Watch: Conservancy conducts controlled ecological burn

According to the Korsman Conservancy, burning is an essential veld management tool.

September 4, 2018

Rivelle Govindsamy 1 minute read

Benoni Fire Station chief manager Gcinumzi Mjoji monitors the blaze as a precautionary measure.

The Korsman Conservancy is a conservation group dedicated to restoring and protecting the Korsman Bird Sanctuary located in Westdene, Lakefield, and the surrounding area.

The group conducted a controlled ecological burn on August 21.

Some of the main objectives for this, according to the conservancy, are to remove dead material which would rot in water and reduce oxygen levels and to remove non-ecological dead wood for ease of alien vegetation management.

Chairperson of the Korsman Conservancy Jane Trembath said they burn sections of the sanctuary in a three-year rotation and were advised to do so by the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, as well as University of Pretoria botany professor and grassland expert Braam van Wyk.

The careful preparation begins weeks in advance by protecting trees and clearing firebreaks.

The date chosen for the controlled burn is done so according to weather and wind conditions.

Members of the community who are volunteers attend and get involved in the process with firefighters present, monitoring the area until it is deemed safe.

The result obtained by the controlled burning is lush grasslands ready to effectively home flora and fauna at the conservatory.

“The results have been amazing.

“The burning is saving our birdlife by regenerating the grassland and providing food for the over-wintering Spur-winged geese which used to die here by the dozens from starvation.

“Now we have had only four deaths in four years, notably in areas where the grass had never been burnt and was still moribund.

“The burning is bringing back insect species that are dependent on fresher grassland and regenerating wildflowers that couldn’t grow because they were buried under thick dead grass for years,” said Trembath.

The Korsman Conservancy is a member of the Gauteng Conservancy and Stewardship Association under the umbrella of National Association of Conservancies and Stewardship of South Africa.