Wilderness Safaris Responds To Accusations

MR WOUTER Brand’s letter to The Namibian published on 5 January 2007 casts several aspersions on the management of the Palmwag Concession in the Kunene Region and alleges mismanagement and a number of other maladies.

In short, Mr Brand is ill-informed and has come to several invalid conclusions that deserve immediate response. The structure of his argument is poor, inaccurate and alleges dishonesty on the part of the concession management as well as gross irresponsibility: Clearly some significant claims that have very little substance to them.We believe the three-way alliance between a conservation NGO (Save the Rhino Trust), the Namibian Government (Ministry of Environment and Tourism) and private enterprise (Wilderness Safaris Namibia) is a groundbreaking one that has the best interests of the concession and its wildlife at heart and is one that could beneficially be implemented in many conservation areas across Africa.We would like to address the various issues raised by Mr Brand and have paraphrased and summarised his points below.1) Vehicle track pollution 1.1 “Vehicle track pollution in the greater area caused by Palmwag Concession operators only in the past 12 years since no one else has access to the area.”Firstly, the public, and even Mr Brand as is evident from his letter, does have access to parts of the area that you describe.There are up to 25 private vehicles on the concession per day.This is legitimate access but cannot be entirely regulated and controlled as a result of the size of the area.For example in June 2006 several vehicles were located driving in the concession, on and off road, without permits, in search of a meteorite, the co-ordinates of which were published on the Maps 4 Africa website run by Mr Brand.Secondly, a formal programme of track rehabilitation is being undertaken as part of the Palmwag Concession Management Plan.The rerouting of historical tracks that previously disrupted important watering holes in the concession is part of this.The concession is 600 000 hectares, so this is a long and arduous process and the concession managers should be congratulated for their efforts to redress historical misuse of the area during previous cattle and hunting periods.The concessionaires have a strict ‘no off road driving policy’ and this is rigorously adhered to, with animal sightings enjoyed either from the existing road network or on foot as is usually the case with black rhino.1.2 “Offroad driving to sightings impossible to rehabilitate and Welwitschia plants damaged by off road driving to sightings.”The specific site referred to by Mr Brand is the site of a black rhino capture by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET).MET recently embarked on a pioneering conservation project whereby members of the successfully breeding local black rhino population were captured for translocation to communal conservancies.This will achieve two very important things: 1) it will help the desert black rhino population re-establish itself to its former (pre-poaching) range and thus increase population growth rates which are currently at a ceiling as a result of effective anti-poaching work in the area, and 2) it will provide these conservancies with a valuable asset through which responsible tourism can be developed, which will help to alleviate poverty in this region of the country.Tourism has the ability to put enormous value on wildlife and therefore benefit people in remote villages, and this is a prime example of how that can be achieved.In order to carry out the capture of any animal, it is often necessary to drive off road.One cannot predict where an animal will become recumbent once tranquillised, and in order to minimise the duration in which the animal is tranquillised, veterinarians and assistants must move quickly and risk making new tracks, and on occasion trample even the most precious plants such as the Welwitschia.There is absolutely no offroad driving to wildlife sightings.2) Comfort zones 2.1 “Comfort zones of 500-1000m, rhino are un-photographable due to significant flight distances” Here Mr Brand really does expose his lack of knowledge and understanding.A comparison between the flight distances of large mammals in the high density, savannah biome tourism areas of Kruger, Serengeti and Etosha systems with the low tourist density, desert biome Palmwag Concession is not logical.To imply that the flight distance of black rhino (and based here on only the two individuals he came across) indicates that hunting still takes place in the area is absolutely ludicrous and to suggest this is nothing short of mischievous.Wilderness Safaris takes a strict anti-hunting stance (see: http://www.wilderness-safaris.com/conservation/detail.jsp?conitem_id=2767) and does not believe photographic tourism and hunting are compatible within a concession area such as Palmwag.Flight distances of black rhino in this kind of ecosystem differ from those elsewhere.Mr Brand may as well compare black rhino ecology in the Ngorongoro Crater with that in Palmwag.Nonetheless, we are a sufficiently responsible ecotourism operator to have assessed potential impact from nature-based tourism activities on the local black rhino and the findings of this are available in an independent study by the Save the Rhino Trust, Round River Conservation Studies and the MET.In a nutshell only 9% of black rhino sightings during the study resulted in displacement of the rhino away from the sighting.3) The threat of rhino poaching 3.1 “Tracking of black rhino in the name of anti-poaching monitoring is effectively relentless harassment since there have been no cases of poaching for many years and tourism is the main focus” The logic of this argument is also a little lacking.Poaching has indeed been brought under control in the area – exclusively as a result of daily tracking of the resident animals.It is a model that has brought worldwide acclaim for the Save the Rhino Trust who conduct all tracking of animals in the area, and which has ensured that the population has grown to such an extent that annual recruitment rates are now dropping.It is this decrease in population growth rates as a result of population ceilings being reached that allowed the above-mentioned MET translocation of black rhino out of the area into neighbouring communal conservancies from which they were previously absent.In essence tracking of black rhino is carried out only by Save the Rhino Trust employees, in the vast majority of cases involves merely locating and identifying the specific rhino before leaving the area, and in cases where tourists are allowed access to a sighting results in only 9% of the rhino moving off: Hardly relentless harassment.In short, Mr Brand’s supposed evidence and argument is flawed and has no substance.It exposes his lack of knowledge of the circumstances and is irresponsible in the extreme, not to mention libellous.We welcome