Is the desert ready for Mad Max?

AMIDST rife speculation and reams of internet reports that the fourth ‘Mad Max’ movie is set to begin filming in the Namib Desert in April, the Environment Ministry this week denied any knowledge of such plans.

‘We have no information whatsoever about it,’ Dr Kalumbi Shangula, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, said yesterday.He said he had read reports in the media about the filming of ‘Mad Max’ but his ministry has not received any request for permission to film in the Dorob National Park.But sources at Swakopmund say the ministry’s office there has confirmed that the go-ahead has been given already and that plans are forging ahead for filming to begin. According to speculation, the filming would originally have taken place in Australia. However, after heavy rains there, the Mad Max team decided to head to Namibia’s recently proclaimed Dorob National Park along the coast.News of this alarmed the conservation community, who voiced concern about the possible environmental impacts on the park if the activities of the film crew are not tightly monitored.Rod Braby, the coordinator of the Namibian Coast Conservation and Management (NACOMA) project, said that should the film crew apply to film in the national park, an environmental impact assessment (EIA) must be done beforehand, in line with Namibian policy. ‘It should go through an EIA and public consultation,’ he advised.Braby explained that there are ‘areas zoned for filming in the Dorob National Park and generally filming rehabilitates satisfactorily. Our concerns are that this type of film could be using explosives, and a proper EIA should be conducted for a potentially high-impact movie’. According to an online report, the movie ‘is a big-budget deal that’s got 130 cars and bikes and 298 stunts’. Braby added that so far the ministry’s office at the coast has not been able to comment on the issue. He said if the film goes ahead, it would be advisable for local film companies to be called upon to assist, as they have experience working alongside the ministry ensuring that the environment in which the filming takes place is minimally disturbed and decently rehabilitated afterwards.