NATA FIRE RISK MANAGEMENT STRATEGY NATA FIRE RISK MANAGEMENT STRATEGY Prepared for the villages of Nata, Sepako, Maposa & Manxotae 1 1 NATA FIRE RISK MANAGEMENT STRATEGY Contributions by: Mr Kennedy T. Mathame (Department of Forestry and Range Resources), Mr Motshereganyi Virat Kootsositse (BirdLife Botswana), Mr Maungo Nkape (Department of Forestry and Range Resources), Tirelo David Ramasimong (BirdLife Botswana) Edited by Motshereganyi Virat Kootsositse Lead Departments 1. BirdLife Botswana 2. Department of Forestry and Range Resources Contacts: BirdLife Botswana, P. O Box 26691, Game City, Gaborone, Botswana; Department of Forestry and Range Resources, P /Bag 00424, Old Lobatse Road, Loapi House, Gaborone, Botswana. Toll Free: 0800700100 2021-2025 SUPPORTED BY Disclaimer: this is a local community fire management guide, only meant for local use and it is not meant for publication or citing in any academic or policy document. Information in this document has been sourced from different authors and documents available in the1 public domain. Donors are not responsible for any mistakes or any misunderstanding emanating from this document 2 Contents LIST OF FIGURES 6 ACRONYMS 7 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 8 FOREWORD 9 DEFINITIONS OF TERMS 10 1. BACKGROUND 11 2. INTRODUCTION 12 2.1 OBJECTIVES OF THE NATA FIRE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY AND ACTION PLAN 13 2.2 A DESCRIPTION OF THE AREA 14 CENTRAL DISTRICT FIRE BREAKS 15 RESPONSES OF BIRDS TO FIRE OUTBREAK 16 2.3 CLIMATE OF THE AREA 18 2.3.1 Rainfall 18 2.3.2 Temperatures 18 2.3.3 Humidity 18 2.4 DEMOGRAPHIC VILLAGES OF NATA 20 2.4.1 Nata Village 20 2.4.2 Sepako Village 20 2.4.3 Manxotae Village 21 2.4.4 Maposa Village 21 3. LEGISLATIVE, POLICY, PLANS AND STRATEGIC FRAMEWORKS 22 3.1. POLICIES 22 3.1.1 Forest Policy of 2011 22 3.1.2 National Policy of Disaster Management of 1996 22 3.2 PLANS AND STRATEGIC FRAMEWORKS 23 3.2.1 National Disaster Risk Management Plan 23 3.2.2. Nata Fire Risk Management Plan 23 3.3. LEGISLATION 24 3.3.1 Herbage preservation act of 1978 24 3.3.2 The Wildlife conservation and National Parks Act 24 4. CAUSES OF VELD FIRES IN NATA AREA. 25 4.1 BUSH FIRES 25 4.2 IDENTIFYING AND ASSESSING BUSH FIRE RISK 25 5. PROCESS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS STRATEGY 26 5.1. COMMUNICATION AND CONSULTATION 26 Figure 3: Overview of the risk assessment process 26 5.2 IDENTIFYING THE BUSH FIRE RISK 26 5.2.1 Assets Identification 27 6. ELEMENTS OF THE FIRE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY 28 6.1 ANALYSIS 28 6.2 PREVENTION 28 6.3 PREPAREDNESS 28 3 6.4 RESPONSE 29 6.5 Restoration 29 7. COORDINATION OF ACTIVITIES 31 7.1 SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS 31 7.2 COMMUNITY BASED FIRE MANAGEMENT (CBFIM) CENTRE 33 7.3 CHALLENGES TO MITIGATION 33 8. COMMUNICATION STRATEGY 34 8. 1 FIRE PREVENTION STRATEGY 34 8.1.1 Law enforcement 34 8.1.2 Information campaigns 35 8.1.3 Picnic and camping sites 35 8.1.4 Patrolling 35 8.1.5 Fire danger mapping 35 8.1.6 Pre-suppression measures 35 8.2 FIRE RESPONSE STRATEGY (FIRE MANAGEMENT PLAN) 36 8.3 Fire Team 37 8. 3.1 Responsibilities and Resources of the Fire Teams 38 8.3.2 Procedure and techniques on reporting and handling fire outbreaks 38 8.3.3 Capacity for managing fires 39 8.3.4 Monitoring veld fires 40 9. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT 41 9.1 FIRE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE (FMC) 44 9.2 VILLAGE FIRE OPERATIONAL STRUCTURE 46 9.3 RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE FIRE CREW 46 11. WORKPLAN FOR THE FIRE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE-NATA 49 APPENDIX 1: SOME EQUIPMENTS USED FOR MANAGING FIRES 51 APPENDIX 2: EMERGENCY FIRE RESPONSE PROCEDURE 52 APPENDIX 3: VELD FIRE OUT BREAK MONITORING TOOL 53 4 List of Figures Figure 1: A map boundary of the Nata area Figure 2: Firebreaks map Figure 3: Overview of the risk assessment process Figure 4: Fire Risk Management Cycle Figure 5: Hierarchy of command in Fire management operations Figure 6: Operational structure of a Fire management team 5 ACRONYMS CDC Central District Council CBFIM Community Based Fire Management DEA Department of Environmental Affairs DFRR Department of Forestry and Range Resources DWNP Department of Wildlife and National Parks MFMP Makgadikgadi Framework Management Plan GEF Global Environmental Facility FMC Fire Management Committee FPPC Fire Personal Protective clothing SLM Sustainable Land Management SGP Small Grants Programme SSPMP Southern Sua Pan Management Plan UNDP United Nations Development Programme IUCN International Union for Conservation of Nature NCT Nata Conservation Trust WMA Wildlife Management Areas 6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT BirdLife Botswana, Nata Conservation trust and Department of Forestry and Range Resources would like to thank all partners and stakeholders who participated in developing this strategy. We are also particularly grateful to the people of Nata and the surrounding villages (Maposa, Manxotae, and Sepako) for their shared knowledge, experience with veldfires and their contribution in managing veldfires going onward. We would also like to thank the Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme (GEF/SGP) implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for making this strategy possible. 