Falls from Grace
Source: Travel.iafrica.com
Date: 28 November 2006
Author: Anon
Despite being one of the region’s most popular tourist attractions, the spectacular Victoria Falls on the border of Zimbabwe and Zambia risks losing its status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site if developers in Zambia get the go-ahead to build a massive hotel complex near the Falls.
Zambia’s wildlife authorities have given Legacy holdings — a consortium of foreign and Zambian investors — permission to build two hotels, a golf course and hundreds of holiday chalets in the Mosi-au-tunya national park, six kilometres upstream from the falls. Johannesburg-based Legacy also owns numerous hotels in South Africa, including the flagship Michelangelo Hotel.
According to Zimbabwe’s Herald newspaper, the deputy-director of the World Heritage Centre has visited the Falls after a request from UNESCO and the World Conservation Union (IUCN) for an investigation into the proposed development.
“We are here to assess the state of the site in terms of the rules and regulations governing the World Heritage Sites,” said Kishore Rao. “Some infrastructural developments are a threat to the site and we are making assessments on both sides, he added.
The development no doubt forms part of the Zambian government’s plan to bring up to one million tourists a year by 2010, generating more than $500-million in tourism receipts.
According to The Independent newspaper, Legacy claims that the development would create 2000 new jobs and attract 150 000 tourists to the area, while providing Zambia with an additional $170-million per year in foreign exchange.
Legacy's Bart Dorrenstein defended the project to industry publication Travel News Weekly, saying that the site is currently unfenced riverine vegetation that is already being damaged by elephants and the public.
"The reality is that the riverine areas will be reinstated and preserved by the development, and this is the very aspect we are selling," said Dorrenstein. "The facts are not fully representative of the state of affairs."
However, according to TNW, Legacy's own environmental impact assessment admits that the existing natural vegetation will have to be removed for construction, and that the existing wildlife corridor will be disrupted.
Still time to save the Falls
Environmentalists are up in arms over the development, warning that the development could harm the ecology of the area. Apart from free-roaming elephant, antelope, hippo and giraffe, the park is also home to a pair of endangered black rhino which are guarded around-the-clock by park rangers.
According to The Independent, Peter Sinkamba, a local environmental campaigner, has accused the Zambian government of failing to carry out a proper study into the environmental impact of the developments.
Environmental groups have also threatened to file objections in the courts to ensure that the development does not proceed. Mr Assomo added: "World heritage sites have a value that must be protected. If the values are threatened by urban development it could be placed on the endangered list."
According to the Herald, Rao said that a decision on whether to delist Victoria Falls would only be taken in June next year.
"We are now leaving for Lusaka where we intend to meet government officials there as some of the decisions might be political. So it will be premature if I am to say anything concerning the delisting of the site," he was quoted as saying. Victoria Falls, also known as Mosi Oa Tunya, or 'the smoke that thunders', used to be one of Zimbabwe's key tourist drawcards, with its combination of natural beauty, African bushveld and adventure activities.
However, heavy-handed political reforms by Robert Mugabe’s Zanu-PF government and a spiraling economy have seen the number of tourists to Zimbabwe plummet in recent years. Zimbabwe’s loss was Zambia’s gain though, and the beleagured country’s northern neighbours were quick to capitalise on the chaos in Zimbabwe, with tourists flocking across the iconic Falls bridge to spend their time, and valuable tourist dollars, in Zambia instead.