coaltech upper olifants river catchment wetland inventory ...

The attributes allocated based on the aerial photo interpretation was also verified on site
where possible. Sixty percent of the verified wetlands had an inaccurate status indicated in
the database. This was due to the fact that the status was based on what could be observed
on the aerial photographs and a large number of impacts are not necessarily visible on the
aerial photographs. The attributes in the database has an overall accuracy of 60% and the
wetland layer an accuracy of 70%. The addition of wetlands to the database was
responscible for only 1.3% of the change in the wetland layer, whereas the deletion of
wetlands included in the database, but not present in the field was responsible for the
remainder of the difference.
The way forward
o The wetland layer, although baseline, is not intended as a static, once-off project and
the data should be refined and updated on a regular basis.
o The layer should be handed over to a host organisation capable of refining and
Conclusion
updating with site-specific information, e.g. SANBI.
Limited literature is available on the wetlands in the UORC, but the literature available
illustrates the importance of the wetlands within this catchment, in terms of services and
functions. In addition, the wetlands are under threat from various activities within the
catchment. Although it is not feasible to prevent all activities impacting on the wetlands from
taking place, the activities can be managed to obtain the most beneficial combination of
economic development and wetland conservation.
A wetland database and a dam layer have been compiled for the catchment. The wetland
layer is linked to a wetland database including various attributes such as wetland type,
possible functions and status. The wetland database should, however, be viewed as a
baseline study to guide decision making, and should not replace more detailed, site specific,
wetland assessments.
The attributes in the database has an overall accuracy of 60% and the wetland layer an
accuracy of 70%. This database should be updated regularly by a host organisation, to
continuously improve the accuracy of the data.
Wetland Database for UORC - 7 -