Last month, thousands of locusts descended on parts of the Western and Eastern Cape. If you needed to see it to believe it, video footage captured the massive and intense locusts swarms.
Also see: VIDEO: Locusts descend on parts of the Western and Eastern Cape
The Western Cape’s Agriculture Department was given R5 million to combat the situation including personal protective equipment, sprayer pumps and aerial spraying support to teams combatting the outbreak of locust swarms as per its official statement.
Areas of concern in the Western Cape have included the Garden Route with Swellendam and Barrydale areas amongst others experiencing the dire locust threat threatening agricultural activity – particularly with the fruit and wine sectors and food security as a whole in mind.
The Locust Joint Operation Committee was also activated to battle the outbreak.
Despite the locust crisis dwindling, with “the number and size of swarms in Murraysburg, the Garden Route District and Beaufort West [diminishing]”MEC Ivan Meyer said as per IOL, the problem now is one of reoccurrence. “Hoppers” were reported in recent times at the town of Prince Albert, and Mervewville as well as a large swarm seen 30 kilometres east of Beaufort West, moving in a South Easterly direction according to the MEC. The Kliprand area of the West Coast has also seen reports of the locust rush.
Meyer further expressed that approval has been given in principle for an application to declare the problem a national disaster. This reasoning pertains to the prevalence of the pests in the Eastern and Northern Cape, not just the Western Cape according to Meyer as EWN reports.
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Picture: Francois Brunsdon/ Facebook