South Africa is home to a large part of the world’s black and white rhino population, both under siege from poachers’ high-powered rifles, with protection of this Big Five species seen to increasingly lie in high-tech a man with hands-on experience maintains.
“The man” is retired two-star general Johan Jooste who headed anti-poaching operations with particular reference to rhino in SANParks game reserves before becoming part of official government anti-poaching efforts in the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE). His title is programme manager: law enforcement and security in Minister Barbara Creecy’s Cabinet portfolio.
Ahead of the world marking World Rhino Day earlier this week, Jooste, drawing on the knowledge gained in the Kruger National Park as well as his many years in uniform, maintains the future of rhino protection could – and should – see, among others balloons bristling with radar and long range sensors.
Supporting this real-time aerial monitoring and observation in what he calls the “vertical dimension” would be UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles); ultra-light, fixed and rotary-winged aircraft and even stents.
His thinking is based on the premise that those involved in rhino and other species protection should go after the technology they need rather than what donors and others “want”.
“While I was in Kruger, we learnt valuable lessons about implementing new technology. This included that some of it worked and some didn’t”, he told defenceWeb.
He is emphatic high-tech detection and monitoring systems need to be sustainable. Funding must be provided for maintenance or a contract awarded for supply and ongoing system operation, rather than a park or reserve necessarily owning a system.
“Rangers must be part of the technology with appropriate training,” Jooste said adding system maintenance, if excessive time-wise, should be outsourced rather than be an additional ranger task.
“UAVs, popularly known as drones, are an example, with many stakeholders seeing them as the silver bullet that would save the rhino.
“There is and will be a role for drones, as range and payload capacity improves, but in Kruger we found the ground-based radar system Project Meerkat was the best solution for detecting and monitoring incursions by poachers.”
Jooste was instrumental in pushing development of Meerkat, a home-grown system pioneered by CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research). He sees the ‘next generation’ Meerkat possibly being mobile, using an aerostat – a lighter than air balloon – fitted with radar and other sensors. Tethered to a truck it can be moved around a reserve or from park to park.
Great strides were made in Kruger in improving communications between rangers, aircraft and neighbouring reserves, with operations co-ordinated by a purpose-built joint operations centre, at park headquarters, Skukuza.
“The rangers of the near future will be even better connected, wearing ‘smart’ lightweight body armour fitted with sensors; heads-up displays delivering information via glass monocles; smart watches and arm-mounted satellite devices as well as effective non-lethal weapons.
“We could even see rangers riding silently through the bush on electric bikes, or flying individual personal aviation vehicles, skimming across the bush at treetop level.”
Jooste said the sky literally is the limit in protecting rhinos with satellites, aircraft, balloons and even flying rangers watching over their charges.
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