Kruger hotel assessment needed: Government

An environmental impact assessment will have to be completed before a proposed four star hotel in the Kruger National Park can be approved, the environmental affairs department says.

"Deputy Minister (Rejoice) Mabudafhasi recently indicated that the department was in principle not opposed to hotels in national parks on condition that the necessary environmental processes were followed," said spokesman Albi Modise.

He criticised recent media reports that the hotel would be built without a decision on its environmental impact.

Modise said the outcome of the environmental impact assessment would determine whether the department would grant final authorisation.

It was reported on Monday that the government had endorsed the construction of the first international class hotel in the Kruger National Park.

The Safari Hotel would be located near the Malelane Gate and would be the first international class hotel inside the park.

At the time, Mabudafhasi told Business Day that the government had been grappling with the concept of development within the park since 1999 when SA National Parks (SANParks) tabled its commercialisation strategy to the Cabinet.

"We [government] see nothing contradictory in the establishment of these hotels in national parks as long as they are approved [through] the environmental impact assessments and related processes," she said.

"We already have an existing hotel in the Golden Gate National Park and even several famous international parks around the world have hotels as part of the diverse tourism accommodation offering."

The proposed development of two hotels in the park has drawn criticism from some environmentalists, including former director of SANParks and the Kruger National Park Salomon Joubert, who said the plan was likely to damage biodiversity.