The report requires a right away halt to development of the riverside restaurant and ‘tree lodge’ developments, all impacts on the websites mitigated and their lease concessions with National Parks rescinded, and additional recommends that the World Heritage Committee requests a complete moratorium on all developments in and surrounding the WHS.
A brand new unbiased report produced for Keep Victoria Falls Wild highlights pressing issues over the administration of the Victoria Falls World Heritage Site (WHS) and up to date allocation of leases and concessions by the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, threatening the susceptible riverine fringe alongside the upstream river hall above the Victoria Falls.
A sequence of latest tourism developments have been authorised throughout the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ of the Victoria Falls National Park (VFNP), a long-standing ‘no new infrastructure’ zone, together with a proposed riverside ‘tree lodge’ improvement (a major new 57-room improvement on a 40 hectare concession stretched alongside the riverside fringe throughout the VFNP and already extensively promoted throughout the tourism business) and a riverside restaurant improvement (presently beneath development instantly above the Falls).
There are additionally issues over the allocation of Zambezi National Park Kandahar Camp for improvement as a lodge concession as this web site can also be just lately recognized in administration paperwork as throughout the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone.’
The report requires a right away halt to development of the riverside restaurant and ‘tree lodge’ developments, all impacts on the websites mitigated and their lease concessions with National Parks rescinded, and additional recommends that the World Heritage Committee requests a complete moratorium on all developments in and surrounding the WHS till appropriate administration plans and maps are in place and agreed by all events and all points regarding the World Heritage Site administration zone boundaries are confirmed and clarified.
Conservation Concerns
The riverine forest fringe is a protected function of the WHS and famous for its significance to wildlife and wider scenic worth. The vulnerability of this habitat can also be recognised within the 2016-2021 Joint Integrated Management Plan:
“The Zambezi River, in common with all rivers in tropical Africa, has a distinct fringing vegetation of gallery or riparian woodland. The Riverine Forest is found along the banks of the Zambezi, Songwe and Maramba Rivers and on some islands. On the riverbanks it is with a width rarely more than 20-100m wide from the high water mark (Fanshawe, 1975, Meynell et al., 1996). At its best development, riparian forest is a three storeyed forest with a closed evergreen canopy attaining 21m in height… This habitat houses the highest concentration of animals and is the most sought and threatened by human developments.” (State Parties, 2016, p.18-9)
The draft Management Plan, circulated in November 2022, identifies the forested riverine fringe as being significantly in danger from tourism developments, the river, islands and gorges, along with the springs and drainage strains which circulate into the river, being beneath very excessive danger from improvement (ZPWMA, November 2022, p.19). Yet regardless of the vulnerability to this habitat being extensively recognised in administration paperwork, tourism developments proceed to affect and threaten the river hall, particularly within the upstream part of the positioning, the draft report of the current Reactive Monitoring Mission concluding:
“For the area upstream from the Falls, the mission observed that the rationale for the 1989 recommendation to focus on the riverine strip of the National Parks remains justified, with most pressure actually felt by the NP areas near the river that are most relevant to the integrity of the site. While MoTNP and ZNP have been identified as buffer zones, the tourism developments have shown that the status of National Park has not provided the envisaged protection” (UNESCO, 2022).
Zoning Issues
The textual content of the 2007-12 JIMP clearly identifies the riparian vegetation above the Victoria Falls as throughout the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ (State Parties, 2007, p.39). The supporting map (State Parties 2007, p.38) is unclear in exhibiting the zonation of the property within the upstream river hall.
The 2016-21 JIMP detailed revised zones for the property, though the textual content description once more signifies that the riverine vegetation is included within the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ (Block 6) and is described as “…following the Victoria Falls Rainforest, thence up the Zambezi River covering the riverine vegetation strip to where it joins the Zambezi National Park boundary” (State Parties, 2016, p.29).
The 2016-21 JIMP identifies the boundary with ‘Medium Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ (Block 7) as extending alongside Zambezi Drive highway.
“The zone covers the Victoria Falls border and the Rainforest car park area and continues from the Victoria Falls Rainforest VIP entrance gate, thence along the Zambezi Drive Road to beacon R11, thence westwards following the boundary beacons to where it joints Zambezi National Park boundary” (State Parties, 2016, p.29).