7 FOREWORD For a long time people of Nata have been affected by reoccurring of veldfires which pose risk to their life, property/infrastructure, local economies as well as the flora and fauna. Nata Conservation Trust which is a community based organization is one area which needs strategic framework to protect and manage the beauty of nature found in the area. The sanctuary has plethora of wild species amongst them the greater and lesser flamingos. Unfortunately the lesser flamingo is decreasing in population according to the IUCN red list of threatened species, if people don’t do nothing about the veld fires which continues to affect the ecosystem soon we won’t have any lesser flamingos roaming around Nata a problem which will affect the business specifically Avi- tourism or bird tourism. Nata Bird Sanctuary is an important reproduction site for flamingos, one of the most important in the world, the waters of the salty lake are rich in food for these beautiful birds; the pink greater flamingos are fed with artemies, a family of shrimp living in salt and alkaline waters, worms and small crustaceans, while the pink lesser flamingos feed on algae, usually found in hot and brackish waters. The flamingos build tapered nests using soil clay and lay eggs; the timing of egg deposition is crucial, it is a race against time: the eggs have to be opened and the chicks must be able to fly before the pan water dries completely, otherwise the little ones, without food and incapable to fly, would meet with certain death. There is an elevated wooden platform on the Eastern edge of the delta, from which you can admire the flamingos without disturbing them. The best time to visit the Sanctuary is during the rainy season, from December to March, as the Nata River is full at this time and its waters flow into the Delta and in the Sua Pan; this attracts many species of birds. Other bird species which are found at the sanctuary includes, the grebe, the cormorant, various ducks, the plovers, the pelicans, the pink-backed pelican, the great white pelican, the avocet, the black winged stilt, the blacksmith lapwing, the bustard, the African fish eagle, the pied kingfisher, the black-chested snake-eagle, the blue-cheeked bee-eater, the martial eagle, the secretary bird, the African spoonbill, the Hottentot teal, the red-knobbed coot and the white-faced whistling duck. In addition to birds, some mammals can be seen including red hartebeests, kudus, common reedbucks, springboks, elands, zebras, jackals, foxes, monkeys and squirrels. Strategic planning is therefore important because it explains shared understanding of veldfires together with their risks and ways of combating the risks. This fire management strategy empowers people of Nata and neighboring villages to work together and overcome the problem which continue to affect their area. The management plan also will enhance the resilience of the natural ecosystem through sustaining biological diversity and human livelihoods in times of fire outbreaks. To perform and achieve all this, people from relevant departments, stakeholders, communities and experts were consulted to benefit from their skills and knowledge. This helped identify information, opinions and local factors around the villages. 8 DEFINITIONS OF TERMS • Bush Fire- an uncontrolled fire that burns grass, bush or woodland and can threaten life, property and the environment. • Asset- something valuable belonging to a person or organization that can be used for the payment of debts. • Economic asset- any item of economic value owned by an individual or corporation, especially that which could be converted to cash. • Environmental asset- is defined as naturally occurring living and non-living entities of the Earth, together comprising the bio-physical environment, that jointly deliver ecosystem services to the benefit of current and future generation. • Cultural heritage asset- item that has value because of its contribution to a nation’s society, knowledge and/or culture. They are usually physical or intangible attributes inherited from past generations. 9 1. BACKGROUND BirdLife Botswana through a GEF/SGP funded project has been working with Department of Forestry and Range Resources (DFRR) and Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) to facilitate, monitor and manage rangelands resources in the Nata Area for sustainable use by the current and future generations. It has been evident that prevalent land and livestock management processes in Makgadikgadi ecosystem are likely to compromise the continued flow of ecosystem goods and services from the savannah ecosystem that are necessary to sustain the national economy, local livelihoods and the rich fauna and flora diversity.