Game reserve reduces poaching by 96%, after making eight huge changes

Tablets, biometric scanners and even a few thermal imaging devices. If you want to work at this game reserve that straddles the border of Kruger National Park, you’ll have to be as tech-savvy as they come.

As reported by Business Insider, the “Connected Conservation” project is all about working smarter, rather than harder. A collaboration between Dimension Data, Cisco and 48 private lodge owners has given these reserves the upper hand in the fight against poaching.

What is Connected Conservation?

In the two years since the project was piloted, results have been beyond outstanding. The brains behind the upgrades claim that they’ve seen a 96% drop in poaching activity at the reserve – which is a minor miracle, considering it’s vast size.

With 62,000 hectares of land to protect, the security measures span across a region the size of Pretoria. This is what progress looks like:

How to make a game reserve “impenetrable”

But how did the achieve such rapid success within a two-year period? Well, it’s because of this ingenious eight-point plan:

• Created a WiFi “net” – a zone that covers the 62,000 hectares of land and provides a fast, secure connection to the internet.
• Rangers are given tablets to track and monitor movement across the park.
• Thermal imaging devices have been planted across the perimeter
• Magnetic and acoustic sensors on the 72km electric fence can detect even the slightest movements on the outskirts of the game reserve.
• Biometric scanners were introduced at entrances.
• Sniffer dogs and helicopter teams have been used to bolster the patrol teams.
• Data collection and analysis has helped form a comprehensive picture of how poachers move and where they’re likely to strike.
• They have police officers on standby, access to the national database and even lawyers – yes, lawyers – readily available to ensure arrests are executed legally.

The sweeping changes have seen ranger response times reduced to just seven minutes, from a previous wait of 30 minutes. These changes should be used as the blueprint for conservation across South Africa.

Of course, money talks. This project took a lot of investment, from many different sources. There’s no doubt that Connected Conservation have got a winning formula, but it’ll take some serious commitment to get the ball rolling nationwide.