INTRODUCTION

Fire Protection Associations are formed and governed under the National Veld and Forest Fire Act (Act 101 of 1998) as voluntary associations of Landowners who wish to cooperate for the purpose of predicting, preventing, managing and extinguishing veldfires.

The Winelands Fire Protection Association was registered with the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Registration number: 1170/02) in November 2014 amalgamating the former Stellenbosch, Tulbach-Wolseley, Ceres-Witzenberg, Ceres-Kouebokkeveld, Rooiberg, Warmbokkeveld and Kouebokkeveld FPAs. Beginning of 2018 the Breede Valley FPA also joined. The boundary is now the same as the Cape Winelands District Municipality with an area of 2,158,000ha. See map on left.

In January 2018 the WFPA was registered as a Non Profit Organisation with the Department of Social Development (Registration number: 200-807 NPO).

The WFPA has a strong working relationship with the Cape Winelands District Municipality and CapeNature including through the Cape Winelands District Fire Work Group and is solidified through signed agreements.

OUR AIMS & OBJECTIVES

Aims:

  • Contribute to community development by reducing injuries, losses to lives, property and the environment due to wildfires
  • Promote Integrated Fire Management together with the useful role of wildfires
  • Protect mountain catchment areas to protect future fresh water supplies
  • Protect the high levels of biodiversity, endemism and red data species of the Cape Florist Region

 

Objectives:

  • Reduce the incidence and spread of wildfires
  • Promote cooperation and coordination between all role players in wildfires
  • Deploy a veldfire management strategy throughout the FPA area
  • Develop and implement IFMPs for the Fire Management Units
  • Empower landowners in IFM
  • Awareness and compliance of landowners to the NVFFA
  • Compliance of members to the agreed FPA rules
  • Increase in FPA members
  • Awareness to the general public on wildfires
  • Identify and reduce the risks within high fire risk areas
  • Create MOUs and working agreements with neighbouring Fire Brigade Services and FPAs
  • Ensure an adequate wildfire reporting system is in place for all reporting requirements

The Winelands FPA is not a firefighting organisation. Fire suppression operations are conducted according to the Fire Brigade Services Act and remain the responsibility of the Cape Winelands District Municipality.