| Date : 2009-09-28 |
Farming Best Practice expected to halt Climate Change impact.
Rooibos and Potato Farmers work together with the Greater Cederberg Biodiversity Corridor to implement Best Practice farming methods.
The icy Benguela current running along the South African West Coast makes its impact felt on coastal areas like Elands Bay and Lamberts Bay, moving inland towards the Cederberg Wilderness and the Succulent Karoo over an area of 1, 8 million hectares. Its influence continues inland to the Cederberg and to the Northern and Southernmost parts of the Greater Cederberg Biodiversity Corridor (GCBC), causing the landscape to be a semi-desert region, highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change.
Johan Burger, Senior Project Manager of the GCBC explains: “Research predictions show that the Sandveld is likely to get progressively warmer and experience lower rainfalls. Increased farming activity multiplies the effects of climate change because each field that is planted means the loss of more natural vegetation and the loss of more underground water. We may not be able to halt climate change but there is much that can be done to slow down the effects by stopping biodiversity loss caused by unsustainable farming methods.”
A desktop study conducted in 2006 by CapeNature looked at sequential aerial photographs of the Sandveld between 1989 and 2004 and calculated that the rate of change – natural vegetation being lost to agriculture - was around 2.7 hectares per day.
Compared to the rain forests in the Amazon and South East Asia where logging is causing the loss of hundreds of hectares every day, 2.7 hectares a day may not seem that alarming. But in the context of the Sandveld which is an already sensitive and pressured environment, the long term cost of natural vegetation loss will have dire consequences, because as biodiversity is lost in one area, the effects spread to surrounding parcels of land.
The Sandveld Potato growing region is the third biggest potato producing region in South Africa. Clearing natural vegetation to cultivate crops is the single biggest cause of biodiversity loss in the Greater Cederberg Biodiversity Corridor. The increased footprint of Rooibos farming in protected Fynbos areas was also cause for concern: Between 1993 and 2002 Rooibos exports leapt by a staggering 74%. It is against this backdrop that the Corridor team realised the need for urgent interventions to mitigate the alarming consequences of unchecked farming practices.
In 2007 Best Practice Guidelines for potato Production in the Sandveld were produced through funding from the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund (CEPF) and the combined resources of Cape Action for People and the Environment (CAPE) and Potatoes SA. The development of Rooibos Best Practice Guidelines was initiated by the SA Rooibos Council and CapeNature and funded by these partners together with the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund.
Three years on, laudable progress has been made in implementing Best Practice methods in Rooibos and Potato farming. And the world is watching with interest because it is rare for farmers and retailers to voluntarily work with government to implement conservation on privately owned land.
Joost Engelbrecht, Chairman of SAKO (The Sandveld Aartappel Kwekers Organisasie) says:
“Any initial scepticism and resistance by farmers has long been replaced by awareness that if we link our farms to the bio-diversity system around us, the landscape is going to be more stable and there will be less risk to our business.
Sean Ranger, Project Manager for the Potatoes Best Practice Project says: “Conservation International has recognised the Sandveld potato project as a world first in building a bio-diversity based economy. We are way ahead of the curve in terms of what we are trying to do and the hope is that our model will be replicated globally.”
Gerhard Pretorius, Project Manager of the Rooibos Biodiversity Initiative (RBI) says: “When we started looking at Best Practice Guidelines we found that many farming practices directly over-exploited water and threatened natural, healthy habitat. We asked the Rooibos industry to act urgently and decisively to address the problems. The response from producers exceeded expectations and a Best Practice pilot study was set up with 20 producers spread over the areas of Niewoudtville, Vanrhynsdorp, Gifberg, Nardouwsberg, Biedouw Valley, Clanwilliam, Graafwater, Citrusdal, Piketberg, Redelinghuis and Elandsbaai. The pilot study is now being extended to a further 20 farms and any additional farmers who approach the RBI will be assisted.”
The Best Practice Guidelines form the basis for an auditing and certification system to provide credibility for the efforts made by producers to support the Rooibos Biodiversity Initiative. Pre-audits were done and each farm received an environmental management plan to guide the production process. Because a major concern was the illegal expansion of Rooibos production, farmers have to make sure that any new developments are legal; they need to keep proper records and stay within authorised limits.
The first annual Rooibos Best Practice audits were completed in December 2008 and Gerhard Pretorius says that overall the results are encouraging: “In the past farmers were planting within river and vlei areas driving the expansion of Rooibos plantations into natural habitat. This practice coupled with the spread of invasive alien plants posed a huge threat to water resources. Now farmers are starting to rehabilitate buffer areas and assistance from Working for Water has enabled farmers to clear aliens like Port Jacksons, Eucalyptus and Rooikrantz. This was prohibitively expensive in the past because of the cost of the herbicides required. We can’t expect farmers to take an economic knock by insisting that all negative practices are eliminated overnight. It’s a process that is phased in over time and we are seeing real commitment to change.”
This change is largely dictated by the market. The health benefits of Rooibos are big and because it is not cultivated anywhere else in the world, its export potential is largely untapped. Unlike a staple food crop like potatoes, Rooibos is a niche product sold to sophisticated, health-conscious consumers who will not support a brand unless they know that production is environmentally-friendly. So farmers cannot view the Rooibos Biodiversity Initiative as an ‘add on” process designed to please environmental pressure groups.
A keen champion of the Rooibos Biodiversity Initiative is Willie Nel, a leading Rooibos farmer and Producer Director for the SA Rooibos Council. He agrees that biodiversity is no longer a ‘nice to have’. The industry has to align itself with best practice in order to have a competitive edge in global tea markets.
“Overseas importers scrutinise each step of the supply chain from field to market so we have to have credible biodiversity accreditation. This is a world-wide trend. I recently attended the Geographic Indicator Congress in Montpellier France where generic marketing and biodiversity were on everyone’s lips. There is also a strong trend towards registering Geographical Indications with the European Union and this will be an important marketing tool for our producers who achieve best practice accreditation.
In a world where everyone is becoming aware of the need to conserve natural resources, we are compelled to ensure sustainable production and the Corridor team are to be applauded for their efforts in bringing everyone on board.”
END
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Johan Burger Senior Project Manager: Greater Cederberg Biodiversity Corridor Tel: 022 931 2900 or email: jburger@capenature.co.za
Issued by:
Sunet Basson
Junior Project Manager: Greater Cederberg Biodiversity Corridor
CapeNature
Tel: 022 931 2900 Mobile: 073 235 1924
Email: sbasson@capenature.co.za
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