Gerhard has more than 24 years of experience in Environmental Management and Planning (23 years as a public servant, of which 6 years were as a manager and 11 years as a senior manager). He has been with the Western Cape Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning for more than 22 years and currently is the Chief Director Development Planning. He holds qualifications in Nature Conservation, Environmental Management, and Planning. He is a member of IAIAsa (International Association for Impact Assessment South Africa) and ELA (Environmental Law Association of South Africa), and he is an EAPASA Registered Environmental Assessment Practitioner and an EAPASA appointed EAP Registration Assessor.