Biodiversity
The National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) is a long-term plan of action for the conservation and sustainable use of South Africa’s biodiversity and the equitable sharing of benefits derived from its use. The goal of the NBSAP is to “Conserve and manage terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity to ensure sustainable and equitable benefits to the people of South Africa, now and in the future.”
The Municipality was part of the Local Action for Biodiversity (LAB) Programme, which is run by ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability’s Global Biodiversity Centre, in partnership with International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). As part of this programme, the Municipality commissioned a Biodiversity Report, 2010 and a Local Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plan, May 2011. The report states unequivocally that the Municipality’s biodiversity is under threat from human occupation and activity.
Critical aspects facing the Municipality in the conservation of its biodiversity are:
The Conservation and management of freshwater aquatic biodiversity: Water is one of the most important ecosystem services and an adequate supply of water of an acceptable quality is a prerequisite to human well-being, as well as social and economic development. There is a direct correlation between the health of freshwater aquatic ecosystems and the quantity and quality of water they provide. The Municipality’s water resources are scarce, and the quality is deteriorating.
Conservation, management and development of the Berg River Estuary: The Berg River Estuary is the most valuable biodiversity asset in the Municipality and is home to a multitude of birds, fish and invertebrates and has its own unique vegetation. It is also a provider of a range of ecosystem services that support the local economy (fishing, salt production etc.). It is ranked as the third most important estuary of conservation importance in South Africa. Media press release was issued from the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment on 3 February 2022:
“BERG ESTUARY DESIGNATED AS SOUTH AFRICA’S 28th WETLAND OF INTERNATIONAL IMPORTANCE 2 FEBRUARY 2021
As the world marks World Wetlands Day 2022, South Africa is celebrating the declaration of its 28th wetland of international importance.
The Berg Estuary in the Western Cape was declared as a Ramsar Site under the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance in time for the marking of World Wetlands Day.
‘’The declaration of South Africa’s 28th Ramsar site is an indication of the importance of conserving and protecting these unique environments that are considered super ecosystems because of their contribution to the provision of water and because they provide habitats to a large variety of migratory birds, especially water birds,” said the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Ms Barbara Creecy.
The Berg Estuary, which is one of 290 estuaries in South Africa, is the second wetland of international importance to be declared in the country in two years.
The Ramsar site stretches from the R27 road bridge upstream to the tidal extent of the estuary approximately 61 km from the Estuaries mouth. This system is highly reliant on the management of its catchment, which extends 160 km upstream from the river mouth to its source in the Franschhoek and Drakenstein mountains. From its source, the river flows through the towns of Paarl and Wellington before arching west and meeting the Atlantic Ocean at Laaiplek. The lower reaches of the river meander over very flat country so that, on average, the riverbed falls only 1 m in the last 50 km. The estuary has been designated as a Ramsar site due to the presence of representative, rare and unique natural or near-natural wetland types, the presence of rare species and threatened ecological communities, high levels of biological diversity, the provision of support to species during their critical life stages, and the fact that it supports vast numbers of waterbirds; 9 species of which over 1 % of their total population can be found at the estuary and due to the fact that significant and representative fish species that use the estuary as a spawning ground are found in the estuary.
Since 1975, approximately 250 bird species have been recorded on and adjacent to the lower Berg River, 127 of which are waterbirds. In terms of numbers of waterbirds, the area is the most important coastal wetland in South Africa, ranking above Langebaan Lagoon and Lake St Lucia. The most important habitats for foraging birds are the estuarine mudflats and ephemeral floodplain pans, while for breeding the riparian marshes and the commercial salt pans are key. In combination, the estuary and floodplain regularly support more than 20 000 birds; in December 1992 a count of both habitats yielded 46 234 waterbirds.
The commercial salt pans hold many breeding species, including very large numbers of the world's largest tern (the Caspian Tern Sterna caspia), a red data species, incorporating up to 13 % of the South African breeding population. Many globally threatened species also occur at the estuary including the Cape Cormorant (with estimates of up to 60 000 Cape Cormorants coming in to roost in the evenings), Crowned Cormorant, Lesser Flamingo, African Black Oystercatcher, Black Harrier and Chestnut-banded Plover. Regionally threatened species that can be found include the Greater Flamingo, Great White Pelican, African Marsh Harrier, Lanner and Greater Painted snipe.
Three endemics, highly localised and threatened reptiles occur on the floodplain of the Berg River: the west coast endemic Gronovi’s dwarf burrowing skink, Scelotes gronovii, Kasner’s dwarf burrowing skink, Kasneri and large-scaled girdled lizard, Cordylus macropholis. A fourth threatened reptile, Cape sand snake, Psammophis leightoni, is also found on the floodplain. The South African endemic sand toad, Bufo angusticeps, and Namaqua dwarf chameleon, Bradypodion occidentale. occur along the fringes of the wetland.
The Estuary also boasts a total of 145 plant species identified in a vegetation survey of the lower estuary and floodplain and 35 fish species of which 17 (48 %) can be regarded as either partially or completely dependent on the estuary for their survival. The lower floodplain is a vital as a nursery area for thousands of juvenile fish, many species of which form the basis of employment for hundreds of families living on the west coast. Considering the degree to which these fish are dependent on estuaries, the nursery value of the Berg Estuary is estimated to be R9 million per year.
