State of the Bay Report 2011-Final.pdf - Anchor Environmental

State of Saldanha Bay & Langebaan Lagoon 2011
Activities & discharges
linking Marcus Island with the mainland, and expansion of settlements at Saldanha and
Langebaan.
Figure 3.3. Composite aerial photo of Saldanha Bay and Langebaan Lagoon taken in 2007. (Source
Department of Surveys and Mapping). Note expansion in residential settlements particularly
around the town of Langebaan.
Data on population growth in the town of Saldanha and Langebaan Lagoon are available
from the 1996 census and 2001 census. Those from the 2011 census are still pending. The total
population of Saldanha Bay increased from 16 820 in 1996 to 21 636 in 2001, with a growth rate of
5.73%/yr. The total population in Langebaan increased from 2 735 to 4 272 between 1996 and 2001,
with a growth rate of 7.02%/yr (Table 3.2). The human population in Saldanha Bay is thus expanding
rapidly which has been attributed to the in-migration of people from surrounding municipalities in
search of real or perceived jobs (IDP 2006 – 2011). It is projected that by 2020 Saldanha and
Langebaan will have a total human population of 77 006 and 22 312 respectively (Table 3.3.). This
will place increasing pressure on the marine environment and the health of the Bay through
increased demand for resources, trampling of the shore and coastal environments, increased
municipal (sewage) and household discharges (which are ultimately disposed of in Saldanha Bay) and
increased storm water runoff due to expansion of tarred and concreted areas.
Urban development around Langebaan Lagoon has encroached right up to the coastal
margin, leaving little or no coastal buffer zone (Figure 3.4 and Figure 3.5). Allowing an urban core to
extend to the waters’ edge places the marine environment under considerable stress due to
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