This clearly signifies that the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ consists of the complete space of the land between Zambezi Drive highway and the river – the realm generally referred to as the riverine fringe or strip – extending alongside this complete part of the river instantly above the Falls. This interpretation can also be per the historic administration of this space which has been a part of a strict ‘no new infrastructure’ coverage since its administration was taken over by National Parks within the early Nineteen Fifties.
It follows that the land from the highway away from the river is taken into account to be throughout the ‘Medium Ecologically Sensitive Zone,’ an space which is described within the 2016-21 JIMP as together with the highway and rail transport hall which dissects the positioning beneath the Falls.
The supporting map introduced within the 2016-21 JIMP (State Parties, 2016, p.27) confuses the problem by not clearly exhibiting the road of the river above the Falls and seems to incorrectly present the riverside fringe throughout the ‘Medium Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ (yellow space). The confusion, or error, is extra clearly obvious within the map introduced within the 2012 Retrospective Inventory (Image 6), which whereas clearly indicating the road of the river and space of the upstream riverine fringe coated throughout the VFNP and WHS, mistakenly identifies the realm as being within the ‘Medium Ecologically Sensitive Zone,’ an error which is repeated in the latest map of the property, introduced within the 2021 State of Conservation Report (State Parties, 2021, Appendix 2a, p.2).
We consider that each one these maps are clearly incorrect in not exhibiting the realm of riparian fringe as protected throughout the VFNP and WHS as being throughout the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone,’ as indicated by the textual content of the JIMP paperwork. For this part of the riverine fringe to be in something apart from the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ can be a major shortcoming within the administration and administration of the positioning. For it to be throughout the ‘Medium Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ – the identical zone because the rail and highway transport hall and customer automotive parking space – can be a critical neglect of Parks core conservation goals and its worldwide obligations beneath the 1972 World Heritage Convention.
It also needs to be famous no administration zonation is detailed for the upstream space of the ZNP which is included within the WHS in both of the JIMP paperwork – a major omission which subsequently allowed the event of two lodges alongside this part of riverine fringe, the Victoria Falls River Lodge (opened in 2012) and the Old Drift Lodge (opened in 2018). Although the river upstream to Kandahar Island is recognized as being throughout the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ (State Parties 2007, p.39) this nonetheless didn’t forestall the event of lodge items on Kandahar Island (opened in 2017, a part of the Victoria Falls River Lodge improvement). The revised zonation map subsequently introduced within the 2021 State of Conservation Report reveals the entire WHS space of the ZNP throughout the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ (State Parties, 2021).
The 2016-21 JIMP additionally introduced revised pointers for permitted actions and developments allowed throughout the administration zones. The unique 2007-12 JIMP prohibited all new infrastructure developments (except present services) the each the High and Medium administration zones (State Parties, 2007, p.39-41). The 2016-21 JIMP, whereas nonetheless prohibiting all new infrastructure improvement throughout the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone,’ permits the event of ‘semi-permanent facilities’ throughout the ‘Medium Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ (State Parties, 2016, p.32).
Urgent Implications
The errors and discrepancies proven within the administration zonation maps are of specific concern in relation to 3 developments alongside this stretch of the river – the riverside restaurant (with on-site development effectively under-way), the brand new National Park construction (constructed in early 2022) and the proposed riverside ‘tree lodge’ (once more with preparatory work already underway on the bottom). The builders of the riverside restaurant are falsely claiming that their web site is situated throughout the ‘Orange’ (Medium) administration zone and due to this fact an allowable improvement.
As it seems sure that the realm of the VFNP upstream river hall and riverine fringe is throughout the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ which prohibits all new infrastructure development there have to be a right away halt to development of the riverside restaurant (and in addition by implication the ‘tree lodge’ improvement), all impacts on the websites mitigated and their lease concessions with National Parks rescinded.
There are additionally questions over the allocation of Kandahar Camp for improvement as a lodge concession because the 2021 State of Conservation zonation map reveals this web site throughout the ‘Highly Ecologically Sensitive Zone’ – the place no new infrastructure or services are allowed.
Tatiana is the information coordinator for TravelDailyNews Media Network (traveldailynews.gr, traveldailynews.com and traveldailynews.asia). Her function consists of monitoring the tons of of stories sources of TravelDailyNews Media Network and skimming crucial in line with our technique.
She holds a Bachelor’s diploma in Communication & Mass Media from Panteion University of Political & Social Studies of Athens and he or she has been editor and editor-in-chief in varied financial magazines and newspapers.