Caring for our coast,
caring for our future
Ministry of Environment
and Tourism
A resource book
for upper-primary
learners and teachers
Namibian Coast Conservation and Management Project (NACOMA)
Caring for our coast,
caring for our future
Resource book for
upper-primary learners and teachers
Ministry of Environment and Tourism
Namibian Coast Conservation and Management Project (NACOMA)
Sam Nujoma Avenue, Standard Bank building, 1st floor, room 8
P.O. Box 7018, Swakopmund
Tel: 064-403-905
http://www.nacoma.org.na
© Ministry of Environment and Tourism
2009. Copyright is waived for non-profit educational purposes. Activities and information can be
freely photocopied for use in institutions of learning.
ISBN: 978-99945-68-99-4
Many people had a hand in the development of this book, and all are thanked. Important
contributors include Ginger Mauney, Juliane Ziegler, Nicky Marais, Haiko Bruns, Hans Ovlisen, Rod
Braby, Nathalie Cadot and teachers of schools in Henties Bay, Swakopmund, Walvis Bay, Narraville
and Lüderitz.
Project Co-ordinators:
Written by: Illustrations by: Layout and design: Printed by: Integrated Environmental Consultants Namibia (IECN) cc
P.O. Box 86634, Eros, Windhoek, Namibia
Juliane Zeidler, Reagan Chunga, Hans Ovlisen and Ginger Mauney
Ginger Mauney
Nicky Marais
Haiko Bruns
John Meinert Printing Pty (Ltd)
This project was funded by the Global Environmental Facility (GEF), the Government of the
Republic of Namibia and the World Bank.
COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page COASTODIANS
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Namibia’s coastline is a place of natural wonders, economic importance, adventure and diversity. Take
pride in your coast! Become a Coastodian – caring for our coast, caring for our future.
The Ministry of Environment and Tourism through its Namibian Coast Conservation and Management
Project (NACOMA) is currently implementing the Government’s strategy to promote sustainable
economic development in the coastal zone, balanced with its natural resources. By reaching out to
teachers, learners and their families, the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET) wants to inform
Namibians of the diversity of our coastal environment and the pressures it faces. Through information,
MET hopes to inspire all Namibians – and most particularly those living at the coast – to become
Coastodians.
This coastal awareness booklet is designed as an aid to environmental education, the process of
becoming informed about your environment. Environmental education helps you acquire skills that
give you some control over the constantly changing environment. In acquiring skills and knowledge,
you can become more self-sufficient and better able to manage resources in a sustainable way.
Coastodian was derived from the words custodian and coast. Custodian implies a person(s) who has
the responsibility to look after something and be accountable for it, hence the name: Coastodian.
Page COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Contents
Chapter One - Where do you stand? .................................................................................................................... 5
Chapter Two - What makes Namibia’s coastal environment unique? ........................................................ 9
Chapter Three - Get water wise! . ............................................................................................................................12
Chapter Four - Desert ecology: is there life out there? . .................................................................................18
Chapter Five - Wetlands: global importance, local magic..............................................................................23
Chapter Six - Environmental changes: natural and unnatural stresses on our coast...........................27
Chapter Seven - Using our resources wisely ......................................................................................................30
Chapter Eight - Coastal conservation: the future in our hands....................................................................34
COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page Chapter One Where do you stand?
Namibia’s coastline runs for approximately 1 600 km from the Kunene River in the north to the Orange
River in the south. These two perennial or flowing rivers also mark Namibia’s borders with two of our
neighbouring countries, Angola to the north and, on our southern border, South Africa. Carved into the
rest of our country’s long coastline are both natural and man-made features including ephemeral or
seasonal river courses, cities and mining concerns, harbours and the fishing industry, wetlands, sand
dunes and protected national parks and reserves.
Off shore, there are 16 small islands, plus islets and rocks along Namibia’s southern coast that are
important sites for fish, seabirds and marine mammals.
Working with this booklet will help you understand what makes our coastal environment so special
and how you can become a COASTODIAN, caring for our coast, caring for our future.
Take a look at this map of Namibia. Where do you stand? Can you locate your hometown or other features
on the map?
Dominant features
Nature and man have made their mark
on the Namibian coastline. Some of the
most dominant features include:
Natural:
8Namib Desert
8Skeleton Coast
8Diamond coast
8Cape Cross Seal Reserve
8Walvis Bay wetlands and lagoon
8Sandwich Harbour wetland
8Lüderitz Bay
8Orange River
8Kunene River
8Swakop River
8Kuiseb River
Man-made:
8Towns: Lüderitz, Walvis Bay, Swakopmund, Henties Bay and Oranjemund
8Salt works
8Guano platforms
8Aquaculture farms at Lüderitz and
Walvis Bay
Page 8Harbours at Lüderitz and Walvis Bay
8Diamond mining at Oranjemund and along the coast near Lüderitz
8Toscanini
8Uranium mining inland from Swakopmund
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COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page Living systems
For those of us lucky enough to live along Namibia’s coast, we share this fascinating place with plants,
chameleons, penguins, seals and other people. In environmental terms, these different groups create
biodiversity. Biodiversity refers to the variety of plant and animal life in a particular habitat. A
habitat can range in size from a single rock to your backyard to the world as a whole, and for every
habitat a high level of biodiversity is desirable.
The variety of life within a particular habitat that makes up our biodiversity is a defined or classified as
species. Aloes, pelicans and humans are all different species. Species means a type or classification,
and eco-systems are communities of different species interacting with one another and with their
physical environment. This adds to global biodiversity, and without diversity, life would be rather
boring!
Biodiversity, the diversity
of plant and animal life
within an eco-system,
like the coast, helps
answer the question: is
our coastline healthy?
In Namibia, human activities
like poor farming methods and
industrial pollution can cause
imbalances in our eco-systems
that result in environmental
disasters, like the extinction of
animals and plants. Important places
and parks in Namibia, such as the
wetlands at the Orange River Mouth,
the Namib-Naukluft Park and the Cape
Cross Seal Reserve, give us an opportunity to study, appreciate and protect this biodiversity.
Biodiversity facts and figures
There are an estimated 80 million different species of organisms living on our planet. During the next 25
to 30 years, 25% of these face extinction. By destroying forests and wetlands, polluting our oceans and
streams, we are forcing the extinction of plants and animals living in these and other natural habitats.
An estimated 185 000 species of plants, animals and other living organisms are found in Namibia, and
many of them live in and along Namibia’s coast.
