Living Lands, together with three partners from the Netherlands: Aqua Terra Nova; Foundation for Sustainable Development (FSD); and For Elements have been granted funding through the Dutch Partners voor Water program to further apply and refine a successful ‘living landscape’ strategy. Such an approach has already been piloted with considerable success by Living Lands through the PRESENCE Network in the western sector of the Baviaanskloof.
Water security is unpredictable and vulnerable in South Africa. Restoration has been advocated as an option to remedy land degradation, and ultimately improve hydrological (freshwater system) functioning. This new program partnership departs from that stand point. Based on earlier community consultation, the partners have will focus in the Kromme River catchment in the Eastern Cape. The area acts as an important catchment area in supplying water for regional municipal areas such as St. Francis Bay, Humansdorp, Jeffreys Bay and Port Elizabeth.
The project will further strengthen the exciting ongoing collaboration with the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) and the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), through the respective Working for Water/Wetland Programs with Gamtoos irrigation Board as implementer of these programs.
The project will focus on mobilizing the South African government agencies and landowners towards restoring the landscape and promoting sustainable land use in the region. The restoration of the catchment is likely to be carried out on private lands. The project aims to strengthen collaborations on the landscape between all relevant stakeholders. For effective catchment restoration, the long-term cooperation of the farmers, landowners and the broader community is a necessity.
Through a systematic approach, various workshops, stakeholder visits and other activities will be conducted. The project hopes to gain a better understanding of the issues faced and strengthen collaborations between all stakeholders on the landscape and in order to offer restoration as a sustainable and viable landscape use.
Building on work in the Baviaanskloof, an anticipated outcome of the Kromme efforts is to create a blueprint that can be used as both a template and guidance for catchment restoration projects in other parts of South Africa.
For all our Dutch (or Afrikaans) readers, please view the press release of Aqua Terra Nova (one of the Dutch partners in this project.
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