Comments

“Save Dandaro Vlei” : Visit the Monavale Vlei website www.monavalevlei.com - if you wish to contact our organisation or participate in the recently formed Save the Wetlands Forum,

Contact Steve Davies, Chairman, COSMO Trust cosmo@yoafrica.com

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I was looking at the viability of installing a gas geyser and found the following article comparing costs of electric vs. gas. It makes quite interesting reading and appears that gas is more expensive than electric, even substituting Zim prices. So, unless the objective is to have hot water during power outages, the gas option is not justified. In Zim solar water heating must be the first choice i.t.o. water heating costs. http://www.kvacontrol.co.za/component/k2/item/75-gas-geyser-vs-electric-geyser

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The Vlei. What if they put a couple of small dams or ponds with bass and bream like the kariba ponds, that would encourage people to visit, and stock dams people pay per kg caught or released. Not many kids can afford to go fishing. Pretty trees and interesting walks can be made through the area like botanical gardens, plus a small boma restaurant serving cheap food and cold drinks. No booze. That causes problems and idiots! MuMa Fishing!

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BURNING: I am totally against burning.  I recently moved from Hillside, and when I lived there I instructed my gardener to collect all my neighbours leaves and put in our compost. Most of my neighbours would burn their leaves in the storm water drains.   On Friday evening someone was burning their rubbish and we had smoke throughout our house, right through to the following morning. Not a nice experience to breath in someone’s smoke all night. :(

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Noah's ark I took my daughter and 15 month grandson to Noah’s ark on independence day. It was absolutely fantastic being out in the country seeing every conceivable farm animal from ducklings, lambs, piglets, ponies, horses, tortoises, and many many more. The management and staff were amazing. There was pig on the spit, bucking bronco rides and other games plus popcorn candy floss. Well done. Pse support them. The road is not bad and it is not too far out. For more info contact 0772600520

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On Burning: if you add AN fertilizer to compost heaps and water everything breaks down much faster.
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BURNING: Thank you Dr Marabini for your timely and well researched letter on the effects of burning compost. I couldn't agree more. I am particularly concerned about peoples' habit of burning rubbish; which contains all sorts of carcinogenic (cancer causing) and teratogenic (causing deformities in foetuses) chemicals. Dr Marabini is right to observe that we don't want to end up wearing respirators as they do in Beijing, but I suspect if we had accurate information about our air quality  in Harare we would already be wearing respirators  some times.  So please don't burn your compost or rubbish. If your neighbours do it , kindly educate them and if they persists contact the Harare City Council,  or your Councillor on +263 4 781 810 - 16 or the Environmental Management Authority on  705661 | 705663 or the Harare Metropolitan police on 751 896 / 20.

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Gate motors: In response as to how to protect gate motors-in the early hours of Saturday morning -4.00 am I heard a noise that was wrong- I got up put all the lights on and went outside with the dogs- perhaps the wrong thing to do- and investigated with a torch. I knew the sound had come from the front- and initially saw nothing and then scanning to the left of the gate, I discovered a gaping hole in the durawall. No sign of the miscreants. I stayed up until dawn and further investigated and found that they had been cutting through the protective cover of the gate that had been welded in place. I think that the force of the second cut was what I had heard. They had obviously come prepared as they knew enough to have strong cutters. They had only managed the front corners and the motor was still protected. My next step is to have the motor protected with thicker gauge steel. The durawall I had fixed. I have reported this to Rhodesville police who have surveyed the scene after I had given them transport.

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