Shouldn’t you get to know them? Read on, and become a COASTODIAN.
Page COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
DID YOU KNOW?
The Namibian coast is classified as hyper arid desert,
but fog plays an important role in supporting
fascinating plant and animal life.
There are around 1,6 million birds from 73 species
are found along the Namibian Coast.
Between Swakopmund and Walvis Bay, there are up to 770 birds per
kilometre of beach. This stretch of beach is declared an Important
Bird Area.
493 species of fish and 25 species of shellfish occur in Namibian
waters.
Around 552 000 tons of fish was harvested by the fishing industry in Namibia in 2005.
COASTODIANS CAN …
• Learn more about the environment in which you live… remember we are not alone!
• Become more environmentally literate by learning the meaning of terms such as biodiversity,
species and eco-systems
• Help protect coastal biodiversity – do not litter, do not drive off road, respect the difference types
of life along the coast!
• Remember - you can make a difference!
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Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page Activities
Geography
•
How many landmarks can you find on your coastal map?
English
•
Learn environmental terms, such as coast, biodiversity, ephemeral, arid,
desert, and species. Make a set of flash cards using these words to test
your classmates!
•
Choose books from the library with sea themes to use in lessons.
Outside
•
Look around your school. How many different species or elements of
biodiversity can you find? Keep a running list of these in your classroom
and add to them when you can.
Art
•
Design a poster on conservation and biodiversity. It’s fun and it will help
you learn more about the issues affecting our fragile coastal
environment.
Page COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Chapter Two What makes Namibia’s coastal
environment unique?
Defining the coast is simple. The coast is the place where land meets ocean. But that is just the
beginning. Understanding the coast can be a lot more challenging, and a lot more fun!
Namibia’s coastal environment is a fascinating place. Though it has been around for hundreds of millions
of years, the coast seems to be constantly changing! One minute the fog drifts in and you are soaking
wet, then the hot wind blows through, drying your clothes and stinging your skin. Hot, cold, wet, and
dry, all at the same time! What is going on here?
To understand the coastal environment and our place in it, we need to know more about the natural
forces that shape it, the life it supports, and what the future holds for our coastal environment.
AT SEA AND ON LAND
There are four major environmental factors affecting our coast:
1 the Benguela Current
2 the South Atlantic high-pressure system
3 South and south-westerly winds
4 the Namib Desert
Even when the sea looks
bleak, it is home to an
incredible variety of life. The
Benguela current brings
cold Antarctic water into
warmer regions along the
southern and western coast of
Africa. Moved along by south and
south-westerly winds and the
South Atlantic high-pressure
system, the Benguela current
pushes warm surface water away
from the coast and replaces it with
deep, cold ocean water. This ocean
water is rich in nutrients and is the
basis for a long food chain.
COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page From microscopic organisms to small fish like pilchard up to sharks, seabirds and other predators – like
us – the food chain supports a variety of life and is also the foundation for Namibia’s important fishing
industry.
On land, the fog is created when cold sea air collides with the hot, dry conditions of the Namib Desert.
The moisture from fog makes it possible for a host of desert-adapted plants and animals, including a
large number of endangered species, to survive.
The Fifth Factor
It’s not waves or winds. It doesn’t burrow in the sand at night or migrate to our shores during winter. The
fifth – or maybe it should be the first – most important factor impacting our coastal environment is …..
US! Our mines, our fishing industry, our off road driving, our litter and our choice to clean up and conserve
have a huge affect on the coastal environment. Increased human pressures over the past several years
highlight the urgent need for us to understand our coastal environment. With understanding comes a
desire to protect and use our coastal resources wisely now and in the future.
COASTODIANS CAN …
• Take pride in our unique coastline and the life it supports
• Realise the responsibility that comes with being a part of this
fascinating biodiversity
• Become a weatherman! Understand coastal pressure systems and
prevailing winds
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Activities
English
•
make a set of “sea word” cards. Give learners a number of cards and ask
them to combine the words to make marine environmental words. Teams can be formed so that learners work together and they can use
a dictionary to check if the words exist.
•
Write an English essay on how has the use of the sea resulted in major
changes around in the world and in Namibia.
Think about trade, industry, the exchange of ideas and tourism.
Art
•
Design a postage stamp that reflects some aspect of Namibia’s coastal
environment.
Outside
•
Invite someone from NACOMA, the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine
Resources or the Ministry of Environment and Tourism to talk to your class about the coastal environment.
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Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page 11
Chapter Three Get water wise!
Standing at the coast, looking out across the Atlantic Ocean and all you see is water. But you know
this water is saline or salty and cannot be consumed without going through the expensive process of
desalination (removing the salt). Turn around and look inland. Now you face sand, gravel plains and in
some cases buildings or urban development, but not a drop of water.
Water is our most precious natural resource. All plants and animals – including people – need water to
live. Water is also vital to agriculture and industry. Water has to be shared between people, livestock and
crops, industry and services that provide employment, and the natural environment which also needs
and provides us with water.
For water resources to be managed in a sustainable way in an arid environment like Namibia, the
consumer (that’s us and our industries) needs to be aware of the availability of water in relation to our
water needs.
Water management refers to control over and administration of water resources. Various methods
of water management can be used. For example, water can be supplied according to demand or it
can be supplied according to availability. Water availability at the coast depends on water abstraction
(or usage) inland. This means that land uses upstream need to be controlled to ensure that our water
sources are “healthy.” If the demand for water exceeds availability, the use of this limited resource will
not be sustainable. A sustainable resource is one, which if used wisely today, can be used by future
generations.
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Where does our water come from?
Along the coast, all of our fresh water comes from aquifers (water stored underground) found under
ephemeral rivers. Ephemeral (pronounced eff-em-ur-al) means ‘short-lived’, which, with regards to
rivers, means that they only flow after heavy rains fall in their catchment area. Catchment is the area
that “catches” rainfall that feeds any river or aquifer. These ephemeral river courses may remain dry for
several years, before strong rains force water down them again and recharge the aquifers.
For example, ephemeral rivers in the
central region include the Swakop,
Kuiseb and Omaruru Rivers.
Although water flows on the surface
of these rivers for only a few days
each year, they provide large
amounts of fresh water for human,
animal, mining and industrial use.
NAMWATER extracts, or takes out,
water by using boreholes that tap
into underground water.
