AN application by the Jukani Wildlife Ranch to relocate from Mossel Bay to The Crags, near Plettenberg Bay, has raised a deluge of objections from Bitou wildlife operators afraid of losing a slice of the tourism pie.
Last September, Jukani owner Jurg Olsen asked Bitou Municipality if he could lease land owned by the Anglican Church in The Crags for his animals, including lions, tigers, jaguars, leopards and pumas.
He said the animals mostly came from captive facilities like zoos or had been saved from canned hunting operations and would be housed in fenced camps of up to 2500m² each, far exceeding the minimum of 400m² recommended by Cape Nature.
Olsen yesterday said none of his detractors had visited his premises in Mossel Bay to gain insight into his operation. “Even the hyena in the wild isn‘t treated like I am being treated.”
He said he wanted to relocate as he only had a short-term lease in Mossel Bay and needed a long lease for his wildlife ranch, which receives about 20000 visitors a year. The only people affected by his proposed relocation who had visited his Mossel Bay premises were the leaders of Kurland Village, whom he said supported the move and its job creation potential.
Mayor Lulama Mvimbi last week decided to hold an in loco inspection before taking a decision on the relocation.
“This issue is so controversial I even got e-mails about it on Christmas Day. Let‘s visit the area and even get consultants with experience in this matter as all the people who are commenting have vested interests,” Mvimbi said.
Bitou received 14 objections, most notably from the Tenikwa Wildlife Awareness Centre, the Elephant Sanctuary, the Plettenberg Bay Seabird Rehab Centre, the Southern Crags Conservancy and the Plettenberg Bay Community Environment Forum.
Tenikwa‘s lawyers said there was “insufficient tourism business in The Crags to support two predator parks in such close proximity”. Tenikwa allows close contact between its cheetahs and tourists and suggested Jukani had to prove “tourists‘ safety will not be compromised … if the cheetah detects the smell of lions in the vicinity or hears a lion roar”.
The Elephant Sanctuary voiced similar fears, saying if the elephants became aware that lions were nearby, they could become stressed and their behaviour could not be predicted.
The sanctuary said it reserved the right to claim increased insurance premiums from Jukani as its insurance company had issued “concerns regarding an increased risk factor due to lions in close proximity”.
Olsen, however, said the fact that guests interacted with these animals without barriers was not something he should be held responsible for.
He said Tenikwa‘s contention that Jukani would impact on its financial viability was not a basis for objection, and for Tenikwa to expect the municipality to protect it from free and fair competition was “illegal and unconstitutional”.
Source: The Herald
All the people have a vested interest?
No person with a vested interest should even be allowed to have a vote in this decision.
I would agree that this area can probably not support 2 predator parks, but that does not give anyone the authority to prevent them from trying to make a success of it.
Nice of you to show concern (if it is sincere).
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it is really need to pay attention to the health and the possible effects of mixing this animals..