OVERVIEW OF THE IMPACT OF MINING ON THE ... - IIED pubs

ocks and give rise to negatively weathered linear features in the landscape, often forming or delineating
drainage lines that become filled with coarse rock and gravel fragments.
5.9.1.3 Pedology, agriculture and land use
Soils in the Shingwedzi sub-catchment can be divided into three broad groups:
• Areas of sandy colluvial soils at the foot of hills, grading into shallow, reddish-coloured sandy-loam soils in
the western part of the sub-catchment;
• Shallow, brownish to greyish-brown sandy soils overlying coarsely weathered rock in the central and
eastern portion of the sub-catchment; and
• Transported alluvial deposits of coarse to fine-grained sands and silts located along drainage lines.
Land use in the upper reaches of the Shingwedzi River and its tributaries consists of small-scale subsistence
agriculture and some game farming and wildlife conservation in nature reserves. The central portion of the subcatchment
is located within the Kruger National Park and land use therefore consists entirely of wildlife
conservation.
Land use in the eastern (Mozambican) portion of the sub-catchment consists almost entirely of small-scale
subsistence agriculture, with most cultivated areas being located on flood terraces close to stream and river
channels. Some Mozambican settlements also grow a few Mango and Cashew Nut trees and raise a few
livestock.
No towns of any size occur within the sub-catchment.
5.9.1.4 Surface water users
Water use within this sub-catchment consists almost entirely of subsistence agriculture and wildlife
conservation. Domestic water supplies to the small settlements located along the banks of the Shingwedzi
River in Mozambique are provided from hand-dug wells. Boreholes provide domestic water supplies to the
tourist camps located within the Kruger National Park.
5.9.1.5 Water management systems
The Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF) are responsible for all aspects of water resource
management in the upper (South African) reaches of the Shingwedzi sub-catchment.
In Mozambique, the Mozambican Department of Water Affairs does not monitor flows or water quality in the
Shingwedzi River, but does monitor the Olifants River downstream of the Shingwedzi-Olifants confluence.
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