independent comment on our activities, but would prefer for actual facts to be established before widespread publication.Dave van Smeerdijk Managing Director Wilderness Safaris NamibiaThe structure of his argument is poor, inaccurate and alleges dishonesty on the part of the concession management as well as gross irresponsibility: Clearly some significant claims that have very little substance to them.We believe the three-way alliance between a conservation NGO (Save the Rhino Trust), the Namibian Government (Ministry of Environment and Tourism) and private enterprise (Wilderness Safaris Namibia) is a groundbreaking one that has the best interests of the concession and its wildlife at heart and is one that could beneficially be implemented in many conservation areas across Africa.We would like to address the various issues raised by Mr Brand and have paraphrased and summarised his points below.1) Vehicle track pollution 1.1 “Vehicle track pollution in the greater area caused by Palmwag Concession operators only in the past 12 years since no one else has access to the area.”Firstly, the public, and even Mr Brand as is evident from his letter, does have access to parts of the area that you describe.There are up to 25 private vehicles on the concession per day.This is legitimate access but cannot be entirely regulated and controlled as a result of the size of the area.For example in June 2006 several vehicles were located driving in the concession, on and off road, without permits, in search of a meteorite, the co-ordinates of which were published on the Maps 4 Africa website run by Mr Brand.Secondly, a formal programme of track rehabilitation is being undertaken as part of the Palmwag Concession Management Plan.The rerouting of historical tracks that previously disrupted important watering holes in the concession is part of this.The concession is 600 000 hectares, so this is a long and arduous process and the concession managers should be congratulated for their efforts to redress historical misuse of the area during previous cattle and hunting periods.The concessionaires have a strict ‘no off road driving policy’ and this is rigorously adhered to, with animal sightings enjoyed either from the existing road network or on foot as is usually the case with black rhino.1.2 “Offroad driving to sightings impossible to rehabilitate and Welwitschia plants damaged by off road driving to sightings.”The specific site referred to by Mr Brand is the site of a black rhino capture by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET).MET recently embarked on a pioneering conservation project whereby members of the successfully breeding local black rhino population were captured for translocation to communal conservancies.This will achieve two very important things: 1) it will help the desert black rhino population re-establish itself to its former (pre-poaching) range and thus increase population growth rates which are currently at a ceiling as a result of effective anti-poaching work in the area, and 2) it will provide these conservancies with a valuable asset through which responsible tourism can be developed, which will help to alleviate poverty in this region of the country.Tourism has the ability to put enormous value on wildlife and therefore benefit people in remote villages, and this is a prime example of how that can be achieved.In order to carry out the capture of any animal, it is often necessary to drive off road.One cannot predict where an animal will become recumbent once tranquillised, and in order to minimise the duration in which the animal is tranquillised, veterinarians and assistants must move quickly and risk making new tracks, and on occasion trample even the most precious plants such as the Welwitschia.There is absolutely no offroad driving to wildlife sightings.2) Comfort zones 2.1 “Comfort zones of 500-1000m, rhino are un-photographable due to significant flight distances” Here Mr Brand really does expose his lack of knowledge and understanding.A comparison between the flight distances of large mammals in the high density, savannah biome tourism areas of Kruger, Serengeti and Etosha systems with the low tourist density, desert biome Palmwag Concession is not logical.To imply that the flight distance of black rhino (and based here on only the two individuals he came across) indicates that hunting still takes place in the area is absolutely ludicrous and to suggest this is nothing short of mischievous.Wilderness Safaris takes a strict anti-hunting stance (see: http://www.wilderness-safaris.com/conservation/detail.jsp?conitem_id=2767) and does not believe photographic tourism and hunting are compatible within a concession area such as Palmwag.Flight distances of black rhino in this kind of ecosystem differ from those elsewhere.Mr Brand may as well compare black rhino ecology in the Ngorongoro Crater with that in Palmwag.Nonetheless, we are a sufficiently responsible ecotourism operator to have assessed potential impact from nature-based tourism activities on the local black rhino and the findings of this are available in an independent study by the Save the Rhino Trust, Round River Conservation Studies and the MET.In a nutshell only 9% of black rhino sightings during the study resulted in displacement of the rhino away from the sighting.3) The threat of rhino poaching 3.1 “Tracking of black rhino in the name of anti-poaching monitoring is effectively relentless harassment since there have been no cases of poaching for many years and tourism is the main focus” The logic of this argument is also a little lacking.Poaching has indeed been brought under control in the area – exclusively as a result of daily tracking of the resident animals.It is a model that has brought worldwide acclaim for the Save the Rhino Trust who conduct all tracking of animals in the area, and which has ensured that the population has grown to such an extent that annual recruitment rates are now dropping.It is this decrease in population growth rates as a result of population ceilings being reached that allowed the above-mentioned MET translocation of black rhino out of the area into neighbouring communal conservancies from which they were previously absent.In essence tracking of black rhino is carried out only by Save the Rhino Trust employees, in the vast majority of cases involves merely locating and identifying the specific rhino before leaving the area, and in cases where tourists are allowed access to a sighting results in only 9% of the rhino moving off: Hardly relentless harassment.In short, Mr Brand’s supposed evidence and argument is flawed and has no substance.It exposes his lack of knowledge of the circumstances and is irresponsible in the extreme, not to mention libellous.We welcome independent comment on our activities, but would prefer for actual facts to be established before widespread publication.Dave van Smeerdijk Managing Director Wilderness Safaris Namibia