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www.thevillagenews.co.za
2 September 2020
International tourism next on the cards From P1 “For those living in South Africa, that day is now here, and our most beautiful regions in the Western Cape – the Cape West Coast, Cape Overberg, Cape Town, Cape Winelands, Garden Route, Klein Karoo and Cape Karoo – are open to explore safely,” said Maynier. Maynier earlier said while the province was focused on the reopening of domestic travel, they would table a submission to national government concerning the opening of borders this week. He said that the resumption of international travel was imperative to the province’s economy as a large proportion of tourists are foreigners. “International tourists typically stay longer and spend more. We are in the process of compiling a submission, after which we will engage with them to open borders to provide for international travel. We do not have any certainty about a proposed (opening) date at this stage, but will be engaging with national government on this issue.” It has been widely speculated that South Africa will only reopen its borders in 2021. Outlining the detailed campaign
plan, Wesgro CEO, Tim Harris, said that “many people’s international holidays were cancelled due to the lockdown. But the Western Cape is full of experiences that match some of the world’s favourite destinations and we want to show people just how diverse and world-class it truly is. And so this digital campaign will highlight the world-class locations of Cape Town and the Western Cape where you will feel like you could be anywhere in the world.” The campaign also includes a Kids Stay Free initiative to encourage families to take advantage of the offers for children to stay free at participating travel and accommodation partners across the Western Cape. At a national level, Tourism Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane on Monday said with the domestic tourism sector allowed to resume operations under South Africa’s Level 2, the government’s next step would be to work towards the reopening of international travel, reported businesstech.co.za. “With the risk of the virus spread on a downward trend, we are hopeful that the opening of our borders will happen sooner than we are expecting,” Kubayi-Ngubane said in a media briefing. “Again, I need to emphasise that the level of risk, as assessed by
the experts, will be the determinant of when this will happen.” She added that the government remains focused on domestic tourism at present and that this will be the ‘first pillar’ upon which the country’s tourism recovery will be based. “We believe that domestic tourism, South Africans travelling and getting to know their own country, can drive market demand to unprecedented levels. “During this Tourism Month, we will be driving our domestic tourism campaign, aimed at getting South
Africans to travel and explore the splendour of their country responsibly, under the guidance of the health and safety protocols.” Kubayi-Ngubane said research shows that South Africans have clear preferences when it comes to travelling during lockdown:
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All travellers want attractions and tourism activities with strict adherence to the health and safety protocols; They are yearning to travel to escape the lockdown and discover previously undiscovered local
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attractions with renewed appreciation of local culture, history and nature; South Africans have been cooped up in their houses for too long and they are yearning for large open spaces and adventure; Domestic travellers are also looking for affordable travel packages that will allow them and their families and friends to have memorable experiences.
It is expected that Maynier and other tourism officials will visit Hermanus on Heritage Day, celebrated on 24 September.
Water restrictions lifted after good rain Writer De Waal Steyn
T
his is the wettest, coldest winter in years,” is a phrase bandied about by Overstrand residents every year as winter storms batter the coast, while the rest of the country is celebrating Spring Day. This year, the phrase is partly true. With pictures and videos of snow-covered mountains doing the rounds on social media over the weekend, residents grabbed for extra blankies as the cold and rain gripped our region. A total of 46 mm of rain was measured over the weekend. This brought the rainfall total for the month to 149 mm, making this the wettest August since 2015 when 201
mm fell. The wettest August in the last 74 years was in 1986 when a whopping 211 mm was measured. According to Johan Montgomery, viticulturist at Hamilton Russell Vineyards, a total of 210 mm was measured in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley during the month, making it the wettest August in the valley since 2013, when 245 mm was recorded. The generous winter rain also helped the De Bos Dam rise from 36% at the beginning of June to 74% this week, prompting the Overstrand Municipality to lift the current water restrictions in the Greater Hermanus area from 1 September. It is the first time in four years that the De Bos dam has passed the 70%-mark.
Overstrand Executive Mayor, Dudley Coetzee, announced that the 30% concomitant restrictive tariffs would also be lifted on water used from this date on. “The clause in the water services bylaw which requires that no irrigation take place between 9:00 and 17:00 daily will remain in force. It’s just good practice to limit evaporation during the generally warmest period of the day. “When it comes to saving water and adhering to water restrictions, a municipality must have the buy-in from residents to stick to regulations. I would like to thank the residents for their support in adhering to the water restrictions,” the Mayor stated.
In as far as the cold is concerned, this year has not seen temperatures drop much lower than normal. Despite the Babylonstoren Mountain sporting a light covering of snow on Saturday, the coldest day of the month was measured on Friday 7 August when the mercury dropped to a bone-chilling 3˚C. The long-term average minimum temperature for August is 4.3˚C with the coldest August day clocking in at 2.7˚C on 2 August 1981. According to Montgomery, in the 20odd years that he has been working in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, he has only seen the top of Babylonstoren covered in snow two or three times. “It probably snows more often on the mountain but we just don’t see it because of the cloud cover or because it melts so fast.”
He said due to the high moisture content in the ground, the runoff of rainwater into the De Bos dam will be higher than normal. The dams in the Western Cape Water Supply System which supply water to Cape Town, the Overberg, Boland and the West Coast, this weekend broke through the 90% level on average. The Berg River dam stands at 100%, Upper Steenbras at 99%, Lower Steenbras at 98.8%, the Theewaterskloof dam at 87.9% and the Wemmershoek dam on 86.9%. With thick layers of snow still covering mountain ranges across the province, it is expected that the runoff of water into the dams will continue for the next few weeks.