Groundwater from the Kuiseb and Omaruru riverbeds has made it possible for towns such as
Swakopmund, Walvis Bay, Henties Bay and Omaruru to develop. Uranium mines rely heavily on water
from these aquifers for their mining activities. New mines opening in the desert will also require water
from these rivers’ aquifers. With so much new development and limited water supplies, the Namibian
government has asked new uranium mines to provide their own water by building desalination
plants.
Besides pumping water from the aquifers, surface water in the Swakop, Omaruru and Kuiseb rivers is
collected in a number of dams. The Von Bach and Swakoppoort dams on the Swakop River supply the
central region of Namibia, including Windhoek, with fresh water. The Omdel Dam on the Omaruru River
is a unique dam in that it does not store water on the surface but rather functions to encourage water
to penetrate the soil and so supply the Omaruru Delta Aquifer.
In recent years as the demand for water has increased, flows of the Swakop and Kuiseb Rivers have become
less frequent. This is a cause for concern since river flow is essential for recharging the groundwater of
the aquifers. River flow is also important for recharging beaches with sand. Without this phenomenon,
coastal erosion increases.
There is only one large dam on the Kuiseb River, the Friedenau Dam near Windhoek. But there are also
approximately 400 farm dams built along the Kuiseb and its tributaries. Although a single farm dam is
too small to have a major impact on flow patterns in the river, the combined affect of hundreds of small
dams may strongly influence the amount of water that reaches the lower parts of the catchment.
With no fresh water sources nearby, Lüderitz’s water is pumped from Khoichab Pan.
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Page 13
Meeting our water needs depends upon:
8Rainfall upstream
8A clean environment along the river system
8Recharging of underground aquifers
8Using this valuable resource wisely
Using water from underground aquifers is like withdrawing money from the bank, this action relies
upon having money (or water) in the bank. That is not a given. Sometimes the account (or aquifer) is
empty and you must wait for a deposit (or recharge) before drawing cash (or water).
Keep our water clean
Clean water is essential for all life. But with mining, food processing, oil spills at sea, plus industrial,
agricultural and human waste, water quality often suffers. The results can be devastating to the land,
ocean, animals, plants and to us. Diseases such as cholera, typhoid and hepatitis are water-borne, and
drinking dirty water can cause diarrhoea, a leading cause of death in young children.
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So what can you do to keep our water clean?
Never litter – anywhere – but especially at the coast where items like discarded fishing line and plastic
bags can be deadly to fish, sea birds, turtles and seals. Take your litter home
Never throw chemicals or dirty car oil down a toilet or into a river, dam, or the sea. Chemicals such as
turpentine and oil from your car can contaminate water and groundwater. Ask your Municipality where
you can dispose of these items safely.
Never relieve yourself in or near a river or dam. Bacteria from your urine mixed with water could cause
animals and people to get sick.
Water Conservation and Recycling
With coastal towns growing and uranium mining increasing in Erongo region, fresh water availability
is a serious problem for these towns and Namibia as a whole. In fact, Namibia is facing the problem
of an absolute water scarcity by 2020. By 2020, you will most likely be out of school and part of the
work force, perhaps starting a family, and hopefully your actions to conserve water will be part of the
solution, helping to insure Namibia’s long-term supply of clean drinking water.
Potential long-term solutions to a looming water crisis
Fog water harvesting - It is not a new idea: African nomads and Andean people have long taken
advantage of trees and other natural water-catching properties by collecting morning dew or using the
water trapped by forests. Now scientists around the world are working to help more arid communities
harvest the fog water in their regions.
The technology is simple: synthetic meshes are set up in areas with dense fog and light winds. As the
fog passes through the mesh, the water droplets are caught by the net then drip down into a collection
trough and are channelled into a
storage tank. Water captured by
the nets is of excellent quality.
In Chile and other places around
the world, fog is a long-term
sustainable resource much more
reliable in both availability and
safety than ground water.
Along Namibia’s coast, the Desert
Research Foundation of Namibia
has experiment with fogcollection. The results indicate
that fog is a viable source of
water in the Namib and could
supplement traditional water
sources in rural settlements and
perhaps also in urban water
supply schemes.
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Page 15
Desalination – Oceans offer a potentially limitless source of water, problem is we can’t drink it. The
water is too salty. Desalination is the process of removing salt from water to make it suitable for
humans to drink. The process requires a lot of energy and is expensive, but desalination is an option
that has been discussed in Swakopmund for years, and it could be a useful alternative for Namibia’s
water supply in the future. The uranium mine at Trekkopje, the largest in the world, has built the first
desalination plant in Namibia. The fresh water will be used to process the uranium. The uranium ore is
sold to countries like France or United States of America for the production of electricity in a nuclear
plant.
DID YOU KNOW?
The average bath uses 90 litres of water, but a fiveminute shower only uses 20 litres.
Cooking and washing up by hand uses 30 litres of water,
but an automatic dishwasher uses 80 litres per load.
The average amount of water used per person per day in some of
Namibia’s urban centres:
Henties Bay
312 litres/day
Lüderitz
192 litres/day
Opuwo
320 litres/day
Oshakati 123 litres/day
Swakopmund
318 litres/day
Walvis Bay
282 litres/day
Windhoek
230 litres/day
And in Oranjemund an astonishing 4,046 litres/day!
The UN basic minimum is 15 litres/day.
COASTODIANS CAN …
• Turn the water off while you brush your
teeth
• Water your lawn early in the morning or late in
the afternoon when there is less evaporation
• Help your parents change leaky taps
• Limit showers to 5 minutes or less
• Flush the toilet only when it is completely
necessary
• After washing the dishes or clothes, use this
‘grey water’ to water your plants and trees
• Never flush oil, cigarette stubs or other rubbish
down the toilet, these items can contaminate
the water and add to the amount of water
needed to clean water during the sewage
treatment process
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Activities
Environmental studies
•
With the help of the teachers, students can carry out a simple
environmental audit on water for their school, looking at how much
water they use in a month and the associated costs and any measures
to reduce the water usage. Students can be encouraged to do the
same in their homes.
Art
•
Start a “Keep our water clean” campaign at school with catchy slogans,
posters and a prize for the winning class!
Outside
•
Take a walk along one of the dry riverbeds in your area. Map the number
of households and land uses, and determining the water abstraction
rates. Compare this information to uses in other areas and by
businesses and industries in your area. Think of ways to help conserve
water and share them with the associated groups.
•
Visit a Water Recycling plant.
Math and biology
•
Make a fog net and measure how much fog is collected per day. Use
this information to work out how large a net and how many days of
fog you’d need as that you could fill a 500l bottle or enough water to
fill a bath tub.
