...(the smoke that thunders) - local name for the impressive falls on the Zambezi River that Dr Livingston "discovered" and presumptuously renamed in honour of his queen - was inscribed as a Natural World Heritage Site in 1989, shared between Zambia and Zimbabwe. During the 90's and early 2000's, the integrity of the property was threatened by uncontrolled urban development, unplanned tourism development, noise and water pollution, and invasive species. Since 2006, some progress was made in the form of a joint management plan and Zambia's moratorium on some construction and tourism infrastructure projects, although issues related to development of infrastructure, tourism facilities and services, control of pollution, extraction of water from the Zambezi and eradication of invasive species still need to be addressed. (On my recent trip to the Zambian side, I did notice a lot of "alien hacking" on of Lantana - originally from South America, but now sadly a common invasive weed around the world.) With most Zimbabweans having rather more pressing matters to deal with at present, the upside is that there is no construction on the south side of the gorge, while a number of luxury lodges are springing up along the Zambian banks in anticipation of the tourism spin-off from the 2010 World Cup. The World Heritage Centre is however keeping tabs on developments and has requested detailed reports on the state of conservation of the property, including information on the potential impact of all new tourism developments, as well as progress made in implementing the Joint Integrated Management Plan.
A moonlit view from the Zambian side of the falls at relatively low water - lights of the Zimbabwean town of Victoria Falls across the river on the right horizon.
incredible!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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