Annotated List of Wetlands of International Importance
Barberspan
Berg Estuary
Blesbokspruit
Bot - Kleinmond Estuarine System
Dassen Island Nature Reserve
De Hoop Vlei
De Mond
Dyer Island Provincial Nature Reserve and Geyser Island Provincial Nature Reserve
False Bay Nature Reserve
Ingula Nature Reserve
Kgaswane Mountain Reserve
Kosi Bay
Lake Sibaya
Langebaan
Makuleke Wetlands
Natal Drakensberg Park
Ndumo Game Reserve
Ntsikeni Nature Reserve
Nylsvley Nature Reserve
Orange River Mouth
Prince Edward Islands
Seekoeivlei Nature Reserve
St. Lucia System
Turtle Beaches/Coral Reefs of Tongaland
uMgeni Vlei Nature Reserve
Verloren Vallei Nature Reserve
Verlorenvlei
Wilderness Lakes’’
The impact of waste and pollution on biodiversity: Waste and pollution have a severe effect on biodiversity. The Municipality runs an efficient cleansing and waste removal service for domestic and business waste in urban areas, but our unrehabilitated waste disposal sites are a threat to biodiversity and human well-being. The Municipality is in process of addressing the rehabilitation of these sites and is also actively busy with recycling initiatives to minimise waste and pollution. (Bergrivier Municipality Local Biodiversity Strategic and Action Plan 2011).
Chapter 3 of the National Water Act (NWA), Act No. 36 of 1998 provides for the protection of water resources through the implementation of resource directed measures which includes the classification of water resources, setting the Reserve and determination of Resource Quality Objectives. The 7-step procedure established by the Department of Water Affairs in 2011 (DWA, 2011) is being applied to determine the Resource Quality Objectives (RQOs) for river, estuary, wetland, dam and groundwater resources in the Berg Catchment. Steps 1 and 2 have already been conducted as part of the Classification process.
Step 2:
Establish a vision for the catchment and key elements for the IUAs
Step 3:
Prioritise and select preliminary Resource Units for RQO determination
Step 4:
Prioritise sub-components for RQO determination, select indicators for monitoring and propose the direction of change
Step 5:
Develop draft RQOs and Numerical Limits
Step 6:
Agree Resource Units, RQOs and Numerical Limits with stakeholders
Step 7:
Finalise and Gazette RQOs
Part 3 within Chapter 3 of the National Water Act, deals with the Reserve. Compliance to this will be ensured for the use of any water resource in any development taking place within the Bergrvier municipal jurisdiction area. The Reserve consist of two parts:
the basic human needs reserve and the ecological reserve.
The basic human needs reserve provides for the essential needs of individuals served by the water resource in question and includes water for drinking, for food preparation and for personal hygiene. The ecological reserve relates to the water required to protect the aquatic ecosystems of the water in the resource, and will vary depending on the class of the resource. The Minister is required to determine the Reserve, for all or part of any significant water resource. If a resource has not yet been classified, a preliminary determination of the Reserve may be made and later superseded by a new one. Once the Reserve is determined for a water resource it is binding in the same way as the class and the resource quality objectives.
The map below is an overview of the Biodiversity of the Bergrivier municipal area:
The Bergrivier Municipality: Invasive species monitoring, control and eradication plan, (June 2020) was approved and adopted in the Mayco on 11 June 2020.
A link to this plan can be provided and the plan is available on the Bergrivier Municipal website.
This Invasive species monitoring, control and eradication plan provides detail on the invasive species infestation in the properties under the control of Bergrivier Municipality and indicates the category of these species and the preferred removal method for each.
Western Cape Biodiversity Spatial Plan Handbook 2017. Below link to this handbook.
The Western Cape Biodiversity Spatial Plan (BSP) is a product of CapeNature and the Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning and represents a nationally endorsed approach to conservation planning.
Environmental Impact Assessments and other Environmental Processes:
Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) and Basic Assessment Reports (BAR) are conducted by Environmental Assessment Practitioners for development projects within the Bergrivier Municipal area. These Environmental processes and studies (EIA's, BAR's, Water Use License applications (WULA's) and Environmental Authorisation (EA's) are reviewed by the relevant Municipal officials. The Municipality comments on the EIA projects and Environmental processes of its jurisdiction.
Stakeholder and Environmental Communication Platforms attended:
Bergrivier Municipality participates in different environmental supporting structures coordinated by the West Coast District Municipality (WCDM). These include Municipal Coastal Committee (MCC) for coastal matters and the West Coast Air Quality Working Group and Joint Municipal Air Quality Working Group for air quality related matters. Both these are communication platforms where all five local Municipalities under WCDM, communicates their air quality issues. The Berg Estuary Advisory Forum (BEAF) is a platform for matters relating to the Berg estuary and presented on a quarterly basis, also attended by Bergrivier Municipality, CapeNature and other relevant Departments, stakeholders and community members. Environmental awareness and capacity building events are conducted within the Bergrivier Municipal area in partnership with other stakeholders and Departments.
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