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Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page 17
Chapter Four Desert ecology – is there life out
there?
One way to better understand our coastal environment is to learn more about the plants and animals
that also live here. Looking inland, out across the desert, you could be mistaken for thinking there is
nothing out there! Just sand and rocky plains for as far as the eye can see. But look closer.
The Namib Desert is a fascinating place, home to plants and animals that have adapted to survive
without water and under extreme conditions. It is the second largest desert in Africa and one of the
oldest deserts in the world. In fact, the Namib Desert is so special that is world famous!
Each year more than 600,000 people from all over the world visit Namibia and many of them come to
enjoy the desert landscape and the flora (plants) and fauna (animals) it holds. Tourism, the industry
that brings people to our country and hosts them while they are here, provides jobs, income and further
incentive to protect our natural world. Tourism that minimises its impact on the environment and is
sensitive to local cultures is called eco-tourism.
You are lucky. You don’t have to travel around the world to enjoy the Namib Desert, just step out into the
desert and have a closer look at all the amazing life out there!
SURVIVAL STRATEGIES
Want to learn how to take advantage of the fog or how to beat the heat? Here’s your chance to learn
from the experts:
Wacky and water-wise
On misty mornings, the fog-basking beetle, Onymacris
unguicularis moves to the crest of the dune, drops its head,
extends its hind legs, tilts forward and lets it body serve as a
surface for fog to collect. Soon droplets of water form on its
back and slide down and into its mouth. On a foggy morning,
this head-standing beetle may drink as much as 40% of its
original weight in water.
A common slipface lizard, Meroles anchietae, has a
very uncommon adaptation that allows it to endure
waterless days in the Namib. This lizard stores water
in its body, keeping it almost free of body salts, for
more than a month. It doesn’t have to stand on its
head for water; it has its own internal fresh-water
reservoir.
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By not allowing moisture to escape from its body,
the gemsbok, Oryx gazella, survives weeks without
drinking water. The gemsbok simply stops sweating.
At such times its body temperature, normally around
39ºC, might reach as high as 45ºC. This is possible
because of another intriguing adaptation. At the
base of the gemsbok’s brain is a network of fine
blood vessels where the hot blood from the heart
is cooled against the blood draining from the nasal
sinuses before entering the brain. So while you
might feel like your brain is frying in the desert, the
gemsbok doesn’t.
Lithops, or stone plants, are extremely well adapted to
existing with little water. Almost the entire plant grows
beneath the surface of the soil where it is protected from
heat and evaporation. Only the tips of its leaves appear
above the ground’s surface. These tips are rounded and
speckled and look just like the pebbles scattered on the
ground where these plants grow.
Other animals, including large animals like the gemsbok, take advantage of the desert’s intermittent fog
by drinking moisture that collects on plants and rocks or the droplets of water that condense on their
skin. Another beetle takes this a step further. It builds narrow trenches on the dunes at right angles to
the winds that bring fog in from the coast. The ridges of these trenches collect more water than the
surrounding sand, and the beetle moves from ridge to ridge drinking water. It can drink up to 41% of its
body weight in water on foggy mornings.
Beat the heat
During the heat of the day, the long-legged beetle Onymacris plana runs across the scorching sand at a
speed of 1m per second. Dashing from one tuft of grass to the next, the beetle creates extra wind over
its body that lowers its temperature by up to 10ºC. But it must keep running. If it stood still for long, it
would die of hyperthermia, abnormally high body temperature. As crazy as it might sound, this is the
only land animal known to use exercise-induced cooling.
To cope with the extreme heat radiating from dune surfaces the shovel-snouted lizard, Aporosaura
anchietae, performs a fascinating ‘thermal dance,’ lifting two feet off the ground for a few seconds at a
time in alternate fashion (left front foot with right rear
foot, and vice versa).
Another animal that appears to dance across the dunes
is the sidewinder snake, Bitis peringueyi. Look for a
beautiful broken s-pattern running up the dunes that
marks the sidewinder’s movement across the sand. The
pattern often ends near a tuft of desert grass where the
snake curls its body and shimmies into the sand, leaving
only its eyes exposed to lookout for prey.
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Page 19
Environmental terms you need to know
Many of the amazing plants and animals you’ve just learned about are endemic to the Namib Desert.
Endemic means they live here and nowhere else in the world.
It is also important to know that many of the special plants and animals found in the Namib Desert are
considered vulnerable, threatened or endangered. These terms refer to the abundance of the specific
plant or animal in its natural habitat, the degree of conservation protection it is getting, and how close
it may be to extinction. Extinction is the complete disappearance of the plant or animal from the
planet. Forever.
An endangered species is any type of animal or plant that has so few individual survivors that it is
in danger of extinction. Extinction is actually a natural phenomenon in the process of evolution. Over
90% of all species that have ever lived have disappeared, including dinosaurs. However, the rapid pace
of extinctions that is now taking place is due entirely to human activities, such as pollution, hunting
and the destruction of the natural areas that wildlife requires for survival for agriculture or/and urban
development. Largely because of this rapid, often thoughtless development and pollution, wildlife
species are being lost at an alarming rate about 400 times faster than at any time in history.
These are some of Namibia’s endangered plants and animals living in our coastal environment that
need our protection:
Endangered Flora (plants)
Fenestraria rhopalophylla, the window plant, grows on sandy plain habitat
in the southern Namib but is sometimes found on gravel plains.
Xanthoparmelia walteri, lichens, a combination of algae and fungi which
stabilise the soil, are found on gravel plains between Swakopmund and
Henties Bay.
Lithops rushiorium, the stone plants, is part of the flora in the southern Namib known as the Succulent
Karoo. From Lüderitz through the Richtersveld in South Africa, this area is rich in rare and endemic plant
life and is considered one of the world’s biological “hot spots.”
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Welwitschia Mirabilis – a plant that can live for more than a thousand years …. if we let it! These ancient
plants are found on the gravel plains from the Kuiseb River into southern Angola.
Endangered Fauna (animals)
Living in wetlands or on the shore:
8 African Black Oystercatcher
8 African Penguin
8 Bank Cormorant
8 Cape Gannet
8 Caspian Tern
8 Chestnut-banded Plover
8 Damara Tern
8 Great White Pelican
Living in the ocean:
8 Benguela or Heaviside Dolphin
8 Green Turtle
8 Humpback Whale
8 Southern Right Whale
8 Leatherback Turtle
Living on the plains:
8 Namaqua Chameleon
Namaqua Chameleon
Damara
Tern
Bottlenose Dolphin
Leatherback Turtle
DID YOU KNOW?
