The Pennington Conservancy is an urban conservancy situated in Pennington on the KZN South Coast and includes the area between the Umzinto River in the north and the Nkumbane River in the south and inland from the sea to the N2 highway. The Cambridge Dictionary defines a conservancy as “An area of land kept in its natural state, especially for wild animals and plants to live in and be protected.
Our little coastal village of Pennington is such an area. We are so very lucky to have, within very close proximity, ocean, forests, rivers & estuaries, grasslands, wetlands and some very interesting flora and fauna all worthy of our protection and that is essentially what the Pennington Conservancy Committee attempts to do with the help of volunteers. We are fortunate in that we have some very committed, enthusiastic and knowledgeable Community members who help us in achieving, arguably, one of our main objectives: ‘To protect, manage and improve the environment through the application of sound conservation practices, including the eradication of alien vegetation, the removal of snares and the creation and maintenance of trails.’
We have a few community and environmental projects that will always be at the forefront of our activities: –
- Nkomba: A site of conservation significance
- Makamati Trail;
- Eradication of alien invasive plants;
- Removal of snares in conjunction with Snare Aware;
- The Beach Café @ Impithi.
- Recycling
These projects are discussed in more detail below, to give you an idea of what is involved and perhaps encourage you to join us in beautifying and indigenising our village, as well as preserving the natural environment of coastal and riverine forest, bush and grasslands.
Do not hesitate to contact us. should you wish to support the Pennington Conservancy by becoming involved in any of these projects and / or join the Conservancy, Alternatively, you can complete the membership application at the foot of this page and we will contact you.
Phone: +27 64 867 7584
Email: penningtonconservancy@gmail.com
Follow us on Facebook: Pennington Conservancy NPO and The Beach Café at Imphiti
Visit us: The Beach Café at Imphiti
THE GREEN TEAM
A group of volunteers committed to keeping Pennington GREEN AND GORGEOUS for all residents of and visitors to Pennington.
This team started with three people just over a year ago, and as you can see from the photographs, has grown into a ‘force of nature’.
The team is committed to keeping all public areas within Pennington safe, clean and tidy on behalf of the Pennington community.
Of course, as with all groups of this type, they are constantly on the look out for new recruits and should you be interested in joining them every Thursday morning for a couple of hours, please contact:
+27 64 867 7584
Map to NkombaNkomba Sanctuary
A lovely area of conservation significance in Pennington and is an example of how wildlife requires intact habitats and space to survive.
Nkomba is situated on the banks of the Nkomba River. Perhaps there was, in days gone by, a natural population of inKomba Palms growing along the river. Today these graceful 8 m multi-stemmed palms are only found along cliff faces in Pondoland.
Nkomba is 6.2 ha and comprises swamp forest (critically endangered), coastal forest, riparian zones and flood plains with & without reed beds and an estuary.
In July 1988 Dr David Johnson of the then Natal Parks Board visited Nkomba and had this to say: “Your proposed reserve is a little gem, well worth preserving, and indeed could turn into a tourist attraction.”
John Jerman, acting on behalf of the Pennington Environmental Group, led negotiations to have Nkomba registered as ‘A Site of Conservation Significance’ and more recently, Evelyn Heunis and Carolyn Schwegman (John Jerman’s daughter) were instrumental in having Nkomba zoned as ‘Conservation’ in the Umdoni Town Planning Scheme.
