One of our Usual conservation sources based in Dar es Salaam said while talking about the decision of UNESCO to list the Selous Game Reserve among the World Heritage Sites that are endangered that For everything we do in life, certainly there is an ultimate prize we have to pay; and today, Tanzania is paying for what their government permitted to take place inside the Selous.
He added that the biggest failure of the Tanzanian government
was to put an end to wildlife poaching. This truth is presently well known that the government has obvious evidence within its hands about the extent of this poaching. So it is not just for them to begin shading pretence tears following the revealing of the figures from the most recent elephant population census. The loss of those so many elephants in only seven years is certainly intolerable.
Further on he said that Tanzania has turned into The Poaching Central or the planet’s poaching capital with regards to elephant population. There isn’t any other nation across the globe having such a horrible record like Tanzania and these figures were officially revealed in parliament a year ago, showing that more than ten thousand elephant were killed although the reality is likely to be more than this.
This source continued to comment on the additional issues that are negatively affecting the status of the Selous as a UNESCO site stating that there is also the matter of mining Uraniu. Although the Tanzania government degazettes these 200 sq km or 300 sq km to make this mining officially authorized the effect on the water sources of the wildlife in the reserve as well as the contamination by the raising dust will remain existent. Uranium is a poisonous substance so whatever they will dig up and also process will be above ground so once it rains these toxins will eroded in the ground water then during the dry months, the toxic dust will be blown across this reserve that is if they are planning to carry out large scale Uranium mining.
In conclusion this source said that also is the Stiegler’s Gorge. This is at the middle of the existing tourism zone inside the Selous. In case the Tanzania government wishes to construct a dam, it will result into a disastrously change of the birds and wildlife habitats since a big area is going to be flooded. Surely how can any government official say that there is the brand-new fishing and water sports opportunity on the new lake?
Visitors travel from other countries just to see the wildlife inside the Selous, not to sail, fish or even water ski. The Tanzania government surely got it all wrong while those who know about it are frightened and compelled to remain silent.
The latest news now coming up at the same time as the East African Court of Justice recently delivered a pejorative indictment on the plans of the government of Tanzania to construct a highway through Serengeti National Park and as the ruling states that no bitumen road will be permited to be constructed, what this government planned to do first, the alternative of a gravel road is up to now on the table yet to be resolved.
Stakeholders in the Tourism industry have expressed concern regarding the effect of listing the Selous Reserve among the endangered UNESCO World Heritage sites saying that this could reduce the need for safaris into the largest wildlife reserve in the world.