The Succulent Karoo which stretches form
southern Namib into South Africa is home
to over 1 600 species of plants, making it a
global biodiversity ‘hotspot’.
Namibia is home to about 98% of the world’s population of Damara Terns.
Of the 8 species of sea turtles found worldwide, 5 occur in Namibia. Most are
considered endangered and are protected under the Sea Fisheries Act and
international agreement.
Of the 62 species of seabirds recorded in Namibian waters, 20 are rare vagrants (non-resident
birds).
Of the 11 species of baleen whales worldwide, 8 occur in Namibian waters and 23 species of
dolphins and toothed whales can be found off the coast. (Toothed whales eat other animals such
as seals, fish and squid. Baleen whales have thick, horny brush on their jaws through which they
strain seawater to filter out and feed on microscopic plants and animals called plankton.)
COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page 21
COASTODIANS CAN …
• Ask your parents or your English teacher to help you write a letter to the editor of your newspaper
expressing your concern for endangered species
• Start an environmental awareness group at your school
• Protect endangered species before it’s too late! Remember, extinction is forever.
Activities
Art
•
Find out more about an endangered species – present a poster or play
to your class on a particular plant or animal’s importance and what can
be done to protect it.
Environmental studies
•
Make a list of species in your area ranging from common to rare to
endangered – see how this compares to your classmates lists and
discuss what you can to help protect these plants and animals!
Outside
•
Plan a field trip to Gobabeb or Nadeet
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COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Chapter Five Wetlands:
global importance, local magic
Now you know about threatened, vulnerable and endangered species. Did you know that one of the
best ways to protect these species is by protecting the area where they live? That’s right, and that is why
it is important to know more about Namibia’s coastal wetlands.
Why should we care about wetlands?
Wetlands are important breeding, feeding, nesting and resting sites for migratory and resident birds.
Migratory means moving from one region to another at a specific time of year, usually to breed or avoid
bad weather conditions. Resident means birds and mammals, like us, that stay in a certain place year
round. Wetlands are also home to mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish and other flora and fauna, giving
them an important role in helping to maintain Namibia’s biodiversity.
Wetlands also help to
maintain water tables for
agriculture, they stabilise
the shoreline and provide
protection from storms,
and they increase nutrients
(wetlands provide eight
times as much plant life as
wheat fields).
National pride, international recognition
Namibia’s coastal environment is home to several wetlands of international importance. These are known
as Ramsar sites. The Ramsar Convention is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable
utilisation of wetlands now and in the future. It recognizes the ecological, economic, cultural, scientific,
and recreational value of wetlands. In December 1995, Namibia signed onto the Convention and the
Walvis Bay wetlands were proclaimed the country’s first Ramsar site.
Namibia’s Ramsar sites
Walvis Bay wetlands including the Walvis Bay Lagoon, Pelican Point, the salt
works and other nearby flooded areas cover an area of 35 to 40 km² (around
400 soccer fields). They are home to a large number of migrant birds and to
more than half of southern Africa’s flamingos. Regular bird counts at the Walvis
Bay wetlands have shown that numbers of wetlands birds vary from 37 000 to 79
000 individuals, peaking at about 150,000, a number which includes about 50 %
of the world population of the Chestnut-banded plovers.
COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page 23
But birds, fish and mammals share the wetlands, and our country’s most important fishing and commercial
harbour at Walvis Bay, with joggers, domestic dogs, kite-surfers, windsurfers and other residents of
Walvis Bay. This means that the protection of the wetland has to be balanced with the needs of industry
and a growing population. The Coastal Environmental Trust of Namibia (CETN) placed information signs
aimed at helping the public understand the importance of protecting the lagoon and wetlands.
Located against the sand dunes and the sea just south of Walvis Bay within the Namib-Naukluft Park,
Sandwich Harbour is another wetland of international importance. Sandwich Harbour’s northern
wetland is sustained by water seeping from an aquifer beneath the dunes. This not only makes Sandwich
Harbour unique, but it also maintains a freshwater wetland that supports 36 species of fish and a large
bird population of shorebirds, waders and flamingos. Peak bird counts suggest up to 70 000 birds in
summer.
What makes Namibia’s third wetland of global significance special is that it is located along our shared
border with South Africa at the Orange River Mouth. This perennial river forms a linear oasis through
the semi-arid and arid Karoo and southern Namibia. It also supports many threatened species of birds
including Damara Terns and Hartlaub’s Gull.
Located far from the sea, the Etosha Pan is Namibia’s only inland Ramsar site. With seasonal rains and
inflow of water from Lake Oponono and Cuvelai Drainage, the pan is an important nesting site for
flamingos.
But wait…. there’s more!
All along Namibia’s coast there are interesting, important places that help to broaden, protect and
support our nation’s biodiversity.
Lüderitz Lagoon supports salt marsh vegetation and a number of different species of shore and sea
birds. Oysters and crayfish, a source of food that Lüderitz is famous for, are also found here. Overharvesting (taking more out of the environment than can be replaced), pollution from the harbour and
future industrial developments are potential threats to this wetland.
The 30 km section of coastline from Swakopmund to Walvis Bay is designated as an Important Bird
Area (IBA). During the summer months, this area has up to 770 birds per km, the highest linear count
of birds anywhere in Southern Africa. It is the world’s most important breeding ground for endemic
Damara Terns. These small birds are rated as “extinction possible” so protecting their breeding areas is a
critical conservation effort.
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COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Guano platform
The Swakop lagoon at the Swakop River mouth is fed by infrequent flooding of the ephemeral Swakop
River. Over 85 bird species have been recorded in the vicinity of the Swakop lagoon.
Cape Cross Seal Reserve and surrounding lagoons provides shelter and food for a large number
of sea birds and seals. They also attract more than 100 000 tourists every year, making it an important
contributor to Namibia’s economy!
Salt works near Walvis Bay, Swakopmund and Henties Bay create artificial (not natural) wetlands and
… jobs, so both people and birds benefit!
Guano platforms off of Namibia’s coast are a safe place for birds and provide a moneymaking opportunity
for Namibians. Guano, a rich fertiliser made from bird droppings, is collected and sold. This was one of
the earliest industries along Namibia’s coast, and as long as birds visit these platforms, it is a renewable
resource. Guano is also used in another unusual way. It is one of the ingredients in make-up (yes…
make-up!). So it helps to make the land and us more beautiful!
