Roodepoort - Government has identified grasslands biome as a priority for conservation action and will be implementing the national Grasslands Programme to save the deteriorating environment.

Deputy Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Rejoice Mabudafhasi will on Thursday sign a declaration committing government to the programme.

The event to take place at Walter Sisulu National Botanical Gardens will also mark International Biodiversity Day which is themed, Biodiversity and Agriculture.

The mission of the Grasslands Programme is to ensure that management of biodiversity contributes to sustainable development in the grasslands biome.

It also ensures that production and development activities are appropriately located and managed so that the delivery of ecosystem services is not impaired.

The programme also mobilises and empowers land users and landowners including companies to be effective stewards of the landscape.

Environmental Affairs and Tourism Department said that the grasslands biome covers 29 percent of the country and crosses over seven provinces.

"With species richness second only to the Cape Floristic Region, grasslands provide vital life sustaining ecosystem services such as carbon storage, soil and grazing for agriculture and water," said the department in a statement.

The headwaters of the country's major rivers originate in the biome and it provides all of Gauteng's water.

The department added that due to the economic heartland of South Africa, which is situated within the grasslands biome where most South Africans make their homes, it is under considerable pressure.

Mining, urban development, plantation forestry and agricultural cultivation are land uses that can cause irreversible loss to biodiversity, if the health of the biome is to be maintained, their impacts need to be effectively mitigated, the department said.

The Global Environment Facility has funded approximately R66 million to the Grasslands Programme, which intends to secure the biodiversity and ecosystem services of the grasslands biome for current and future generations through a range of innovative initiatives and partnerships. - BuaNews

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