World Wetlands Day is an international day that raises awareness about the significance of wetlands for water security and biodiversity. Through a generous donation, WWF took ownership of the Vissersdrift property for incorporation into the Agulhas National Park last year. This move has secured 90% of the Soetendalsvlei wetland and added a further 2 345 […]

Six South African activists and public interest lawyers have filed revised papers in their marathon legal battle against a collective R14.25-million “SLAPP” defamation case brought against them by Australian mining interests. Six South African activists and public interest lawyers have filed revised papers in their marathon legal battle against a collective R14.25-million “SLAPP” defamation suit. […]

Infants, the elderly, persons living with disabilities, pregnant women, outdoor workers, and those who are on chronic medications are the most vulnerable to death as a result of exposure to extreme heat, according to research conducted by the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) and its partners. The research, according to the SAMRC, draws a correlation […]

The government has urged South Africans to take extra caution as the heatwave persists in certain parts of the country. In a statement on Tuesday, GCIS Acting Director-General, Michael Currin, said: “We are concerned about the impact of the hot weather, parts of South Africa have been experiencing.” He said residents must drink water and […]

TotalEnergies, the French energy giant, intends to drill up to ten exploration wells for oil and gas in the deepwater Orange Basin along the west coast, as well as conduct sonar surveys and vertical seismic profiling, among other operations. The explorations will span from 188 kilometres offshore to 340 kilometres from the coast. French energy […]

Can our planet recover from climate change? Commissioning Editor, Kofoworola Belo-Osagie, asked scientists to share the reasons they believe there is hope. Jennifer Fitchett, Associate Professor of Physical Geography, School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa. People are starting to notice the weather and climate and to understand climate […]

Gauteng was hit by a hectic thunderstorm on Monday afternoon, with hail pelting down, causing damage to several roofs and motor vehicles. But the aftermath was quite breathtaking to gaze upon – with the golf-ball sized hail blanketing the ground like snow, transforming Joburg into a white wonderland. Well known artist James Delaney captured these […]

Bothasig residents not only spotted some rare flowers in an open field in their area, but approached the City of Cape Town Recreation and Parks Department to ask them to stop mowing the field. The City immediately sent ecologists to investigate the site, and the result has been an amazing testament to the value of […]

Extinction Rebellion’s imaginative protests are entertaining. But they are also deadly serious. By Ashraf Hendricks. South Africans usually take to the streets, in their thousands, to protest for better housing, human rights, or against corrupt presidents. But Extinction Rebellion is doing something a little different. They have poured fake blood and oil over themselves, dressed […]

Farmer Ndaula Liwela, from Machita settlement in Namibia’s Zambezi province, points to the scattered flowers of a baobab tree lying on the dry ground close to her homestead. “The fruit this year will be small and few,” she says, even though the iconic tree is known for its ability to store water and thrive in […]

Last month saw a significant event when four orphaned Black Rhino were finally released into the wild in their new home – Babanango Game Reserve. This was a first of this scale in using orphaned individuals to establish a new population in South Africa and a first introduction of the species for the rolling valleys […]

A key pledge made by Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis during his election campaign was to clean up the waterways and wetlands of Cape Town. Here are 30 key achievements by the City of Cape Town, implemented together with partners and community organisations, to clean up Cape Town’s wetlands and waterways, over the last year. […]

Cape Town is famous for many things – from the mountain to the sea – but not for having Jacaranda trees. That accolade is reserved for Pretoria and Johannesburg. But this year, Cape Town’s earning its own reputation for a brilliant display of purple Jacaranda trees and their blossoms carpeting the pavements. Author Ted Botha […]

The City of Cape Town has become South Africa’s first city to be accredited as a Ramsar Wetland City. The announcement was made at the 14th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Convention on Wetlands, known as the Ramsar Convention, being held in Geneva, Switzerland, from 5 to 13 November 2022. The city is […]

Environmental activists want all exploration stopped. By Liezl Human. Environmental activist organisation The Green Connection is appealing to the presidency and government to ban all offshore oil and gas exploration amidst a sudden rush of applications for exploration rights. Offshore oil and gas applications are currently “expanding and intensifying”, according to Adrian Pole, legal consultant […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has told world leaders at the United Nations climate talks that commitments made during climate change negotiations must be honoured. Delivering the country statement on Tuesday, the President said Africa needs to build adaptive capacity, foster resilience and address loss and damage, as agreed at Paris COP 21. The two-day Climate Implementation […]

Anglo American Platinum on Thursday donated four Bat Hawk surveillance aircraft to South African National Parks (SANParks) to aid in their surveillance, conservation and anti-poaching efforts. The sponsorship agreement of the aircraft is valued at over R3.8 million. The Kruger National Park (KNP), which spans over 2 million hectares of land and is divided in […]

ALL RISE, a non-profit organisation and registered law clinic for climate and environmental justice, has commissioned an important independent report entitled ‘Everything for Dust: the Collective Trauma of Opencast Coal Mining on Residents in Somkhele, KZN’ which lays bare the collective trauma experienced as a result of opencast coal mining. This report will be released […]

A mining company which wanted to mine coal on the southern border of the Kruger National Park has withdrawn its application, to the relief of many South Africans. According to AfriForum, Tenbosch Mining’s environmental consultant said in a notice to all stakeholders that Tenbosch is withdrawing their application for a mining license and environmental approval in […]

City of Cape Town says the cause is probably growth of algae. By Liezl Human. The fish die-off in the polluted Milnerton Lagoon in Cape Town on 8 October was the result of algae growth, says the City of Cape Town. The City said the growth of algae had depleted oxygen in the water. The […]

Fed-up with the failure of the authorities to provide them with water, about 300 families in Mbokota village in Limpopo pooled their money and raised nearly R200,000 to drill three boreholes. But there is still not enough water for everyone. A third of the roughly 900 households in the village in Makhado local municipality raised […]

The project is expected to save billions of litres of water a year. By Liezl Human and Ashraf Hendricks The City of Cape Town and the Nature Conservancy are clearing invasive plants such as pine and eucalyptus trees growing in water catchment areas. Invasive species in areas such as Wemmershoek, Steenbras, Berg River, and Theewaterskloof […]

The South African Cabinet has expressed its sincere condolences to the families of those who lost their lives after the tailings of an abandoned local mine in Jagersfontein burst open and released a disastrous mudslide around dawn on Sunday, 11 September 2022. The disaster in the small Free State town, which killed at least three […]

Until early 2022, there were 19 described species of chameleons in South Africa. That number has now changed, with three new species described, taking the total to 22. There are two typical chameleons (Chameleo) and 19 dwarf chameleons (Bradypodion) species. There are very few biomes across South Africa where one cannot find at least a […]

Several pesticides found to cause cancer, genetic mutations and affect reproductive health, will be phased out and banned by 2024, according to the national Department of Agriculture. The Department of Agriculture will phase out some pesticides over the next two years and ban them completely by June 2024. Farm women marched in Worcester on Tuesday […]