By Dave Harcourt •
September 4, 2009
This post consists of a few lines and a link to what’s happened since some of my recent posts where there has been significant action. Each item is identified and linked by the date and title of the original post.
July 2009 - Sable Antelope - One Sold for $ 385 000 and Giant Species Rediscovered in Angola.
Three more Giant Sable Antelopes, have been sighted in Angola. This brings to six the number of this rare species, which was feared to have become extinct, that have been sited in the last few weeks.
July 2009 - Mauling of Baboon by “Fighting Dogs”, Reopens the Cape Peninsular Baboon Debate
Two men were attacked by Pit Bulls in Ocean View ,the same Township in Ocean View this week, prompting a warning from welfare group TEARS.
By Dave Harcourt •
April 27, 2009
South Africa is a world leader both in terms of mineral resources and in the development of mining technology to extract these resources. The industry there leads the world in many areas, and has had enormous impact on the growth of Africa and on the environment.
1. The Biggest Open Cast, Hand Dug Mine in the World
The Big Hole of Kimberly was dug by hand, using picks and shovels. There is debate about whether the Big Hole is the biggest hand dug open cast mine in the world. Its surface area of 17 hectares (42 acres) and depth of around 200 metres (650 ft) required the excavation of around 25 million tons of earth and rock. This was achieved in 52 years between 1866 and 1914 by a workforce of up to 50,000 miners. What is beyond dispute though is that The Big Hole yielded 2,720 kilograms (6000 lb) of diamonds significantly more than the Jagersfontein mine, the other contender for the title of biggest. After all what better metric is there than output!
By Dave Harcourt •
March 13, 2009
Readers can view breeding flamingos and then complete the petition and bring some real pressure to bear to save flamingos in the world’s latest breeding colony.
The colony is to be found on an artificial island in Kamfers Dam situated just north of Kimberly, South Africa. The abundant blue-green algae and diatoms in the dam maintain a population of 20,000 Lesser Flamingos. This number occassionally swells to 60,000 as birds move from site to site in Africa.
In the summer of 2007/8 almost two thousand pairs of Lesser Flamingo bred on the island, producing an estimated 9,000 chicks. This made it the first breeding colony in South Africa and one of only 6 in the world. This colony has the potential to reverse the recent negative population trend resulting from problems in other breeding colonies.
The dam and surrounding 380 ha wetland area is designated as a conservation zone but is threatened by pollution from a poorly maintained and operated sewage treatment plant and planned nearby property development.
