3.1 CASE STUDY: PLATT ESTATE IN KZN
3.1.4 Development proposal
3.1.5.3 Soils
The soils of Platt Estate are mostly shallow Lithosols as is expected with the very steep topography. There are also good Hutton soils on the main watershed ridge near the Gartreff Store and further west at Nkolostsheni with smaller areas of Griffin soil. The remaining soils are mainly from TMS and are both shallow and oflower inherent fertility.
3.1.5.4
Nevertheless, the Glenrosa (Trevanian) and Clovelly soils which occur at the northern end of the watershed are reasonably deep, medium-textured soils with generally good physical characteristics. It is only in the extreme west and south-west that the sandier soils of the Platt series (Glenrosa form) predominate in association with small patches of poorly- drained soils of the Cartref form. These soils are of reasonable depth and favourable topography so that they too, have a modest cropping potential despite their erodibility and low inherent cropping fertility. Platt Estates as a whole has a significant cropping potential but one which is unevenly distributed.
Rainfall and Water
The rainfall in the area ranges from 860mm to 91 Omm according to the Centre for Water Research of the Faculty of Engineering, University of Natal as cited in the Lima Rural Development Foundation (1999). This is ideal for timber growing.
The water resources of the area are unevenly distributed with useful water sources provided by the perennial Mzimlilo and Mpambanyoni rivers. Both these rivers are deeply incised making it prohibitively expensive to pump water up onto the intervening ridges.
The result is that the ridges are rather poorly supplied with water, a condition which is aggravated by the lack of groundwater normally associated with TMS sub-strata.
However, it should not be difficult or excessively costly to build a number of small farm dams to rectify this problem. The Mkhunya entity is bounded by the Mkomzazi River which lies at the bottom of the escarpment. There are a number of springs in the area, but, which dries up during the dry seasons. The only borehole within the case studies is found in-between Tapashiya and Ezitendeni, which for the majority it is a great distance to travel to collect water.
3.1.5.5 Infrastructure
The area is poorly served with infrastructure with the conditions of the roads of poor quality, with a lack of well-distributed internal water supplies and proper sanitation facilities and a lack of adequate fencing. The fencing could be used for proper veld management as well as the protection of the springs from animals.
3.2 METHODOLOGY
The research methods employed in this study is guided by the questions and methodologies presented that focuses on water resources sustainability in rural land reform programmes with special attention on the redistribution programme. The intention of this study is to evaluate the transferred project's water resources sustainability and the impacts of sanitation on the water resources, by utilising the secondary sources of information gathered from the Department of Land Affairs: Monitoring and Evaluation, Quality of life Reports for 1998 aIid 2000. The Kwazulu-Natal averages are compared with that of the combined national averages.
Further to this, the assessment of the water resources sustainability including the reference to the impacts of sanitation on the water resources are critically analysed for projects that are in the implementation phases, but not transferred as is the case of the case studies undertaken in this study. This information serves as a guideline or a baseline that precede implementation, which over time can be re-evaluated using the same or similar methodology. The re-evaluation will determine whether or not the projects are being sustainable, with respect to water resources sustainability. The re-evaluation can also be used to determine if the beneficiaries needs and expectations are being met or realised which indicates success or failure of a project.
The information analysed in this study is based on various secondary and primary sources as explained hereunder.
3.2.1 Secondary Methods
The secondary sources of information is sourced from various forms of research on land reform in South Africa as indicated in chapter two, the literature review of this study. The collection and analysis of the secondary data was primarily a desk-top study which provided insight into, the water resources sustainability, which draws information from the national land reform programme, issues pertaining to sanitation and the national legislation. Therefore, the following desktop studies were undertaken:
• Reviewing the Quality of Life Reports for 1998 and 2000, with special reference to water and sanitation issues and the case studies from Kwazulu-Natal. The case studies in
Kwazulu-Natal is compared with national trends.
• Reviewing relevant literature on rural water and sanitation issues, rural development, national legislation and the national land reform programme.
• Review of the business plans for the Platt Estates that was formulated in November1998 and revised in November1999.
• Adopting and adapting the methodology used for Assessing the Environmental Impact of the Land Reform Programme by Watson (1998) for the Department of Land Affairs:
Monitoring and Evaluation Directorate. Notwithstanding this being a secondary source of information, the method and questionnaire was adopted and adapted for the primary methodological approach.
3.2.2 Primary Methods
The questionnaire instrument was developed and implemented in accordance with the approach suggested by Watson (1998). This section briefly provides an overview of Watson's (1998) methodology.
The Department of Land Affairs Monitoring and Evaluation unit, in consultation with Professor Watson of the University of Durban-Westville in 1998, developed a methodology for assessing the environmental impact of the land reform programme. The report according to Watson (1998:
i), was intended to serve as a user manual of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) format.
The EIA is an integral part of the process to obtain environmental approval from the provincial and national departments, namely The Department of Agriculture and Environmental Affairs in Kwazulu-Natal and the National Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism. These departments are responsible for development approval with respect to environmental management approval as legislated under the Environment Conservation Act, Act 73 of 1989 and the National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998. The national and provincial departments determine approval of projects where land use change is required, as is the case for some land reform projects. The approval is based on the needs and desirability ofthe project as well as the sustainability of the project. According to Watson (1998), sustainability is achieved when natural resources is used such that it does not lead to its decline in productivity which ensures the potential to meet the needs of the present generation without impacting negatively on the ability
offuture generations to meet their own needs. Failure to integrate environmental considerations in the land reform process will lead to beneficiaries not escaping the poverty trap (Watson, 1998).
