African Wildlife and Environment Issue 64

associated with paraplegia. While the intention is not to be an alarmist, we need to be acutely aware that our river systems are in severe distress. Under conditions of drought we have low flows and higher ambient temperatures in the water column. To this we are adding massive volumes of partially treated sewage effluent that contains low doses of anti-retroviral and antibiotic medication. In short we have created the ideal conditions for the mutation of pathogens into potentially virulent forms. The revenge of primitive Cyanobacteria thriving in a warming climate, or the re-emergence of flesh bathing bacteria, are no longer science fiction. They are here already. CONSERVATION

DESTINATION

it is the cause of two types of gastroenteritis. The first is similar to cholera which causes rice-water diarrhoea. The second is dysenteric gastroenteritis, which causes loose stools that are blood rich. However, in extreme cases it can cause what is known as Necrotising fasciitis. The word “Necro” refers to death and the disease itself is commonly known as “flesh eating bacteria” by virtue of the fact that the affected cells die in a gangrenous fashion. If left untreated it can cause death because it simply continues to expand as dead cells become new sources of infection. Amputation is themost appropriate remedy, with the most notable case in South Africa being that of R.W. Johnson, a highly respected author and Rhodes Scholar from Oxford, who lost his lower leg in 2009 after it became infected while swimming in contaminated water. The important lesson to take home is that because South Africa is fundamentally water constrained, the way we are managing our resources is of critical importance to our ability to thrive as a nation. The Loch Lomond case in Bethlehem is of national importance because it teaches us so many lessons. This is the epicentre of what could be the emergence of drug resistant but usually benign pathogens such as cholera, or maybe a new illness such as flaccid paralysis that is found in highly contaminated river systems in Asia. Little is known about the latter other than the fact that it causes paraplegia in young children but without the physical trauma typically

Anthony Turton Professor: Centre for

Environmental Management, Univeristy of the Free State

An aerial view of Lake St. Lucia

WORLD CLASS iSIMANGALISO

Debbie Cooper

The name iSimangaliso translates to “Miracle” from the original Thonga word – and although there are three outstanding universal values for which the Park was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1999, the one which speaks most profoundly to the soul is that of “superlative natural beauty”. The combination of spectacular vistas, diverse fauna and flora, unaltered landscapes and ancient mystique culminates in that rarest of qualities, an indefinable yet unmistakeable sense of place. It is this which for centuries has spoken to the souls of millions who have connected with this sacred space from the earliest times. For the past 16 years, iSimangaliso has risen from disparate beginnings to a world-class destination for visitors of every description, age and circumstance. From the jaded globetrotter seeking a deeper connection, to the adventurer wishing to test his limits above or below the surface of the water; for the millions of South

The combination of spectacular vistas, diverse fauna and flora, unaltered landscapes and ancient mystique culminates in that rarest of qualities, an indefinable yet unmistakeable sense of place.

The Jukskei River at the Vlakfontein bridge on 20 October 2016

20 | African Wildlife & Environment | 64 (2017)

21 | African Wildlife & Environment | 64 (2017)