Habitat Fragmentation

With an increasing human population comes infrastructure development. Roads, railways, piplelines and human settlements can all form barriers to wildlife movements, fragmenting habitats into ever smaller areas. Without corridors to link these islands of habitat, herds can have trouble reaching food and water at certain times of year. They may also be separated from other elephant groups, decreasing their breeding opportunities. This is not healthy for the genetic diversity of the population.

Overgrazing

When grazing goes unchecked, it can quickly eliminate grass in an area. This means less food for both livestock and wildlife, including elephants, and leads to soil erosion that impacts the growth of grass in the future. It is important to identify and allocate grazing land for livestock away from wildlife areas, unless tight controls can be established.

Resoucre Infastructure – Oil Gas Mining

It is proven that the exploration of petroleum has routinely been accompanied by ecological harm, and has often been the pretext for conflicts. The Niger Delta ranks as one of the top ten most polluted places on earth with 5200 wells drilled. There is deep concern over a Canadian company, ReconAfrica, that has rights to exploratory drilling in Namibia and Botswana and the negative ramifications it will have on the environment, wildlife ecosystems, and human rights issues.

Please read our letter to Prime Minister Trudeau asking for intervention from the government to prevent another environmental catastrophe that is bound to occur in the Okavango Delta.

Letter to Justin Trudeau – ReconAfrica – Mar 2021