According to Watson (1998), there is a need to determine the environmental status of the projects through the identification of Key Criteria and Indicators (KC&I). The KC&I therefore reduces the number of measurements by aggregating information comprehensively to determine the projects sustainability. Values are therefore assigned to the KC&I and baseline values for the KC&I should be obtained prior to transfer of the land to the beneficiaries or as soon as possible after transfer (Watson, 1998). This serves as a tracking system which provides an early warning system of environmental deterioration which determines the level of remedial measures to be undertaken. It also ascertains the impact of the land use change over time.
Watson (1998), determined the potential influence on the sustainability of the various natural resource systems through the use of the KC&I. For the purpose of this study, the KC&I for assessing the sustainability of water resources was adopted and adapted. The KC&I were rated and scored according to Watson (1998), as follows:
Rating Score
Very bad 1
Bad 2
Moderate 3
Good 4
Very Good 5
NB: A copy of the scoring is contained in the questionnaire, Appendix A.
In the study area, questionnaires were used to gather information about the project entities together with field observations. Six (6) indicators were used to determine the overall sustainability of the water resources for the case studies. The indicators determined are as follows:
• I>rinking water
• Bathing water
• Water for washing clothes
• Water for livestock
• Water for irrigation
• Field observations
The indicators were rated in terms of their potential influence on water resources sustainability and a composite measure representing the overall sustainability of the water resources was derived. According to Watson (200 1), the indicators provide a reliable assessment which is simple, quick and cheap to use. The rationale of assigning values to each of the indicators is that changes in the overall assessment over time can be monitored if tested again thus providing "an early warning system of deterioration enabling remedial measures to be implemented" (Watson, 2001:
156). Thus, the baseline for the proposed project can be obtained and collated before transfer or early in transfer and thereafter tested over time. This determines in time as to whether or not the sustainability ofthe water resources are improving or deteriorating. Ifit deteriorates then remedial measures can and must be undertaken.
According to Watson (1998: 36), for a project to be sustainable in terms of water resources, the project beneficiaries need a water supply that is:
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reliable
adequate
clean
surface water sources may disappear during the dry season or during droughts.
each individual household needs water for drinking, watering livestock and vegetable gardens, and washing bodies and clothes.
water contaminated with pathogens can have a serious detrimental effect on the health of the community.
Thus, the sustainability indicators according to Watson (1998) should encompass the following:
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mechanism of water extraction, community expertise and financial resources;
water channeling to reservoirs;
protection of the sources and storage;
supplementary sources especially rainwater capture from roofs;
• construction of dams; and
• eradication of alien plants in riparian areas.
Unsustainable indicators should encompass the following:
• measured sedimentation into surface water sources;
• increased eutrophication;
• defecating on the floor of the drainage channels connected to the rivers and on the banks of and in rivers, streams and springs;
• pit latrines in percoline areas and in close proximity to water sources;
• washing clothes in stagnant water; and
• livestock grazing in wetlands.
According to Watson (1998: 13), laboratory analysis that involved considerable expertise in the use of equipment, procedures and expenses did not provide a "finer assessment of water quality than obtained by observing whether certain attributes (as detailed in the methodology) were present or not." Therefore, for the purpose ofthis study, laboratory analysis ofthe water were not undertaken as according to Watson (2001), the indicators provide a reliable measure of the overall sustainability despite the high degree of subjectivity involved in the selection, quantification, weighting and integration. Watson (2001: 165) therefore concludes that the study "should be viewed as having the basis for a methodological approach rather than a methodology per se. "
Further to the adapted methodological approach used by Watson (1998), additional assessments were appraised (although not scored on the sustainability methodology) which include the following:
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Sanitation and waste disposal Expectations versus realisations Preferred needs
The sanitation and waste disposal indicators provides information on their impact upon water sources. The expectations versus realisations indicates the communities perceived expectations of the land reform programme with respect to water and sanitation expectations. The preferred
need highlights the communities actual requirements based on their primary and secondary options for the provision of water supply and sanitation systems. This moves beyond the top-down approach of implementation to the bottom-up approach of requesting from them their needs and requirements.
According to Green (1993), the importance of choosing context-specific methods when conducting research is stressed. This study takes into consideration the following specific primary research methods or techniques:
• Gender Four (4) men and eight (8) women participants.
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Location Project
Field workers
Language
Rural area in Kwazulu-Natal.
Non-transferred but occupied land redistribution and tenure reform project at the Platt Estates in Kwazulu-Natal. The Estate was divided into five entities: Boleni, Ezitendeni, Tapashiya, Nyanyabuzi and Mkhunya. Three of the five entities at the Platt Estate were involved in this study: Boleni, Ezitendeni and Tapashiya. The projects are all involved in settlement and agriculture.
The research team comprised of four (4) members, the fieldworkers, one male (a community committee member who is a former technikon student) and one female (a Phd student from the University of Durban-Westville whose field of study is on gender and rural development) both of whom are Zulu speaking, my supervisor, a lecturer from the University of Durban-Westville and I, who were the facilitators and observers.
Since the participants were Zulu speaking, the interviews for the questionnaire were conducted in Zulu by the fieldworkers.
3.2.3 Sampling
According to Bob (1999: 129), sampling refers to ''the set of procedures by which individuals, households or communities are selected from a total population group." Not all individuals or households can be sampled as it has time, logistic and financial implications. Therefore, for the purpose of this study four (4) households from each entity (Boleni, Ezitendeni and Tapashiya) were systematically sampled. This was to ensure that a geographical spread of respondents are interviewed. Distance and topography can evolve as key aspects of differences between households when dealing with access to natural resources such as water. According to Leedy (1993), this sampling technique is the least sophisticated and the data level extracted is generally in the form of personal observations, interview and questionnaires. This study applied the systematic sampling technique with the use of questionnaire interviews and field observations.