Elephants allegedly wreak havoc at Sorris-Sorris
NAMPA
WINDHOEK
Elephants roaming around the Sorris-Sorris conservancy have allegedly destroyed gardens and water pipes at the Anigab settlement and surrounding farms.
In an interview with Nampa on Monday, the chairperson of the Sorris Sorris conservancy, Gerson //Aiseb, said this has been a common occurrence for the past eight years.
“This is because of the very little water they are getting in in the veld, as well as a scarcity of food. Our conservancy members started backyard gardening to survive during this hard time of the Covid-19 pandemic, but elephants are destroying their gardens.
“They were also at the school at Anigab settlement on Saturday, where they destroyed water pipes by pulling them out to have access to water,” he said.
“We would like the ministry responsible to take some of the elephants to other conservancy areas by relocating them, but not all of them. We just want them to reduce their numbers.
“The more the elephants are, the more they can cause trouble. Elephants are one of the major tourist attractions of the conservancy but they are destroying what the community here needs in order to survive. We would like to call on the government to assist us in this regard,” Aiseb said.
Not possible
When contacted for comment, environment ministry spokesperson Romeo Muyunda said the elephants cannot be relocated.
“The government’s communal conservancy programme has sought to reduce human-wildlife conflict by empowering communities to manage the wildlife and generate income and benefits for conservancy members,” he said.
He added that the government recognises that living with wildlife often carries a cost, especially with increased wildlife populations and expanded ranges into communal and freehold farming areas.
WINDHOEK
Elephants roaming around the Sorris-Sorris conservancy have allegedly destroyed gardens and water pipes at the Anigab settlement and surrounding farms.
In an interview with Nampa on Monday, the chairperson of the Sorris Sorris conservancy, Gerson //Aiseb, said this has been a common occurrence for the past eight years.
“This is because of the very little water they are getting in in the veld, as well as a scarcity of food. Our conservancy members started backyard gardening to survive during this hard time of the Covid-19 pandemic, but elephants are destroying their gardens.
“They were also at the school at Anigab settlement on Saturday, where they destroyed water pipes by pulling them out to have access to water,” he said.
“We would like the ministry responsible to take some of the elephants to other conservancy areas by relocating them, but not all of them. We just want them to reduce their numbers.
“The more the elephants are, the more they can cause trouble. Elephants are one of the major tourist attractions of the conservancy but they are destroying what the community here needs in order to survive. We would like to call on the government to assist us in this regard,” Aiseb said.
Not possible
When contacted for comment, environment ministry spokesperson Romeo Muyunda said the elephants cannot be relocated.
“The government’s communal conservancy programme has sought to reduce human-wildlife conflict by empowering communities to manage the wildlife and generate income and benefits for conservancy members,” he said.
He added that the government recognises that living with wildlife often carries a cost, especially with increased wildlife populations and expanded ranges into communal and freehold farming areas.
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