the fight to stop the construction of new fences across wildlife migration routes continues...

NOTE:  For a synopsis of all activities undertaken by the Trustees prior to last week, kindly contact us for further information.

As a registered interested & affected party, KWT participated in a Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) reference group meeting last week on Wednesday 25th of October in Maun to discuss the Department of Veterinary Services appointed Consultant's draft final EIA report for the construction of a new fence along the boundary of Wildlife Wanagement Area  NG5 (see Map 3). 

Key inputs by KWT included: explanation of 2017 surveys carried out with assistance of its associates, confirming significant movement of wildlife across areas affected by the fencing proposal;  summarised deficiencies in the objectivity and content of the Consultant's EIA report;  emphasized need for proper cost benefit analysis of options for effective disease control, including non-fencing alternatives.   It was also pointed out - as per KWT's previous reports - that the proposed fence is located far from any cattle and in an area with no buffalo (only known FMD carriers).

The DEA coordinator instructed the Consultant to attend to these and other identified deficiencies.
KWT is now lobbying other stakeholders, including those not yet registered, to submit comments to the DEA on the EIA report. 

It is our hope that Government can be persuaded to abandon these new fence development projects, which will further decimate wildlife, cost millions in construction tenders, and in no way actually help achieve the stated disease control objectives.  Hundreds of kilometres of vet fences in Ngamiland are unmaintained and fencing has proven time and again to be totally inneffective as a means of stopping the spread of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD).