Chords and crocodiles

HIP entrance fee increase suspended

After recently announcing the doubling of entrance fees for visitors into Hluhluwe Imfolozi Park (HIP), KZN Wildlife yesterday announced the suspension thereof.

Had KZN Wildlife pressed ahead with entrance fee increases, South African tourists would have had to pay R150 at the gate and international visitors R300 from 20 September 2013. The reason for such increases being an increase in labour and associated costs. KZN Wildlife explained in a statement that, as a state-funded organisation, it is "expected to supplement its subsidy through commercial operations. Admissions revenue is one such source of additional funds that make it possible for Ezemvelo to carry out its mandate." 

While no statement has been issued on when in the future such increases will take place, it is was made public earlier this year that KZN Wildlife may well see it's central government funding dramatically decrease. One fears, therefore, that such price increases are imminent.

Mtubatuba Municipality dirtiest in district

File photo: overturned bins at Cape Vidal's fish gutting table

Having been labelled Mkhanyakude District's dirtiest municipality for some time now, Mtubatuba is taking steps to clean up its act.

Keen to achieve its end goal of becoming known as one of the cleanest municipalities in the district, Mtubatuba held a 'Mtuba clean town summit' at Umfolozi's Protea Hotel on Thursday, 5 September. According to Environmental Affairs and Agriculture representative KP Mathenjwa, the current state of the town does nothing for tourism in the region which is home to South Africa's first World Heritage Site.

As a first step in its journey to cleanliness, Mtubatuba Municipality recently established a waste management unit which will oversee effective waste disposal. One of the biggest problems facing the municipality and its clean-up drive is illegal dumping and, unfortunately, both of the municipality's waste disposal sites, St Lucia and Northdale, are illegal dumping sites. The St Lucia site will soon be closed down. This leaves the Municipality in a quandry.

St Lucia News has, on more than one occasion, raised the question of burning at the St Lucia dumping site as well as establishing an effective recycling scheme. Unfortunately, however, these questions have continuously gone unanswered by authorities involved. The hope now is that the Mtubatuba Municipality will indeed receive adequate funding in order to clean up Mtubatuba town, establish legal dumping sites at suitable locations and implement an effective recycling scheme across the municipality. St Lucia News will not give up hope that oneday this World Heritage Site will have the same waste disposal and recycling tools that every suburb in the country enjoys.

St. Lucians... It is time to get fit!

Last week saw the opening of Rich's Fitness & Spinning Studio, located just North of Fur Elize on McKenzie Street. On one side of the gym is a Coffee & Juice Bar, where healthy (and not entirely healthy) drinks and snacks are available, ranging from smoothies, protein shakes and the likes, to croissants, Illy's coffee and milkshakes. The gym itself is a professional looking venue, with big mirrors, punching bags, a series of spinning bikes, pull up bars and weighted bags and balls. Interestingly, mainstream gym equipment and large numbers of dumbbells are missing.

The owner, Richard, explains why: "We are not here to pump iron. If you can press 200 kg, how is that gonna help you in daily life? What we hope to offer St. Lucians is real fitness, that will benefit them in all aspects of their lives."

As a result, currently on offer are:

• Spinning classes which uses indoor-biking to improve cardiovascular endurance as well as developing leg muscles.
• Pilates classes which focus on strengthening and stretching core muscles and improving posture & balance.
• Cross-fit classes which are a fun way of working out to help people gain a broad and general fitness. During classes you combine movements such as jumping rope, sprinting, pull-ups, dips, push-ups, and much more, to improve general fitness. 

All classes allow for the different exercises to be modified in range of difficulty from beginning to advanced, which is why anyone is welcome and can join any of the classes, no matter how fit (or unfit) they are.