Pressures on Namibia’s wetlands
Some of the most common threats to
wetlands include:
8 Illegal or over fishing
8 Overgrazing
8 Industrial waste
8 Sewage waste
8 Pesticides and other forms of pollution
8 Poor mining practices
8 Dams
8 Human encroachment and a growing
demand for resource
8 Invasive plants and animals
8 Poor town planning
COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page 25
DID YOU KNOW?
Internationally important wetlands are called
Ramsar sites because the UN convention
that adopted measures to protect wetlands
was signed in 1971 in Ramsar, Iran.
Namibia became a signatory to the Convention in
1995.
Currently, there are 157 contracting parties to the Ramsar treaty.
Globally, 1,708 Ramsar sites cover around 1,530,000 square kilometres
– that’s an area larger than our entire country!
Other potential Ramsar sites in Namibia include the Kunene River Mouth, the second richest coastal
wetland for birds in our country, the Cape Cross Lagoons, the Mile 4 Salt works in Swakopmund
and the Lüderitz Lagoon.
COASTODIANS CAN …
• Participate in a bird count at your local wetlands
• Clean up rubbish around your wetlands
• Read the newspaper to make sure that any proposed new
developments in your town do not encroach on wetlands
• Urge your municipality to adopt a conservation based water
management plan
• Urge industries to adopt clean, environmentally friendly
working methods
• Stop water pollution – keep wetlands, catchment areas
and ground water sources clean!
Activities
English
•
have inter-class debates, where you not only challenge what you’ve
been told but also get to draw your own conclusions. For example,
under the topic of biodiversity, one topic for debate could be: Should
the government spend money trying to protect endangered species
such as Damara terns or would the money be better spent elsewhere?
Get talking - think and debate!
Outside
•
take a field trip to one of your local lagoons, river mouths and/or Ramsar
sites to observe the variety of life in person!
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COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Chapter Six Environmental changes:
natural and unnatural stresses on our coast
Look outside. Is it sunny? Foggy? Hot? Cold? The environment changes constantly. Some changes are
temporary, but there are changes that have a greater impact on our environment. How do these changes
add up over the long term and how might they affect our environment?
Though we haven’t got a crystal ball to look into the future, there are some alarming changes happening
right now in the environment that we need to better understand.
Climate change
Climate change is a long-term change in our weather patterns. Namibia can be described as a hot,
dry country. This is our average weather pattern over the years, but how might climate change affect
us?
The cold Benguela Current associated with our coastal regions is responsible for low rainfall yet brings
dense fog to the region. Fog from the coast rolls across the Namib Desert an average of 60 days a year. This
fog is very important as it supports a variety of plant and animal life. If the climate changed considerably
and the Namib received less fog each year, it would have a significant impact on life in the desert.
Global warming refers to an increase in the Earth’s average temperature. This affects the climate, leading
to changes in rainfall patterns, a rise in sea temperature, sea levels, and a wide range of impacts to
plants, animals and humans. With our long coastline, Namibia would certainly feel the affects of global
warming.
The Earth has warmed over the last 100 years. This affects the air we breathe, the water we drink, and
scientists believe that the greenhouse
gases (gases that trap heat such as
CO2 – carbon dioxide) that we send
into the air are increasing the speed of
climate change and global warming.
Changes to the temperature on
land and in the sea can affect the
environment and us by:
8Changing the patterns of fish
distribution
 the fishing industry
8Altering wetlands
 bird, animal and plant life,
agriculture and protection from storms
8Affecting populations of rock
lobster and oysters
restaurants and export
products
8Rising sea levels
 coastal erosion, coastal
development
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Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page 27
Sulphur eruptions, red tides and low oxygen events
When bottom-dwelling bacteria in the ocean decompose or breakdown, they produce sulphur, a
chemical element. When sulphur is concentrated, sulphur eruptions occur and create problems for
Namibia’s marine environment, especially in the central region, between Cape Cross and Conception
Bay. Sulphur eruptions give the air a pungent smell, turn the sea lime green in colour, and cause fish,
rock lobster and shellfish to die.
Complex chemical and biological processes such as sulphur eruptions are often associated with harmful
algal blooms that cause even more deaths in fish and shellfish populations. Red tides are the decay of
blooms that can create a highly toxic hydrogen sulphide in the sea.
Red tides and sulphur eruptions are also the cause of low oxygen events in the seawater. When there
is not enough oxygen in the water, fish and rock lobsters, are forced to escape. Problem is they have
nowhere to go and end up washed up on our beaches. Maybe you’ve seen this happen and were able
to pick up fish that had been washed ashore?
DID YOU KNOW?
In Kenya, Wangari Maathai started a project
that has planted more than 40 million trees.
She started the initiative to help woman find
jobs and help the environment. In 2004, her
hard work was recognized with a Nobel Peace Prize!
In South Africa, shoppers must pay an extra 21 cents for each
plastic shopping bag they take home.
Germany produces more electricity from wind power than any
other country. Unlike coal or oil, wind power is clean (no emission
of CO2 ) and renewable.
In Paris, France there are 20,000 clean, pedal-powered bikes for tourists and residents to rent.
COASTODIANS CAN …
• Walk, ride bicycles, carpool – uses less energy and get great exercise!
• Recycle plastic, paper and glass so that fewer materials are needed to
manufacture new goods and it helps reduce litter. Do not throw bottles
and cans out of the window of the car.
• Use fabric/cloth bags and limit the use of plastic bags, as they are one
of the most abundant pollutants of our coastal desert.
• Turn off the lights.
• Consume products from Namibia. Less energy will be used in the
process, and you’ll help the country’s economy too!
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COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Activities
Environmental studies
•
Chart the weather patterns – draw graphs, charts and diagrams of
weather patterns and compare them on a monthly basis.
Climate change
•
Organise a small tree planting ceremony where students pledge to
plant a certain amount of trees, and plant some that day.
Math
•
Take a quiz to discover your “carbon footprint”. This is the amount of
greenhouse gases you are responsible for releasing into the atmosphere.
Then multiply this by the number of individuals then households in
your town to get a figure that illustrates the amount of greenhouses
gases emitted in your area.
