Environmental Management Branch: Biodiversity Management
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TRANSPORT & URBAN DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY Urban Investment and Development Portfolio Department: Environmental Management Branch: Biodiversity Management Charline Mc Kie Biodiversity Area Manager: The Dassenberg Coastal Catchment Partnership City Sector (DCCP) North Region Tel no: 021 444 7687 Email: [email protected] City of Cape Town | DCCP | Quarterly Report |1 JANUARY to 31 MARCH 2018 Table of Contents Page 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ......................................................................................................................................................... 4 Report for 1 January to 31 March 2018 Jurisdiction 2. HIGHLIGHTS & CHALLENGES .............................................................................................................................................. 4 WIL Year Students from CPUT Proclamation and Gazetting of WANR Water Care Fund Project Lack of People and Conservation officer Transport of EPWP teams Photographs by DCCP staff and C Dorse 3. CONSERVATION PLANNING ............................................................................................................................................. 5 Proclamation process WANR Protected Area Advisory Committee DCCP office complex progress 4. FLORA .................................................................................................................................................................................... 6 Invasive Flora Management Maintenance of internal roads and fence lines Table with invasive clearing summary Indigenous Flora Management Baseline plant survey at WANR Flora Collection Photographs by DCCP staff 5. FAUNA ................................................................................................................................................................................... 9 Indigenous Fauna Management Feral/Stray Dogs and Cats Human and Animal Conflict Rehabilitation and Rearing Summary of Faunal and Floral sightings table Mortalities Photographs by DCCP staff 6. SOIL ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 12 Klein Dassenberg rehabilitation project Soil for Propagation 7. WATER ................................................................................................................................................................................... 13 Graph and Table for comparison Table with Monthly rainfall statistics 8. FIRE ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 14 Summary of controlled and uncontrolled fires Fuel reduction fires 2 City of Cape Town | DCCP | Quarterly Report |1 JANUARY to 31 MARCH 2018 Wildfires 9. PEOPLE, TOURISM & EDUCATION ...................................................................................................................................... 14 Environmental Education statistics Exhibitions and other special events Informal Programmes External and Internal meetings Staff, Regional and Branch meetings 10. STAFF MATTERS ..................................................................................................................................................................... 16 Staff Establishment Staff training Occupational Health and Safety 11. LAW ENFORCEMENT ........................................................................................................................................................... 18 WANR and Klein Dassenberg incidents Quemic Ranger programme report Photograph by Quemic 12. INFRASTRUCTURE & EQUIPMENT ........................................................................................................................................ 20 Repairs and Maintenance Externally Funded Programmes DEA Cape Town Water Fund Photograph by C Dorse 3 City of Cape Town | DCCP | Quarterly Report |1 JANUARY to 31 MARCH 2018 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This quarterly report covers all the activities for the period from 1 January to 31 March 2018 within the Dassenberg Coastal Catchment Partnership (DCCP), City sector. The DCCP comprises of the DCCP West (Witzands Aquifer Nature Reserve [WANR], four additional erven to the north of the Dune field and the Brakkefontein Section and the DCCP East (Klein Dassenberg, the Kanonkop, Fraaiuitsig, Dankbaar, Sonop, Dassenberg Sections and Stewardship sites). The management of the DCCP further includes building and maintaining relations with various stakeholder groups, communities, private landowners, City Departments (including Sub Council structures) and other agencies. The DCCP is also responsible for the operational management of three official residential properties and the Mamre Visitors Information Centre. 2. HIGHLIGHTS & CHALLENGES Highlights Two Work Integrated Learnership (WIL) students from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) commenced their WIL year with the DCCP on the 02/01/2018. The Students will be spending the year working at the reserve to complete their requirements for the CPUT. The Students will be involved in all the daily operations and or baseline surveys and monitoring programmes at the Reserve. The 1700 hectares of the WANR has been proclaimed and gazetted as a nature reserve under the National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998. The Specific Environmental Management Act or SEMA, under the auspices of NEMA is referred to as NEM: PAA which stands for the National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act, Act 57 of 2003. This will allow the mandated reserve staff members who are appointed Environmental Management Inspectors to enforce all the legislation under NEM: PAA. The Greater Cape Town Water Care Fund (GCTWCF) launch event for the Atlantis Aquifer took place at Pond07 on the 19/02. The event was organised by the Water Care Fund Project and the aim was to launch the invasive clearing project currently being undertaken at WANR14 (Pond07). The project is funded through the The Nature Conservancy (TNC) which is a global conservation organisation dedicated to the conservation of the worlds ecosystems and working to combat climate change. The organisation aims to conserve the earth’s natural resources through engagement with local communities, the private sector, government and other Institutional partners. It is envisioned that the clearing of invasive species in and around the Atlantis Water Scheme ponds should increase the water yields for the Atlantis Aquifer. 4 City of Cape Town | DCCP | Quarterly Report |1 JANUARY to 31 MARCH 2018 On the 09/03, the student, L Rikhotso presented her research proposal at the Biodiversity Management Branch student presentations. After all the presentations were concluded, the students were given a score, L Rikhotso placed second highest and therefore will be attending the 2018 Fynbos Forum to present her poster based on her research project. The DCCP staff chipped the brush piles from felled invasive vegetation, along the SANDF shooting range road. These chippings will be placed in the open sandy areas around the new office complex. Challenges The matter related to the lack of adequate office and storage of the DCCP’s assets is still a major challenge, together with office space for the staff complement, but will be addressed with the completion of construction of the new office complex. The DCCP remains without a permanent People and Conservation Officer (P&CO) since 2009. This is a huge disadvantage to both the DCCP and communities, as the relationships, programmes and opportunities conducted with the schools/groups/events are affected through the lack of an assigned People and Conservation Officer for the entire DCCP. The P&CO maintains and builds on relationships with communities and/ or members of the public. It is of paramount importance, now more than ever, that this position is acquired for the DCCP with the construction of the office complex, in particular with the Hall which would be a venue to host formal and informal environmental education groups and programmes. The commencement of the two Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) projects namely the Mayor’s Project and the Greenest Metro Project, has been challenging for the DCCP in terms of vehicle transportation and time. The DCCP staff members need to collect the EPWP team members at various points in Atlantis, Mamre and Pella and then transport them to site and collect them from sites and then drop them off again at the end of the work day. During this reporting period, this took about four hours out of the working day on a daily basis. CONSERVATION PLANNING On the 20/10/2017 the following Nature Reserves were gazetted; Blaauwberg, Botterblom, Bracken, Bothasig and Edith Stephens, Steenbras was the first Nature Reserve to be gazetted, in September 2017. The WANR, Uitkamp and Tygerberg Nature reserves were gazetted on 12/01/2018. All NEMA and NEM:PAA regulations, as well as relevant City By-Laws will apply to the WANR. The following Nature Reserves still require to be gazetted: False Bay, Helderberg, Wolfgat, Zandvlei and Table Bay. As per the National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act, Act 57 of 2003, Protected Area Advisory Committees (PAACs) for each of the City of Cape Town’s nature reserves and protected natural areas have been established including for the Witzands Aquifer Nature Reserve. 5 City of Cape