Help save Alberts Farm
ALBERTS FARM – Friends of Alberts Farm are eager to remediate certain detrimental affects in the park by having it declared a conservancy.
Alberts Farm is famous for its park run and artesian spring, and to nature enthusiasts, its unique biodiversity, wetlands and rocky ridges can better be preserved and protected if made an urban conservancy.
This according to the Friends of Alberts Farm chairperson, Julie Gouws.
At the first public participation meeting held recently about the future of the municipal park, alien invasive plants, paths, fire, the dam wall and the ignoring of bylaws by the public were all highlighted as serious issues that could be detrimental to the future of the park.
Alberts Farm dates back to the 1890s when Hendrik Abraham Alberts leased a 114-acre farm called Waterval. In 1946, the Alberts family sold part of the land to the City of Johannesburg to be kept for public use.
Gouws said that constraints on the City’s budget need to be recognised and that successful remediation involves the community, residents and businesses, working with the City.
“The solution we would like to put forward is to create conservation zones within the urban area, and specifically an urban conservancy, in Alberts Farm,” she said.
To do this, a site specific environmental management plan needs to be drafted by a planning committee and agreed on so Alberts Farm can be managed for future generations.
Jane Eagle from the City’s Environment and Infrastructure Services Department said the committee needs to identify the low, intermediate and high-use zones, address the cycling routes and then provide the City with the plan.
Liezl van Heerden, a student completing her environmental management degree, said to create a conservancy the community must heal the land.
“We need to remediate the wetlands and manage the alien invasive plants, otherwise there is ecological environmental harm to humans and animals,” she said.
Van Heerden echoed that an environmental management plan is critical. She said the success thereof will not only see Alberts Farm improve but result in property values around Alberts Farm increasing.
The next public participation meeting is set for 2 November at 6pm, the venue is not yet confirmed, but follow the event on Facebook titled 2nd Public Participation Meeting. Cyclists, runners, hikers, residents, churchgoers, conservationists, schools, City officials and bird watchers are all encouraged to attend.
Details: Julie Gouws, 079 898 2845, Alberts Farm Conservancy on Facebook.
Related articles:
Alberts Farm – more to be discovered
GALLERY: Kid’s Club cleans up Alberts Farm
