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RIVER RESTORATION
AND THE
DEPARTMENT OF
AGRICULTURE
“Over the last 20 years, many Western Cape
lowland rivers have demonstrated the high
cost of years of neglect. The recent invasion
of woody alien vegetation, the bulldozing of
river beds by farmers, the loss of deep rooted
indigenous river plants, and the condensing
of flood flows into narrow deep channels,
have all contributed to the ongoing disastrous
instability of the rivers. A major secondary
issue is the abnormal movement of sediment
as a result of bank erosion which escalates the
instability of the rivers.
© WWF-SA
“The Western Cape Department of
Agriculture is assisting communities in
restoring their rivers by combating alien
vegetation, constructing flow structures to
slow down flow velocities during floods, and
re-establishing indigenous vegetation in
rivers. Although it won’t be possible to restore
the rivers to their pristine condition, it is
essential that the movement of sediment be
reduced to what it would have had been in its
natural state. The removal of alien vegetation,
the provision of more space for rivers,
widening and vegetating river channels as far
as possible, and the cessation of the regular
disturbance of river beds with bulldozers, are
the most sustainable ways to achieve the river
restoration aim.”
- Hans King, Deputy Chief Engineer,
Soil Conservation & Sustainable Resource Management,
Western Cape Department of Agriculture