Mpumalanga Biodiversity Conservation Plan Handbook - bgis-sanbi

MPUMALANGA BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION PLAN HANDBOOK
56
Red-backed Shrike
Lanius collurio
Each year many bird
species from Europe and
Asia spend the northern
hemisphere
winter here. Others are
migrants from tropical
central Africa. Poor
management of our
ecosystems and poor
environmental
management have
serious impacts on these
migrants. We have a
global responsibility
to ensure that our
ecosystems are managed
in ways which do not
impact negatively on the
shared biodiversity of
the planet.
WETLAND ECOSYSTEMS
These guidelines should be read together with the terrestrial guidelines, in particular those
applying to the IRREPLACEABLE category, which generally apply to wetlands. Wetlands are
special-case patches of landscape where terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem features are most
inextricably combined. Because of this and their vulnerability to development, wetlands
require special measures to ensure those that are left remain functional and productive.
Wetlands throughout the world, and especially in South Africa, have been widely abused and
even destroyed. A combination of agriculture, afforestation and urban/industrial alteration of
wetlands has resulted in 50% of them being transformed and rendered dysfunctional. This is
mostly an irreversible loss, which contributes significantly to the national water crisis. All
wetlands are protected by law (National Water Act, 36 of 1998) because of their importance
as water management and storage areas and their vulnerability to damaging impacts.
USE AND SENSITIVITY OF WETLANDS
A general description of the nature and sensitivity of wetlands is presented in Chapter 3. This
section highlights some key sensitivities most relevant to the land-use guidelines below.
The value of wetlands is comprehensively recognised by laws and regulations worldwide. In
South Africa all wetlands are protected by a number of laws, each with clear penalties for
transgressors. No development applications may go ahead within or affecting wetlands
without obtaining permits and authorisations from several relevant authorities. The legislation
to be complied with includes: the Conservation of Agricultural Resources Act 43 of 1983, the
National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998 and the National Water Act 36 of 1998
(see Appendix 1).
Historically, these laws have not been strictly enforced for a variety of reasons, resulting in
their having little positive impact on the rate of wetland destruction. The most widespread
damage and destruction of our wetlands stems mainly from various agricultural activities,
including cultivation, drainage, damming and the presence of invasive alien plants. The most
serious and expensive impacts are those from timber plantations, urban and industrial
development and mining.
In particular, open-cast mining of coal is totally destructive of wetlands and all wetland
functions. Through acid mine drainage it also pollutes ground water. Deep mining may also
penetrate the water table, causing water loss to lower levels in the mine and subsequent
pollution. These impacts are not limited to the immediate area of the excavation or waste
dump. Acid mine drainage, pollution by heavy metal toxins and major changes in the watertable
will all occur at and near the mining site. In most situations these changes will also occur
at substantial distances from the mine, especially in the down-slope region. Off-site impacts
can affect entire catchments and long stretches of rivers downstream from the origin of the
problem. Where mining occurs together with our gigantic coal-burning power stations, high
levels of atmospheric pollution, including acid rain, add to the off-site impacts of the coal and
M P U M A L A N G A
energy industry. With the Province’s vast shallow coal deposits these impacts have serious and
Biodiversity
permanent environmental consequences for Mpumalanga.
CONSERVATION PLAN HANDBOOK