10 June 2005

It is not uncommon for elephant, rhino and giraffe to be relocated around the Kruger National Park, but it is unusual for gigantic trees to be moved about.

It took a quite a feat of engineering to move two majestic baobabs from Letaba main camp to the soon-to-be-opened Giriyondo border post on the Mozambique border.

"The trees would have been destroyed if they were left at Letaba camp, because of their close proximity to buildings," said project leader Johann Oelofse.

"You simply do not destroy something that majestic if you have a chance to save it."

Although it was not the first time baobab trees were shifted in the park, the two giants presented a challenge because of their size and proximity to buildings and other camp facilities.

Both trees are well over ten metres tall and weigh more than three tonnes each. One is 30 years old, with a trunk diameter of around 1.5 meters and weighs about seven and a half tonnes.

The younger tree weighed about three tonnes.

The operation was sponsored by Sasol Nitro in Phalaborwa who did blasting work at the new site so that the trees could be properly rooted, and JP Crane Hire. A team of volunteers provided the grunt work.

"It is comforting to know that these trees will still be in place a thousand years from now," said Sasol Nitro head of operations Rudi Tonsing.

The trees, which grow in arid areas, were transported by truck to their new home 45 kms away.

The new baobabs will form the focal point of the South African side of the Giriyondo border post.

The border post is scheduled to open on 11 August, giving guests direct access to Mozambique as part of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park initiative.

The initiative will link the Kruger with the Limpopo National Park in Mozambique, and Gonarezhou National Park, Manjinji Pan Sanctuary and Malipati Safari Area in Zimbabwe.

The park will also include the Sengwe communal land in Zimbabwe as well as the Makuleke region in South Africa.

The total surface area of the transfrontier park will be approximately 35 000km² and will be the first phase of creating a bigger transfrontier conservation area measuring 100 000km².

Tourists will be able to cross the international borders of the three countries, within the boundaries of the park.

Source: BuaNews

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