Thank the higher powers that be for international guidelines, though. They state that only 10% of protected areas such as the Kruger could be developed.

The park has the lowest commercial development of any national park in the world, below 4%.

The hotel, which would be built in the park’s southern section, in Malelane, would be on an already disturbed environmental area, occupied by the original Malelane hotel, which burned down.

The latest commercial development did not presage much more to come..

We are not losing out on our mandate, which is conservation and tourism. Malelane Safari Lodge is one of two hotels to be developed in the park, with another being built at Skukuza camp.

They enjoy having access to certain amenities and restaurants. It makes sense that we commercialise these operations.

We can assure visitors that we will not erect coffee shops at waterholes.

Manager of the governance programme of the Wildlife and Environment Society of SA, Morgan Griffiths, said SANParks was under pressure:

The ‘black diamonds’ and newly wealthy want the bars and the night life, as opposed to the traditional Kruger National Park visitors, who go for camping and self-catering.

Although we understand what is driving SANParks to do this, our concerns are that these developments are on environmentally sensitive areas. There are other, less sensitive, areas available.

The area where this lodge is to be built is one of the few breeding grounds of the Pel’s fishing owl and is home to the Swazi lily.

The hotel would operate after normal park entry times, with increased traffic, especially at night.

SANParks is caught between a political rock and a hard place. They have to raise funds and show that the park is generating jobs, and at the same time protect the environment.

Mandy van der Westhuizen, of Nuleaf, an environmental assessment company, which conducted the lodge’s environmental impact assessment, said that:

Before development [can begin] the developer must conduct a traffic-impact assessment, which is under way.

It’s impossible that the southern parts of the park will be turned into an N1 highway. Guests will be able to view game only on game drives organised by the lodge.

Every Swazi lily in the area had been mapped and there would be a buffer zone around each of them.

No endangered species or breeding grounds will be disturbed.