National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act, 2003 (Act No. 57 of 2003)NoticesNorms and Standards for the Inclusion of Private Nature Reserves in the Register of Protected Areas of South AfricaChapter 3 : Norms for the Designation of Private Nature Reserves9. Designation of Private Nature Reserves |
| (1) | The Minister or MEC may designate a nature reserves in private ownership as private nature reserves in terms of section 25 of the Act, for the purpose of inclusion into the National Protected Areas Register and into the Protected Areas Database. |
| (2) | The MEC must inform the Minister of the designation done in terms of paragraph (1). |
| (3) | The private nature reserve must comply with the requirements of section 23(2) of the Act. |
| (4) | The MEC must have declared the nature reserve and the process to verify its existence must be undertaken as set out in Chapter 2 of these norms and standards. |
| (5) | A private nature reserve must be privately owned, it may be owned by a single owner, a Juristic person or jointly by a group of owners, such as a company or a community; |
| (6) | A private nature reserve may consist of a single property or several properties managed according to a single management plan; |
| (7) | When a private nature reserve is an entity constituted from different properties of |
| (a) | associated landowners, a Constitution or other legal means of verification indicating the collaborative intention will be a requirement; or |
| (b) | community owned land, a Trust, Community Property Association or any other legally recognised constituted entity is to be established. |
| (8) | The designation must be considered If the area— |
| (a) | promotes and preserves specific ecological processes, natural systems, natural beauty, or indigenous wildlife species; |
| (b) | protects biological diversity in general; |
| (c) | creates or augment destination for nature-based tourism; |
| (d) | contributes to human, social, cultural, spiritual, and economic development where feasible; |
| (e) | is developed and managed in the interest of conservation, education and sustained resource utilization; or |
| (f) | is an extensive wildlife system. |
| (9) | There is no prescribed minimum size for a private nature reserve, but the size of the area should be in accordance with the purpose and objectives of the private nature reserve. |
| (10) | The private nature reserve may be a configuous area and not fragmented into separate isolated areas. |