WATERBERG BIOSPHERE RESERVE 2001 - 2012

APPLICATION FOR EXPANSION OF RESERVE TO UNESCO MAB COMMISSION EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

September 2012

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INTRODUCTION

Some years ago renowned conservationist Clive Walker predicted that the Waterberg would yet emerge as one of the most important and significant conservation areas in . With a great potential for tourism, game ranching, hunting and environmental awareness, together with the richness and abundance of biodiversity in both plant and animal life, the Waterberg is an incredibly important area for conservation in the South African context. Recent conservation plans at both the provincial and national levels recognise the importance of the Waterberg Mountain Complex ecosystem and with this support the Waterberg Biosphere Reserve’s next step to ensure good governance of the area is to expand the current biosphere to include all of the Waterberg Mountain Complex to provide ecosystem and land use planning integrity.

A biosphere reserve is a designated area of importance that falls outside the confined protected areas network such as provincial game reserves and national parks. It is also an area where people live and work. The area can include villages, towns, farming and agriculture, tourism, hunting, businesses and services. The main aim of the biosphere reserve is to ensure that while people utilise the area for their livelihoods and produce a strong economy, negative impacts on the environment and the area‟s reputation as a tourism destination are kept to a minimum and ecosystems remain intact and in good health.

There are specific criteria that an area must have to qualify for biosphere reserve status. The criteria include the following: habitat or ecosystem diversity; high species numbers or high biological diversity; the area should be suitable for sustainable development; and it should be of a suitable size to include different land use types and to fulfil all biosphere functions. For an area to be chosen as a biosphere reserve is an honour but also a great responsibility.

There are three main functions which, while applicable to all biospheres, are interpreted by each one according to their individual locations and circumstances as articulated in their own specific aims and objectives. Broadly speaking, these fall into three categories - conservation, development and logistic support, where the latter is essentially the development, encouragement and facilitation of education, learning and training, including skills training.

Biosphere reserves are organised through the Man and Biosphere Programme (MaB) of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). Currently the world network consists of 580 biosphere reserves in 114 countries. In South Africa there are six biosphere reserves in all, three in (Kruger to Canyons (2001); Waterberg (2001) and Vhembe (2009)) and three in Cape Province (Kogelberg (1998)1; Cape West Coast (2000);); and Cape Winelands (2007)).

WHY THE WATERBERG BECAME A BIOSPHERE RESERVE

The Waterberg has a sparse population and wilderness quality. The area is mostly unspoilt with important habitats. The area has superb biological diversity including some rare and endangered species. It is extremely rich in birdlife, and plants and hosts an amazing array of , amphibians and invertebrate life. The Waterberg has numerous seasonal streams, rivers and wetland areas and the whole area comprises of an important water catchment area in a notoriously water scarce province. An area of 14,500 km2 supports a greater area of 42,500 km2 in

1 Date proclaimed by UNESCO. 2 terms of water. The Waterberg area also contains important San rock art paintings, some probably still undiscovered, as well as other historical and cultural sites, and is home to a number of population groups with strong cultural links to the past.

THE WBR VISION & MISSION

Vision  To maximise this unique area‟s considerable potential for not only conservation, sustainable development and social upliftment, but also research and education

Mission  To build a conservation and sustainable-use ethic, by establishing and facilitating the implementation of a code of good practice which can then be effectively monitored  To promote appropriate and sustainable development, ensuring that the wilderness character and conservation value of the Waterberg as an important water catchment, natural resource and nature-based tourism destination is retained to the benefit of its people  To actively spread benefits and opportunities to poorer members of the community  To facilitate relevant research, education and skills training in the area.

THE WBR FROM 2001 TO 2012: WHY THE WBR IS EXPANDING AND REZONING

Map 1: The WBR as mapped and zoned in 2001.

In common with all biosphere reserves, the WBR area is divided into different zones. This allows for the identification and promotion of suitable land uses over the area. The zones are called “core” (conservation areas), “buffer” (low intensity land uses) and “transition” (medium to high intensity land uses). When the Waterberg Biosphere Reserve concept was first being developed during 1997 to 1999, the layout (boundaries and zones, map 1) were developed in coordination with participating government departments, private landowners and rural communities. An important organisation in the creation of the WBR was the Waterberg Nature Conservancy (WNC). This organisation had members that were landowners who were orientated to conservation practices and who actively supported the formation of the WBR. As a consequence the zoning system was produced around these participating landowners, whereby formally protected state land, such as provincial nature reserves and national parks, constituted the core areas of the Reserve while private land belonging to WNC members became the buffer zone. Little regard was given to important habitats or ecosystems, river catchment areas nor biodiversity hotspots in the development of 3 the original WBR. The Reserve was determined to be 654,000 ha in size and to cover a swathe, but not all, of the Waterberg .

