Review of available data for a South African Inventory of Inland Aquatic Ecosystems (SAIIAE)

Authors

  • Heidi van Deventer 1. Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), PO Box 395, Pretoria 0001, South Africa; 2. School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, WITS 2050, South Africa
  • Lindie Smith-Adao Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), PO Box 395, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
  • Chantel Petersen Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), PO Box 395, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
  • Namhla Mbona South African National Biodiversity Institute, Private Bag x101, Pretoria, 0001, South Africa
  • Andrew Skowno South African National Biodiversity Institute, Private Bag x101, Pretoria, 0001, South Africa
  • Jeanne L Nel 1. Institute for Environmental Studies, Faculty of Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands; 2. Sustainability Research Unit, Nelson Mandela University, Private Bag X6531, George 6530, South Africa

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4314/wsa.v44i2.05

Keywords:

wetland inventory, National Wetland Map, river/wetland ecosystem types, inland aquatic ecosystems, National Biodiversity Assessment

Abstract

The National Biodiversity Assessment of 2011 found freshwater ecosystems to be highly threatened and poorly protected. However, a number of studies have shown that the National Wetland Map (NWM) Version 4 represents less than 54% of wetlands mapped at a fine scale. A more comprehensive South African Inventory of Inland Aquatic Ecosystems (SAIIAE) would greatly improve the assessment of wetland ecosystem types and their condition and conservation status, and is crucial for monitoring trends to inform decision making and planning. In preparation for the third National Biodiversity Assessment of 2018, a review was undertaken to identify possible data sources that could contribute to the SAIIAE. The objectives of the study were to (i) assess which type of information is available for developing a SAIIAE; and (ii) list and understand the availability of fine-scale wetland data for updating the NWM. A variety of data related to species occurrence and distribution, extent and type of inland wetlands and rivers, as well as datasets which describe regional settings of inland aquatic ecosystems, were found across a number of institutions. Fine-scale spatial data amounted to more than double the extent of inland wetlands mapped by remote sensing at a country-wide scale. Nearly 5 million ha of fine-scale data were collected from a diverse number of institutions, with the majority (73%) of these data mapped by Government (3 681 503 ha or 3% of South Africa). It is estimated that < 8% of the sub-quaternary catchments of South Africa had complete wetland data sets, primarily in the Gauteng, Mpumalanga and Western Cape Provinces. Accuracy assessment reports and confidence ratings were however not consistently available for the wetland datasets. Inland wetlands in the majority of South Africa (84%) therefore remain poorly represented. We recommend future steps to improve the SAIIAE, including improving the representation of inland wetland ecosystem types and focusing on accuracy assessment.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Metrics

Metrics Loading ...

Downloads

Published

2018-04-25

How to Cite

van Deventer, H., Smith-Adao, L., Petersen, C., Mbona, N., Skowno, A., & Nel, J. L. (2018). Review of available data for a South African Inventory of Inland Aquatic Ecosystems (SAIIAE). Water SA, 44(2 April). https://doi.org/10.4314/wsa.v44i2.05

Issue

Section

Research paper