Paddle against Pollution

The paddlers, in craft from kayaks and canoes to stand-up paddle (SUP) boards, connected with various communities along the way to raise awareness for the need for the transformation of our city’s waterways – environmentally and socially. It was also another way to celebrate World Ocean's Day on Wednesday 8 June.

The paddlers, set out from the Zandvlei mouth at Muizenberg Beach before sunrise, undaunted by a downpour of rain which caught them just after the start.  The strenuous journey of almost 30km saw the paddlers pass through Zandvlei and Marina da Gama accompanied by a flotilla of well wishers in various water craft, before they entered the first of many canals on the route – through which they paddled, carried or dragged their craft through sometimes shallow waterways.

At Princess Vlei the group was welcomed by a group almost 50 youth from across Cape Town, who had come to participate in a special environmental education programme in celebration of World Environment Day and the event.  Activities included introducing the youth to paddling, experiential activities addressing cross cultural communication, interactive lessons about the value of water and biodiversity in our everyday lives, Zibi the friendly ostrich mascot spreading his waste-wise, litter-free message, and an African musical fairy tale play to educate the youth on sustaining the waterways.

Leaving the festivities at the vlei behind them, the paddlers moved on to the next leg of their journey which included a short 5km ‘overland’ stretch by bike between Plumstead and Kenilworth. On reaching the apex of the watershed, the team then started traversing downstream following the Black River until it became the Salt River and then exiting into Table Bay at Paarden Eiland.  A short, perilous stint in the open water of the Woodstock Beach surf zone connected them to the Milnerton Lagoon and estuary for the final stretch of the journey to the wooden bridge and Milnerton Canoe Club where they were welcomed in by a crowd of supporters all in awe of the paddlers’ intrepid adventure across the Peninsula.

At key points along the waterways, water samples were taken and the group was able to interact with the communities living adjacent to the rivers and canals.  Local residents watched curiously from the banks and overhead bridges, clearly unaccustomed to seeing the waterways being used for recreational purposes.   

The event involved several strenuous challenges such as getting the kayaks and other water craft in and out of the canals or over various obstacles.  In addition to the shallow water levels of the canals, various other obstacles (such as a thicket of invasive water hyacinth at one point along the Black River) made some sections unnavigable, meaning the participants often had to walk for long stretches.

The route was not for the feint-hearted as it took paddlers through some of the Cape Peninsula’s most highly polluted waterways and vleis.  In addition to the usual discarded bottles and other rubbish one has come to expect to find in our urban waterways, the canals yielded a profusion of interesting items such as disposable nappies, several kettles, car tires, a shopping trolley and – perhaps not surprisingly – a dead crab.    A stray dog which had somehow ventured into the canal was also encountered, rescued and placed back on terra firma.

The motto of the 2010 event was ‘Take back the City’s waterways’ and that still held true for this year’s event.  It is a plea for a social and environmental intervention.  It also recognises that all citizens are connected to the City’s waterways whether living in well serviced suburbs or areas of urban poverty.  The poor state of the City’s waterways and surroundings is obvious.  Waterways know no boundaries - what happens on the land is found in our waterways and the health of the City should be judged by the state of its waterways!  The aim of the Peninsula Paddle is to highlight these issues, and to do so in an adventure involving some human endeavour.

The 2011 Peninsula Paddle event was sponsored by BulkSMS.com, Liquifruit, Gravity Adventure Group, Pick ‘n Pay Plumstead, Muizenberg Putt-Putt and Touareg Tents;  and supported by Cape Community Newspapers, Bottom Road Sanctuary’s “Dressing of the Princess” project, Educo Africa, Friends of the Liesbeek, Gravity Adventure Group, Jungle Theatre Company, Milnerton Canoe Club, Stand-Up Paddling South Africa (SUPSA), Scenic South community website, the City’s WasteWise programme, WESSA, Western Cape Network for Community Peace and Development and Zandvlei Trust.

About the Peninusla Paddle

The Peninsula Paddle, organised and supported by a number of individuals and organizations, is now an annual Cape Town event that aims to raise awareness of major social and environmental concerns that affect the Cape Peninsula and how we would like to live with and around the rivers in our city.  Each of these concerns has global significance as environmental and economic crises deepen.  These twin forces have their most dramatic expression in poor communities living in environmentally compromised areas, magnifying inequality in a divided city.  The first paddle was pioneered by Thomas Cousins, Kevin Winter, Alistair Lee and Trevor Johnston on 23 May 2010.  Never before had this been attempted.