As an opening offer, currently anyone can participate for free in one class of their choice during the month of August. Bookings are essential though, to ensure a seat on a bike or place in the class. Spinning: Monday 6:30 to 7:30, 17:00 to 18:00, Tuesday 11:00 to 12:00, Wednesday 16:30 to 17:30, Thursday 6:30 to 7:30 & 11:00 to 12:00.  Pilates: Tuesday 6:30 to 7:30 and Friday 6:30 to 7:30. Cross-fit: Tuesday 17:00 to 17:45 and Thursday 16:30 to 17:15.

Contact Rich on 0834531621 or richsfitness@gmail.com for spinning and cross-fit classes

Susan on 0829407194 or prohealthbiokinetics@gmail.com for Pilates classes

There is talk of more classes becoming available in the next couple of months: Kiddies Kickboxing, Stick fighting and traditional Japanese self-defence, and Aerobics.

Trainers that would like to offer classes using the facilities at Rich's Fitness & Spinning studio, please do contact Rich on the contact details above.

St Lucia Catholic Church renovations

This notice is for all St Lucia residents and visitors:

As most members of the St Lucia Community are probably aware, the Catholic Church is currently undergoing major renovations, which will likely render the property out of bounds for approximately one year. 
In the interim, Sea Sands in Hornbill Street has kindly offered the use of its conference centre for the Catholic Mass services every Sunday.

One step closer to legal trade in rhino horn?

File photo

A recent international television documentary on rhino poaching raised the ongoing, controversial debate of legalising the trade in rhino horn in order to reduce poaching. While most of us are aware of the desire by some conservationists to flood the market with SA's current stockpiles of rhino horn, which have been acquired from rhinos who have died of natural causes, it appears that a number of wildlife enthusiasts, including a prominent "rhino farming tycoon", are in favour of including the horns of living rhinos in SA's rhino horn stockpiles, to be traded when/if the trade in rhino horn is legalised. 

The recent de-horning of living rhinos proved futile, however, in its attempt to prevent poaching because, when interviewed, poachers admitted to killing de-horned rhinos simply because they didn't want to risk wasting their time tracking a rhino without a horn. That said, those in support of lifting the ban on rhino horn trade hope that flooding the market with existing stockpiles of rhino horn will cease poaching, thereby not exposing de-horned rhinos to poachers in the future.

South Africa's Department of Environmental Affairs recently confirmed its position on this debate by announcing Cabinet's approval of the development and submission of a proposal to the 17th conference of parties (CoP) to CITES, scheduled to take place in 2016. The 16th CoP to CITES, held in March 2013, saw discussions relating to a possible trade in rhino horn initiated. A recent Department of Environmental Affairs press release quoted Minister Edna Molewa as having said: "We will have to work in partnership with stakeholders and experts to ensure a feasible model for trade is proposed at the next CoP in South Africa, with due consideration of all the views expressed by interested and affected stakeholders in rhino conservation. Our appeal is that this should not be viewed in isolation from all our endeavours to save our rhinos. South Africa cannot continue to be held hostage by the syndicates slaughtering our rhinos. We do have the ability to make this scarce resource available without impacting on the species, through the implementation of a regulated trade system."

This idea raises some serious questions. Apart from questioning a de-horned rhino's ability to defend itself, is selling off part of each animal the only way we'll be able to keep this magnificent beast among us in the years to come? With the rhino population in SA plummeting, and projected 2013 poaching statistics sitting at around 900, the future of the rhino as we currently know it looks bleak to say the least.

St Lucia News aims to keep its readers updated on this controversial debate, however, in the meantime, we would like to remind visitors and tour guides alike to keep the 'crime hotline' contact numbers handy, and report ANY suspicious activity so it can be investigated by the team of professionals. Those numbers are: 32211 (SMS) and 08600 10111 (telephone). SMS' charged at R1. Crimeline's website: https://www.crimeline.co.za . 

Lioness on the loose: Update

File Photo courtesy of Patrick Jolly Photography

Following recent reports of a lioness on the loose in the Heatonville area near Empangeni, a statement from KZN Wildlife released on Thursday, 27 June, confirmed the presence of what resembles lion spoor in the area.