Outside
•
Take a walk around town. Ask students to think about whether or not
their community includes any of the eco-resources from the list below
and where they might be located:
• Parks and green spaces
• Pathways for walking, roller-blading, bike-riding
• Public transportation
• Cultural/historical sites
• Second-hand stores
• Landfills
• Wildlife habitat
• Nature Education sites/ facilities
•
Draw an eco-map of your neighbourhood indicating where these
services/places are found.
•
When the students have completed their maps, discuss how often
they visit their local parks, trails, educational sites, or second-hand
stores. If they do not visit these places often, arrange a field trip to one
or more of them.
COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page 29
Chapter Seven Using our resources wisely
Fish. Diamonds. Uranium. Tourists. These are resources at the core of the fishing, mining, and tourism
industries. These are important industries, providing employment for Namibians and income for our
nation. They also have an impact on the sea, the land, and our future. The type of impact they have
– positive or negative – is up to us.
Defining our resources
A renewable resource is a resource that
can supposedly last forever because it is
replenished through natural processes.
Fish, water, trees, grasses, fertile soil, wild
animals and fresh air are examples of
renewable resources. However, if a resource
is used faster than it can be replaced, it
can be depleted and converted to a nonrenewable resource.
Non-renewable resources are resources
that exist in fixed amounts on earth. They
are formed over millions of years and
cannot be replenished once they are used.
Uranium, diamonds, marble, gas and oil
are examples of non-renewable resources.
Wise use and recycling can help extend the
life and usefulness of our non-renewable
resources.
Fishing
The Benguela current, an upwelling that brings cold nutrient rich water to the surface that occurs off the
Namibian coast, results in one of the richest fish resource bases in the world. This renewable resource
has the potential to contribute greatly to our economy, to generate employment and to feed many
people. However, these fish stocks survive in a sensitive ecosystem whose balance can and has been
disturbed by over-exploitation (over-use). Fishing can only be sustainable if it is managed properly.
Quotas, established by Namibia’s Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources, set a limit for how many
fish can be taken out of the sea and are based upon scientific research into the health and future of
each type of fish. Quotas are important tools in protecting the future health of our fishing stocks as they
help to make sure that enough fish are left to breed and allow the populations to return to their natural
levels.
Oil and diamonds are examples of nonrenewable marine resources, while
seaweeds, oysters, rock lobsters and guano
are renewable resources obtained from
the sea. Careful management of all these
resources is needed to insure that they are
used wisely, benefit our economy, and that
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COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
their extraction from the sea doesn’t upset the natural balance that is important for our environmental
future.
Diamond mining
Diamond mining is a very important part of Namibia’s economy. It provides jobs, training and income
for our nation. Yet, diamonds are a non-renewable resource and mining them takes a heavy toll on the
natural environment.
Large amounts of sand are moved during diamond mining operations. Removing diamonds from the
coastline has resulted in the destruction of marine and coastal habitats as the sea is forced back to
reveal its treasures. If not managed carefully, offshore mining has a negative impact as pollution from
the moving of the sand affects the chain of life at the bottom of the sea.
Inland mining
Uranium mines are being developed in sensitive desert environments in our coastal regions. These
mines require a huge amount of fresh water and electricity for production. They tap into our aquifers
and, if not managed properly, could leave our water supply threatened.
To support these mines, roads are built, and water pipelines and power lines are laid. This type of
development leaves tracks on fragile gravel plains that can last for hundreds of years, long after the
uranium, a non-renewable resource, is gone. The visual impact of uranium mines (power lines and
water pipelines and the huge hole made for extracting the ore) has a negative impact on the tourism
industry, a more sustainable activity. Remember, thousands of foreigners visit Namibia every year to
enjoy our spectacular pristine desert. Would tourist continue to visit if the area was damaged?
Other kinds of mining operations at the coast include salt and stone mining. They are generally smallscale mines but their visual impact adds up to lasting scars on our landscape.
Tourism and coastal development
The Namibian coast is an important
destination for tourists. The tourism
industry provides jobs, income and a
chance for visitors to experience the
wonders of our coastal environment. If
tourists enjoy their time in our country,
they will encourage others to visit. This
makes tourism an important renewable
resource. But in order to protect the
renewable nature of tourism, we need to
protect our environment.
Uncontrolled off-road driving of quad
bikes, motorbikes and 4x4 vehicles leads
to the destruction of unique habitats,
especially fragile lichen fields and
breeding areas for endangered species,
such as the Damara Tern.
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Page 31
The pressure on seals, dolphins and recovering whale populations is increasing with the growing number
of boat tour operators. Walvis Bay used to be a major breeding ground for Southern Right Whales before
they disappeared from our waters through over harvesting in the early 1800s. Today these whales have
a chance to recover here, if we do not interfere with them too much.
Low flying aircraft that ignore height restrictions and no-fly zones over Ramsar sites and Important Bird
Areas disturb shorebirds, flamingos and seabirds. Coastal development and the growing number of
holiday homes threaten the area which supports more resident and migrant birds than any other stretch
of beach in the country. These developments have already started to suffer the effects of coastal erosion,
following higher tides and more frequent swell, a situation that will increase with climate change. We
need to build homes in less sensitive areas and above a certain height, safely away from the high tide
mark.
Finding the balance
Fishing, mining, tourism and other industries are important to people living along the coast and to
our nation as a whole. But wetlands, ephemeral rivers, wildlife and bird populations, and our seas are
equally as important.
In terms of development and for our future, the needs of these man-made and natural components
that make up our coastal environment need to be balanced. Finding this balance is key to sustainable
development.
Sustainable development is development that considers the needs of people in present times without
depriving future generations of the means to meet their own needs. All people have basic needs for food,
water, shelter and energy. As the world population increases, the earth is expected to provide more in
order to fulfil these needs. The development that follows can be called sustainable development only if
natural resources are used in such a way that they are not lost to future generations.
DID YOU KNOW?
Over 600 000 tourists
visited Namibia in 2007
and approximately 1
million visited in 2008.
The
major
threats
to environment and
biodiversity along the
coast are:
8 Uncontrolled activities in protected areas and state lands such as mining & prospecting,
tourism, recreational angling, off-road driving.
8 Land reclamation for urban and industrial development.
8 Marine pollution through mining & prospecting activities, fishing industry, oil & gas exploration
& extraction, harbour activities.
8 Over fishing & over harvesting depleting our ocean resources.
8 Introduction of invasive alien species along our riverbeds and through mariculture
development.
