As the World Wetlands Day was celebrated on Monday, the Working on Fire joined forces with Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency on a campaign to raise awareness.
The campaign targeted school children and was held at Mdutshana Secondary School under the Ingquza Hill local municipality.
The message was clear, to discourage people from turning wetlands into dumping sites.
Community members from nearby villages and pupils from different schools attended the event, where they were taught about various types of wetlands.
Also covered during the campaign was the importance of wetlands, the impact of wetlands on society, and what destroys them.
Lwazi Khuzwayo from Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency said the wetlands reduce the severity of droughts and floods.
Khuzwayo added that they also regulate stream flow and act like giant sponges that can hold huge amounts of water.
“When wetlands are turned into dumping sites, the litter increases the risk of fires,” Khuzwayo said.
“Aside from the danger to people, when wetlands are burnt, seeds are lost or germinated at the wrong time, and animals occupying these wetlands suffer due to loss of food.
“The wetland vegetation that helps to hold the water is then destroyed.”
Khuzwayo further urged the communities to look after the wetlands, saying they filter waste and improve the quality of drinking water.
The learners were taken to a nearby wetland where they were shown how to identify it and which tools to use to do that.
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