This spatial arrangement (Map 1), while adequate during the establishment phase of WBR, has proved increasingly problematic over the intervening years as development pressures and threats to the environment and the area‟s sense of place have intensified. In particular, applications by prospective developers to establish dense residential settlements throughout the landscape, as well as development pressures associated with the expansion of the mining sector and the development of the Waterberg Coal Field (and associated distribution networks and infrastructure), have exposed the necessity for a more scientifically based, strategically minded zonation system. Furthermore, many important areas fall outside the existing WBR, and therefore the WBR cannot encourage conservation and sustainable development in these areas. This situation could lead to irreparable damage to the ecological systems and natural resources required for the continued protection and sustainability of the unique biodiversity in the area as well as further repercussions on the economy which, on the Waterberg Plateau, is driven mostly by the wildlife industry and nature-based tourism businesses.

At the same time, the need for development, particularly in the face of high levels of unemployment and poverty, cannot be ignored. Rather, suitable trade-offs should be made between conservation and development and such development should be correctly planned and managed, to ensure that development takes place in appropriate locations and in a sensitive manner, thereby allowing for both conservation and development goals to be met. Critically, one of the most promising drivers of development, namely nature based tourism, is dependent upon the conservation of the WBR‟s environment, species diversity and unfettered visual landscapes.

It is with this purpose in mind that a Management Plan was developed for the WBR in 2011. In addition, it was determined that the WBR request approval from UNESCO to expand the boundaries of the Reserve and rezone it in line with the challenges at hand. The groundwork for this process has been greatly assisted by the development of a formal spatial planning scheme done for the entire Waterberg District Municipality, and adopted by national government in 2012, namely the Waterberg District Environmental Management Framework.

THE WATERBERG DISTRICT ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK (WDEMF)

Map 3: Waterberg District’s EMF map showing the zonation for the WBR area.

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THE WBR FROM 2012

During the development of the WDEMF, the Waterberg Complex was identified as a unique conservation area in the South African context. The WDEMF states that the Waterberg escarpment is an important feature of the area and is an asset that should be protected. The work done and maps produced for the WDEMF were used to determine the most logical boundaries for the expansion and rezoning of the WBR.

THE WBR ZONATION

The zonation of the WBR was based upon the evaluation of three criteria. The first being the status of the ecology; the second being conservation priorities; and the third, development pressure.

Status of the Ecology

The status of the ecology forms an important consideration in deciding on the zonation of the WBR, as the least disturbed or transformed areas are valuable conservation assets, whilst the highly disturbed and transformed areas are unlikely to be of great conservation value. It is important to note that many of the most sensitive areas have already been disturbed to the point of no return. These occur mainly in the valley bottoms on historic wetlands on productive soils that have been utilised for cultivation and related human settlement.

Map 2: The map developed by the management plan process 5

Conservation Priorities

Another very important layer comprises the conservation priority areas of the WBR. The priority areas consist of the formally protected areas, wetlands, river systems, archaeological sites, heritage sites and sites of endemism. It is the aim of the WBR to include as much of these areas into the Core Area, or at least the Buffer Zone, with the aim to give these areas the best possible protection.

Development pressures

The WBR has historically been under pressure from mainly intensive agriculture, agro-industries and human settlement. These development pressures have, until recently, been mostly on the flat valley bottoms with good soils and on more accessible areas on the periphery. A more recent phenomenon is, however, the proliferation of eco- estates and golf estates serving mainly the Gauteng market, which now also target the more pristine and mountainous parts thereby threatening their natural character. This layer makes up the final layer of background information that informed the zonation exercise. It is the aim to have most of these areas managed inside the Transition Zone 1 or the Transition Zone 2, to proactively facilitate the sustainable use of natural resources in these areas. These areas would also become the focus for economic and social development within the WBR.

The different components within each layer were weighted and the layers were overlaid to present a composite map presenting a picture of where the most important conservation areas were at the one end of the scale, and where the highest development pressures were on the other end of the scale. This composite map was then compared with the WDEMF zonation, with which it compared very favourably. For instance, Zone 1 of the WDEMF – where “conservation is the priority land use” - corresponds closely to the core and buffer zones of the WBR. Once a set of preliminary zones were developed and interrogated, they were then discussed in key stakeholder participation workshops and in meetings with affected key conservation stakeholders to further consolidate zones into logical units. The final zonation map was simplified by aligning boundaries with either visible cadastral boundaries, topographical features or hard lines such as the WDEMF infrastructure corridors.

The intention of the development guidelines is principally economic. They are aimed at protecting the comparative advantage that WBR currently has as an unspoilt wilderness type destination with a largely intact visual landscape. This is necessary in order to ensure that WBR can grow as an eco-tourism destination, thereby strengthening the local economy and associated employment levels.

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WBR ZONES

CORE ZONE - A core zone is a legally constituted area or areas devoted to long-term protection, according to the management objectives of the biosphere reserve.

Existing Core Expanded Core Total Increase % of Expanded WBR 104 179 ha 228 993 ha 125 000 ha 13%

The core zone comprises of entire ecosystems and sites of immense scientific importance and constitutes strictly protected conservation areas. Furthermore, it requires formal conservation protection. This is possible for private sector land under the Protected Areas Act which allows for the promulgation of private nature reserves and protected environments on private land. The following new areas have the potential to be designated as core, provided the landowners choose to follow this process. This international status will protect these areas from certain mining pressures and provide certain exemptions from local taxes.