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COASTODIANS •
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COASTODIANS CAN …
• Start a clean up campaign to remove alien plants from riverbeds and
wetlands
• Organize a poster campaign over the holiday period to educate
holidaymakers about the environmental hazards of off-road driving
• Create a project on the coastal environment for your science fair
• Choose a career in the environmental field: nature conservation,
water & waste management, control of pollution, renewable energy,
management of marine resources, etc.
• Plant a tree
Activities
Environmental studies
•
Ask parents who work in the fishing, mining, tourism or other industries
that affect the coastal environment to come to class and discuss their
jobs and what their companies are doing to protect the
environment.
Outside
•
Visit the harbour at Walvis Bay or Lüderitz to understand more about
this industry and its impact on the environment.
English
•
with the help of your teacher or parents, write a letter to the editor
of your local newspaper expressing your thoughts and concerns
regarding development and its impact on the coastal environment
COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page 33
Chapter Eight
Coastal conservation: the future in our hands
Coastodians, the time to act is now! Namibia has the most extraordinary coastal environment and
we are its coastodians. Working together, we can clean up, conserve and protect our world for future
generations.
Conservation describes the process of managing natural resources so that they are not degraded or
destroyed, but are used in a sustainable way. Conservation of an area should take into account the
needs of the local human population, together with the needs of the wildlife species and their habitat.
This means setting priorities, finding a balance, and using our natural resources wisely. Conservation is
key to our future!
Coastal review
Coastal region: Namibia’s coastline covers four administrative regions, namely: Kunene, Erongo, Hardap
and Karas Regions. The entire coastal area is desert and much of it lies within protected areas. The hyperarid Namibian coastal ecosystem is home to a significant and unique array of biological and ecological
diversity, including uniquely adapted plants and animals, and a high diversity of migratory shore and
seabirds, including a number of endangered species.
Concerns: Pollution, litter, climate change, over-fishing, bad mining, bad tourism and other forms of
poorly planned coastal development are areas of concern that we have some control over. They affect
our biodiversity – our wetlands, our air, our water, the unique plants that share our coast, our lives and
our future.
Choices: Making wise choices involves knowing where you stand in terms of environmental needs and
our future. Using resources wisely and participating in activities that have a positive impact on our coastal
environment can make a difference. Here are more ways to help protect the coastal environment:
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COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
COASTODIANS CAN …
SPREAD THE WORD – Talk to your parents, your friends, your local municipality and let them know
that you are concerned about our coastal environment. They will be impressed!
READ THE NEWSPAPER – Scan the newspaper for stories that concentrate on the environment and
what our lawmakers and municipalities are doing to ensure a healthy, productive use of our natural
resources.
WRITE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR – Write to the editor of your local newspaper expressing your
concerns about wetlands, conservation and development. Then check the papers to see when your
letter appears. If it doesn’t, phone the editor to find out why it hasn’t!
PROTECT OUR OCEANS – The world’s oceans have become one of the biggest dumping grounds
for garbage in the world! In the Pacific Ocean there is a litter dump the size of the African continent!
Worldwide over 300 different species of seabird, turtle, seal, sea lion, whale and fish have suffered
from entanglement or ingestion in litter. Stop pollution! Organize clean ups. Make sure coastal
industry in Namibia doesn’t dump waste in the ocean.
KEEP OUR WATER CLEAN – In a dry country like Namibia, clean drinking water is in limited supply so
it is important to keep poisonous materials out of the system. Clean water is essential for life!
USE WATER WISELY – Remember recycle, reuse and reduce. Water is a limited resource!
PROTECT OUR GRAVEL PLAINS – Stay on existing tracks, do not drive off road and protect the
fragile lichen fields along the coast and the endangered birds, like the Damara Tern, who nest there.
HAVE FUN FISHING – RESPONSIBLY - Get a permit from Namibia’s Ministry of Fisheries and Marine
Resources (MFMR) to catch fish, collect bait/mussels or dive for rock lobster and respect harvesting
limitations to insure the future of these renewable resources. By using our resources wisely today, it
will help to ensure that you will be able to take your son and grandson for a fishing trip 25 years from
now!
KEEP OUR BEACHES CLEAN - Do not leave bait or fish on the beach because this food attracts
scavengers like jackals and gulls who prey on nesting birds and other vulnerable parts of our
biodiversity. Do not feed
scavengers such as gulls,
crows or jackals. Take
your litter home.
LEARN MORE! Read up
on the biodiversity of
the coast before visiting
areas so you’re your
actions aren’t harmful
to the environment.
You’ll have much more
fun discovering new
wonders along the
coast.
COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
Page 35
Activities
English
•
Identify and classify wastes that result from human activity. Students
can question how these items could be reused or recycled or how the
user could have avoided using it in the first place. Chart the resources
you use in a week into renewable and non-renewable lists – realize
your personal use of resources and discuss how you can use resources
more wisely.
Environmental studies
•
Identify methods of waste disposal currently used within your
community. Debate the merits of the various options and how waste
management could be improved.
Art
•
Reuse, reduce, recycle! Decorate cardboard boxes, turning them into
dustbins that can be distributed to every class in the school.
Outside
•
Connect with the coast! Take a walk on the beach, identify natural and
unnatural materials that have washed up on the beach, discuss why
they are there, whether or not they belong there and what can be done
to clean up the beach.
Web resources / references
CETN:
DRFN:
IECN:
MET:
MFMR:
NACOMA:
NaDEET:
Page 36
http://.www.cetn.com
http://www.drfn.org.na
http://www.iecn.org.na
http://www.met.gov.na
http://www.mfmr.gov.na
http://www.nacoma.org.na
http://www.nadeet.org
COASTODIANS •
Caring for our coast, caring for our future
D
id you know there are more birds living along Namibia’s coast than
there are people in our country; that the average bath uses 90 litres of
water but a five-minute shower only uses 20 litres; or that your actions
– both good and bad – have an affect on our coastal environment and our
future? Yes? No? The more you learn about Namibia’s coastal environment,
the more you’ll want to know!
Celebrating the wonders of Namibia’s coast, this book contains information
on the usual and important nature of our coast, the industry and the life it
supports, plus fascinating facts and a variety of activities to challenge you at
school, at home and outside. From understanding your physical place in the
environment to understanding how we are all connected to the land, the
animals and each other through biodiversity, the topics in this book range
from biology to conservation, from English to the arts.
So be inspired, be challenged and become a Coastodian!
Caring for our coast, caring for our future.
ISBN 978-99945-68-99-4
Integrated Environmental Consultants Namibia
Namibian Coast Conservation and Management Project (NACOMA)