plant and animal
species, it is impossible to conserve the majority
of species and ecosystems through a traditional
protected areas approach alone. Up to 80% of our
significant biodiversity lies outside of the current
protected area framework. So, to conserve this
rich diversity, it is necessary to integrate biodiversity
priorities into the policies, plans and programmes
of all South Africans.
We have the dual responsibility
to respond to the challenges of safeguarding biological
resources, whilst at the same time meeting our
country’s many developmental needs. We recognise
that sustained economic and social development
depends on wise management and protection of the
environment. But we also know that we will not
be able to safeguard the environment if people
remain hungry and without jobs. Biodiversity has
an economic value that is often underestimated.
Intelligently mobilised it can serve the cause
of development and poverty alleviation.
Mainstreaming provides us with
an approach through which conservation and biodiversity
can be used as a driver for development, and to
leverage economic and social gains. We recognise
that biodiversity is not the primary concern of
many communities, but all day-to-day activities
impact significantly on it. It is therefore essential
for biodiversity and biodiversity protection to
be popularised throughout society.
Launch of the NBSAP
To reinforce the protection
of our natural heritage, and in keeping with our
commitments under the Convention on Biological
Diversity, I am very pleased today to officially
launch the National Biodiversity Strategy and
Action Plan (NBSAP) which will guide our conservation
and management of biodiversity, and help us to
ensure sustainable and equitable benefits for
all communities.
The NBSAP highlights five primary
strategic objectives like the need for a network
of protected areas that conserves a representative
sample of all SA biodiversity; and the need for
human development to be enhanced through sustainable
use of biodiversity. It then specifies a range
of activities to realise each these objectives,
and sets five and fifteen year targets for each.
It also provides for the entrenching
of biodiversity considerations in our production
sectors, for example the agricultural, forestry
and mining industries. These objectives focus
on two aspects: firstly, the inclusion of biodiversity
priorities into guidelines and best-practice codes
to reduce negative impacts on biodiversity, and,
secondly, measures to encourage sustainable production
practises.
Conclusion
The NBSAP will now inform the
creation, in law, of a National Biodiversity Framework
to ensure an integrated, co-ordinated and consistent
approach to biodiversity management by organs
of state in all spheres of government, non-governmental
organisations, the private sector, local communities,
other stakeholders and the public. The publishing
of this framework will mark the first time that
an ecosystem approach to biodiversity management
will be introduced and secured in South African
law.
Turning paper strategies into
action on the ground requires a supportive legal
environment and associated institutional capacity,
but ultimately it is the commitment and partnership
of all South Africans that will determine our
success in these endeavours.
We have the responsibility to
ensure that our country becomes and remains a
living ark. Our communities must stand as the
custodians of conservation and the guarantors
of biological diversity.