Existing Areas (if not changed) New Areas (54 252 ha) Nylsvley (3975 ha) Mokolo Dam (4500 ha) Marakele Contractual Park (40 000 ha) Masebe Nature Reserve (4500 ha) Kwalata (18 000 ha) Wonderkop Nature Reserve (14 000 ha) Lapalala Wilderness (36 000 ha) Moepel farms (26 927 ha) Touchstone (8500 ha) Keta Farms (11 000 ha) Ka Ingo (8000 ha) Mokolo Private Nature Reserve (?) (38 000 ha) Shambala Private Game Reserve (12 000 ha)

Activities in this zone should be restricted to activities which do not compromise the environmental integrity of the area and is reserved for conservation and tourism. Conservation is the priority land use in this zone and should be promoted in every instance. The core zone falls within WDEMF zone 1.

BUFFER ZONE - A buffer area or areas clearly identified and surrounding, or contiguous to, the core area or areas, where only activities compatible with the management objectives can take place.

Existing Buffer Expanded Buffer Total Increase % of Expanded WBR 185 517 ha 723 920 ha 538 403 ha 42%

The buffer zone comprises of entire ecosystems and sites of scientific importance. This zone falls within privately and publicly owned areas where non-consumptive land-uses are practiced.

Existing Areas (if not changed) New Areas - ha approximate Entabeni Reserve (22 000 ha) D‟Nyala Nature Reserve (7300 ha) Areas of central plateau Nyl Floodplain (40 000 ha) Lapalala Wilderness potential core? Farms surrounding Marakele NP (110 000 ha) Welgevonden Game Reserve (38 000 ha) potential core? Tamboti / Overyssel area (75 000 ha) Shambala Private Game Reserve (12 000 ha) potential core? Area north of Mokolo dam (60 000 ha) Doorndraai dam (10 000 ha) Area west of (45 000 ha) Area north of ( 35 000 ha) Area south-east of (60 000 ha) Central escarpment (60 000 ha) Melkrivier area (65 000 ha)

The buffer zone constitutes low impact development areas, concentrating on and encouraging wildlife based tourism and assisting in protecting the core areas. The buffer zone comprises of relatively undisturbed areas of the Waterberg Complex that is worthy of protection and substantially overlaps with and therefore replicates the „Environmental Management Zone 1‟ of the WDEMF, along the with core zone. According to the WDEMF, “this area represents areas 7 with a generally high natural, visual and cultural quality that provides the core natural and cultural resource base for the establishment of the Waterberg as a conservation (even wilderness) destination. This zone would incorporate “soft” activities such as conservation based education, training, research and recreation.

TRANSITION ZONE - An outer transition area where sustainable resource management practices are promoted and developed.

Existing Transition Expanded Transition Total Increase % of Expanded WBR 364 336 ha 774 700 ha 410 364 ha 45%

The transition zone constitutes the man-made (cultural) environments where consumptive land-uses are practiced and where the highest settlement densities occur.

Existing Areas New Areas - ha approximate and the central area Alma and the south-west section (120 000 ha) Some of the Bakenberg area Mookgophong (50 000 ha) West of Mokolo dam (100 000 ha) Plains below the eastern escarpment (38 000 ha) Area west of Mokopane (38 000 ha) Bakenberg area (30 000 ha) Northern boundary (35 000 ha)

The transition zones allows for development of various sectors including agriculture, businesses, services, urban areas etc. Transition areas are flexible areas or areas of co-operation, which may contain a variety of agricultural activities, settlements and other uses.

The Transition Zone comprises of two sub-zones for the purpose of distinguishing between those areas with low impact and those with high impact. In the instance of the WBR, the Transition Zone 1 allows for a higher level of tourism development, but still retains the overall undisturbed character of the Waterberg Complex. The Transition Zone 2 provides for more intensive cultivation, agro-industries, human settlements and support services to the agricultural and tourism industries. The town of Vaalwater, which can be viewed as the business centre of the Waterberg Complex, the agriculturally productive Nyls and Sand Rivers and a few other isolated pockets of intensive agriculture and human settlement make up the Transition Zone 2, with the remainder of the area fairly undisturbed as Transition Zone 1.

TOTAL WBR

Existing WBR Expanded WBR Total Increase % of WBR 654 033 ha 1 727 614 ha 1 073 581 ha 100%

Collectively, the expanded WBR is large enough to maintain all of the Waterberg Mountain Complex area, and adds critical integrity to the region‟s biological communities, habitats and ecosystems.

APPEAL TO ALL STAKEHOLDERS

Biosphere reserves rely on the support of all the people living within their boundaries. Without adequate buy-in, there is little chance of achieving the WBR‟s aims and objectives. We call on all members of the community living within the proposed boundary to endorse the WBR‟s application for expansion to UNESCO. This will form the basis upon which we will be able to ensure the integrity of our ecosystem, balance the needs of development with those of conservation and ensure the sustainability of livelihoods for generations to come. 8