3.4. Study area
3.4.2. Current – The Greater St Lucia Wetland Park
The result of the application for World Heritage status was the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park. As mentioned, the St Lucia Game Reserve was one of the protected areas which was consolidated to form part of the World Heritage Site. The study area for this research falls within these boundaries and as a result the natural characteristics of the site and the dynamism of the systems in which it is situated need to be discussed.
South Africa signed the World Heritage Convention in 1997 and on the basis of this applied for World Heritage site listing. The Park was listed in 1999 based on three of a possible four World Heritage natural criteria:
Criterion (ii) Ecological Processes,
Criterion (iii) Superlative Natural Phenomena and Scenic Beauty and Criterion (iv) Biodiversity and Threatened Species (IUCN, 2003).
Under the World Heritage Convention Act, the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park Authority (the Wetlands Authority) was established and the Park consolidated in 2000. This included the reserves formerly managed by EKZNW. A memorandum of agreement drawn up between the GSLWPA and EKZNW established each organisation’s role in a partnership (GSLWPA, 2003). Through this Management
53
Figure 3.1: Sketch map of St Lucia Reserve, 1895
(Government Notice, Zululand Proclamation No.12, The Natal Government Gazette, 1895, p.406, in Brooks, 2001: 204)
54 Agreement EKZNW is responsible for “the biodiversity management of the GSLWP, including policing and law enforcement activities and assisting the Authority in monitoring compliance by concessionaires with contractual and statutory obligations”
and the Authority has the duty to “monitor and regulate conservation and conservation management8 in the GSLWP … and to ensure compliance with the World Heritage Convention” (EKZNW, 2002: 5).
The Act also stipulates that the Authority is responsible for the creation and, along with EKZN Wildlife, the implementation of a management plan for the Park. At present this document is known as the Integrated Management Plan (IMP) and is currently in draft form. The Greater St Lucia Wetland Park, shown in Figure 3.2, is the broader context in which the question of the management of the St Lucia Estuary needs to be framed. The Park is situated on the coastal and inland regions of northern KwaZulu-Natal and all its land and marine areas cover approximately 325 000 hectares. The coastline extends 230kms from the St Lucia lighthouse, Maphelane in the south, to the Mozambique border in the north (IUCN, 2003). The fragmented and irregular western border is restricted by the N2, a national highway running from Durban to Swaziland, and human settlements while in the south the border is limited by extensive agricultural endeavours in the Umfolozi valley. The land is particularly fertile due to thousands of years of deposition of alluvial soil in the valley and, despite the effect of floods and droughts, still proves to be a profitable industry in the province (Porter et al, 1999). Also noteworthy is the Park’s importance as the anchor project for the Lubombo Spatial Development Initiative (LSDI)9. Its significance as a tourist destination and its role in spearheading development in the region must be emphasised. It is also a pioneer with regard to the recent national legislation promulgated to protect World Heritage Sites in South Africa (Porter et al, 2003). The Park is a site in which there are five ecosystems, each recognised for their unique natural characteristics.
8 Conservation management is defined as being “concerned with (1) maintenance of biodiversity, (2) ensuring ecological integrity and ecosystem functioning and (3) wise and sustainable use of natural resources (EKZNW, 2002: 6)
9 Spatial Development Initiatives are regionalised development projects initiated by the South African government as part of the Growth, Economic and Redistribution (GEAR) strategy brought about after the 1994 national elections. They concentrate on uplifting underdeveloped areas through local economic development and focused investment, often across international boundaries. The Lubombo SDI region stretches from southern Mozambique to eastern Swaziland and down into northern KwaZulu-Natal, an area into which the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park falls (Porter et al, 2003)
55 1. The Eastern shores ecosystem, which consists of the coastal dune system, sub-
tropical forests, grasslands and wetlands
2. The marine ecosystem, which consists of the Indian Ocean, coral reefs (the southernmost reefs in Africa) and pristine beaches.
3. The Mfolozi and Mkuze swamps, which consist of swamp forest and reed and papyrus wetlands.
4. The inland Western shores ecosystem, which has examples of ancient shoreline terraces and dry savannah woodland.
5. The lake system, which consists of freshwater and estuarine lakes (Porter et al, 2003).
The principal estuarine lake is Lake St Lucia (shown in Figure 3.2), the largest estuarine system in South Africa and in Africa (Porter et al, 1999). It is 32 500 hectares in size, dominating the extent of the Park. The following is a definition of an estuarine lake typical of the one in St Lucia:
It occurs where a coastal lake is connected to the sea by a channel of varying length and width. The mouth of an estuarine lake can be either permanently or temporarily open. Salinity levels vary in both space and time and they largely reflect the balance between freshwater and seawater inflow into the lake, as well as evaporation from the lake surface. Because they are usually large and shallow, water temperatures in these systems are more related to solar heating on their surfaces than to the influence of the temperature of either rivers or the sea (Whitfield, 2001: 11).
Figure 3.2 also depicts the eastern shores of the GSLWP and the blue area the lake St Lucia. The St Lucia mouth is in the south of the map where the Lake enters the Indian Ocean. In accordance with its large size, the Lake has an abundance of functions.
Some of the most important are the variety of habitats that are provided in and around the Lake. These habitats support a wide array of species, ranging from waterfowl to mammals and reptiles, some of which are endemic. Thus the Lake environs are essential for their survival. The Lake also provides breeding areas for many animal species and in addition provides an invaluable nursery area for marine species to breed and repopulate (Taylor, 1992).
56 Figure 3.2. The Greater St Lucia Wetland Park
Source: da Cunha, 2004
57 Accordingly, the biological importance of the Lake, nationally and internationally, is immense. The salinity level of the lake is the main driver for change in the environment that the lake supports and thus, the Lake is affected by the amount of freshwater entering its system. As a result, extreme weather events also play an important role in the lifecycle of the system. The system is subject to a cycle of floods and droughts of varying severity, the occurrence of which have been recorded since the early 1800s (Huizinga and van Niekerk, 2004). The result of this extreme range in weather is a variance in the state of the Lake ecosystems. While the effect of floods on the system is noteworthy, the impact of drought has been the more significant, especially in the last decade (Taylor, 10/05/2004). While drought forms part of the natural lifecycle of the ecosystem and thus is a naturally occurring event, the visual and ecosystem effects are perceived negatively. Hypersaline conditions typical of a severe drought cycle result in a reduction in species numbers, visual and biophysical changes to the ecosystems and the closure of the estuary mouth, which, among other effects, prevents the movement of marine species between the Lake and the ocean (Taylor, 10/05/2004). Consequently the state of the Lake and the estuary mouth have an influence on the state of all five ecosystems encompassed in the Park. These different ecosystems, together with the estuary mouth, compose vital pieces of an ecological “jigsaw puzzle” (Taylor, 1992: 5). Through time the various agencies and institutions responsible adopted different approaches in response to the dynamism exhibited.