The Sperrgebiet land use plan, Namibia
From SEA.unu.edu/wiki
Background and objectives
The Sperrgebiet is a biodiversity-rich, desert wilderness area in southwest Namibia, which also comprises a licensed diamond mining area. It has been a prohibited area since 1908. In 1994, the exclusive prospecting and mining licenses of the nondiamondiferous areas were relinquished and considerable interests arose in the area for a variety of conflicting uses. In consultation with Namdeb (the mining licence holder) and NGOs, the Government agreed that a land use plan should be formulated to ensure longterm sustainable economic and ecological potential in the fragile Sperrgebiet before it was opened up.
Approach
An SEA-type approach was used to develop the plan, involving several steps:
- A thorough literature review with gaps filled through consultation with specialists.
- Development of a series of sensitivity maps for various biophysical and archaeological parameters.
- An extensive public consultation programme that included: public workshops, information leaflets and feedback forms, land use questionnaires, and a technical workshop with selected specialists.
- The establishment of a list of possible land use options for the area and their evaluation in terms of the environmental opportunities and constraints.
- Formulation of a vision – that the entire Sperrgebiet should be declared a Protected Area.
- Development of a zoning plan to provide a framework to guide immediate decisions regarding land use.
- A technical workshop including specialists to discuss and refine the draft-zoning plan.
- A preliminary economic analysis of the main land use options.
- Development of an administrative framework outlining the legal processes required for land proclamation, the formation of a Management Advisory Committee and definition of its role, ecotourism models, zoning, future access control and integration into the surrounding political and economic structures. For each potential land use, guidelines were prepared outlining what needs to be included in a project-specific EIA and EMP.
Outcomes
The Land Use Plan was finalised in April 2001. In April 2004, the Sperrgebiet was proclaimed a National Park. The recommendations of the Land Use Plan were accepted.
Source: Walmsley, SAIEA, South Africa.
(Reproduced with permission of OECD.)
