Cape Town is a beautiful city and our biodiversity is irreplaceable and of international importance.

We are aware of the threat facing our abundant plant kingdoms and we are working with our partners such as CapeNature, SANParks, and other conversation bodies to mitigate these risks. Together with our conservation partners, the City’s primary response to halt any loss of our natural heritage has been to develop a fine-scale conservation plan, called the BioNet, which indicates the critical conservation priority areas. 

The approval this week of the Local Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (LBSAP) by the City of Cape Town Council saw another critical milestone in the protection of our biodiversity. This is a guiding strategy and action plan to achieve optimal management of biodiversity and ecosystem services on a local government level.

The LBSAP sets solid objectives to achieving conservation targets and is aligned to the City’s Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and our Environmental Strategy (2017). The LBSAP will assist in our commitment to conserve and protect the City’s unique biodiversity while providing benefits to the community such as job creation; education; recreation and tourism.

The City has adopted a people-centred approach to biodiversity management and without buy-in from the general public, especially neighbouring communities, the continued protection of natural areas would not be possible. This is especially important in an urban setting such as Cape Town, where biodiversity sites must coexist surrounded by densely-populated areas. The opposite is also true: people need biodiversity, not only for survival as we rely on essential ecosystem services, but also for recreation, stress reduction, employment, income-generating opportunities, and education.

Back in May, the City of Cape Town was the official winner of two categories in the 2019 City Nature Challenge. Cape Town competed against 150 cities from around the world, beating them all for making the most observations and recording the most species. We are committed to taking practical steps in ensuring the long-term sustainability and preservation of our biodiversity.

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