THE PLANTING OF A SPEKBOOM WHALE ON MARINE DRIVE IN FRONT OF CITY LODGE

A CELEBRATION OF ALGOA BAY BEING DECLARED A WHALE HERITAGE SITE.

Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism (NMBT) in conjunction with Raggy Charters and the Baywatch Project invites all organisations who made up the Whale Heritage Site Steering Committee and their members that supported our campaign to have Algoa Bay declared a Whale Heritage Site, to join us on Saturday 13^th November at 9am, to build a full sized 14m whale. Members of the public are also welcome. The Baywatch Project has been growing hundreds of Spekboom cuttings during the last three years.

All you need to bring is a spade and potting soil if you have. Algoa Bay was declared a Whale Heritage Site on the 16^th June 2021. The Baywatch Project, which is funded by Raggy Charters, has been doing critical marine conservation for 30 years in Algoa Bay and led the Whale Heritage Site initiative. Spekboom was chosen as it has the best carbon fixing abilities of any plant on the planet. Besides the Spekboom whale, the project rehabilitates wetlands in the Eastern Cape and plants at least one tree for every marine cruise undertaken.

The Whale Heritage Sites (WHS) are an initiative of the World Cetacean Alliance (WCA). They are a global network of outstanding places where local communities celebrate, respect and protect cetaceans and their habitats.

The WCA declared Algoa Bay as the world’s 5th WHS as it had gone a long way to empower and defend the right of local communities to care and protect whales and dolphins through a collaborative management partnership. The site showcases a community and their relationship with the ocean by encouraging respectful human-cetacean coexistence – celebrating cetaceans in local culture, arts and events, supporting local economic and environmental sustainability; and developing locally based science, research and education.

For the tourism industry, WHS provide a clear marker to help and support SUSTAINABLE practices and create a platform for communities to engage with marine culture, heritage and biodiversity.