HAVING dealt with the pollution spill into the Baynespruit, the Dusi organisers have given the green light for the 2020 epic canoe marathon which takes place from 27 to 29 February, and are accepting early bird entries for the race.
The oil and caustic soda spill into the Msundusi River on 13 August had a severe effect on the river eco-system, and an extended grouping of conservationists, ecologists and local authorities have been working on the clean-up and rehabilitation process.
Spearheaded by Dr Mark Graham at GroundTruth, the latest testing results have shown that the water quality has stabilised, and while it will take years for the river eco-system to return to normal, the water is safe for paddlers to use.
“The issue is the same as it has always been for Dusi paddlers, that of ecoli pollution. There is plenty of accurate information available on the DUCT and Dusi websites to allow paddlers to make an informed decisions,” explained Graham.
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With a new race committee headed up by Shane le Breton, the race is confirmed for its new date at the end of February.
“We had planned to move the race later in the summer after last year’s Dusi. This should take the race out of the first big rains of the season and avoid the risk of elevated ecoli levels. As a committee we are canvassing paddlers opinions to look at options that will be in each paddlers best safety and health interests. There is so much effort going into addressing the river ecology issues since the spill that we believe it might actually be the catalyst we need to make real, meaningful headway into dealing with the river pollution issues,” confirmed le Breton.
Dusi entries opened this month with an Early Bird rate and a competition for entries received before midnight on Monday, 28 October.
Entry details can be found at www.dusi.co.za.
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