VEGETATION SURVEY of portions 6 & 83 of farm TWEEFONTEIN 288 JR, CULLINAN for CAVALIER GROUP OF COMPANIES Dr Noel van Rooyen 28 February 2013 CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................................................................. i GENERAL INFORMATION ...........................................................................................................................v REGULATIONS GOVERNING THIS REPORT ................................................................................................ vi TERMS OF REFERENCE ..............................................................................................................................viii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................1 CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY .....................................................................................................................2 CHAPTER 3: ENVIRONMENTAL DESCRIPTION............................................................................................3 CHAPTER 4: ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATION...........................................................................................12 CHAPTER 5: VEGETATION .........................................................................................................................15 CHAPTER 6: CONSERVATION: VEGETATION AND FLORA......................................................................28 CHAPTER 7: ECOLOGICAL SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS OF THE SITE...............................................................41 CHAPTER 8: IMPACTS ................................................................................................................................48 CHAPTER 9: SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACTS ................................................................................................52 CHAPTER 10: DISCUSSION, MITIGATION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...................................................56 REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY............................................................................................................59 APPENDIX A: PLANT SPECIES CHECKLIST .................................................................................................63 APPENDIX B: CHECKLIST OF PLANT SPECIES: Gauteng NC Bill 2012.....................................................69 APPENDIX C: TABLE 5 DIFFERENTIAL TABLE..............................................................................................70 APPENDIX D: CV OF N VAN ROOYEN .....................................................................................................75 Tweefontein 2012 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Ekotrust cc was commissioned to assess the vegetation and Red Data flora of portions 6 & 83 of the farm Tweefontein 288 JR near Cullinan, at 25° 37’ 30” S; 28° 28’ 54” E (Figures 1 & 2). The area that was surveyed for the vegetation study covered approximately 80 ha. The quarter degree grid reference is 2528CB. The proposed project entails the upgrading and expansion of the abattoir facility on Tweefontein. The area is flat to undulating with some low hills that occur in the central parts of the site. The area is drained towards the Boekenhoutspruit in the north and the Rooispruit in the south. The altitude ranges from approximately 1344 m in the north to 1390.9 m at the highest point in the central-western part of the site. The annual rainfall for the immediate area of the site ranges from 573 mm at Rust der Winter to 686 mm at Roodeplaat. The rainy season at Roodeplaat is predominantly from October to April when about 92% of the annual rainfall occurs, with January the wettest month. The driest months are from June to August, when less than 10 mm of rain per month is recorded. The mean annual temperature for the area is 18.1°C. The extreme maximum and minimum temperatures measured over a period of 25 years were 37.6°C and -6.7°C respectively. Frost may occur from May to September. The geology of the site consists mainly of quartzite, quartzitic sandstone, diabase and recent deposits of soil, sand, gravel and scree. The site falls in Land Type Bb8. The site falls in the Central Sandy Bushveld (SVcb12) vegetation type, and the Central Bushveld Bioregion of the Savanna Biome. The conservation status of the Central Sandy Bushveld vegetation type is considered as ‘vulnerable’ by Mucina & Rutherford (2006), but is classified as ‘least threatened’ by NEM:BA (2011). Less than 3% is statutorily conserved spread thinly across many nature reserves. About 24% of the area is transformed, including predominantly cultivated areas (19%) and urban and built-up areas (4%). The following plant communities were differentiated and mapped: 1. Faurea saligna – Diplorrhynchus condylocarpon dense bushveld 2. Burkea africana – Eustachys paspaloides – Loudetia simplex woodland 3. Burkea africana – Loudetia simplex wooded grassland 4. Faurea saligna – Cymbopogon caesius – Loudetia simplex bushveld 5. Mundulea sericea - Tristachya biseriata – Loudetia simplex open bushveld i Ekotrust CC Tweefontein 2012 6. Burkea africana – Acacia caffra – Dicerocaryum eriocarpum woodland 7. Acacia karroo – Panicum maximum woodland 8. Acacia robusta – Pappea capensis – Gymnosporia polyacantha dense bushveld A total of 213 indigenous and 29 alien plant species (12% of all species) was recorded on site. Twelve of these exotic species are declared invasive and weedy species (5% of all plant species on site). The number of species per community range from 52 to 126 in the current survey, with a mean of 71 species per community, which is slightly higher than the mean number of species within a community for Gauteng vegetation types. The February 2013 assessment of the site and its vegetation yielded the following results: • The site is not located in a protected area according to NEM:PAA. • About 38% of the site is currently transformed by human activities, e.g. abattoir and feedlot facilities. • Boophone disticha and Hypoxis hemerocallidea are the listed GDARD plant species that were recorded on site. Both species are classified as “declining” • The taxa that may be present on site, i.e. Searsia gracillima var. gracillima, Habenaria kraenzliniana and Eulophia coddii were not recorded during the current survey. The preferred habitat for these species will not form part of the proposed development on site. • None of the plant species recorded on site are listed in the NEM:BA (TOPS) lists of critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable species, or in the Schedule B1 & B2 species lists. • All plant species recorded on site are classified as “least concern”, except for Boophone disticha and Hypoxis hemerocallidea that are classified as “declining”. • Aloe greatheadii subsp. davyana (communities 1, 2 4, 5, 6 & 8) and Aloe marlothii (communities 1 & 6) are the succulents on site that are listed in CITES 2012 Appendix II. • No protected tree species were recorded on site. • No endemic species were recorded on site. • Fifty-two species with medicinal properties and 27 species with poisonous properties were recorded on site. Sensitivity: No significant sensitive terrestrial habitats such as quartzite ridges occur on site and therefore the general sensitivity of the area is regarded as very low to low. ii Ekotrust CC Tweefontein 2012 Summary of the sensitivity of the plant communities: Plant communities 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Threatened status (x5) 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 % Red data species (x4) 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 % Gauteng rare species (x4) 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 Number protected trees (x3) 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 % Endemic species (x2) 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 Conservation value (x4) 12 8 8 12 4 4 4 4 Species richness (x2) 6 4 6 4 4 6 6 6 Connectivity (x2) 4 4 2 4 4 2 4 2 Erosion (x2) 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 4 Resilience (x3) 6 3 3 3 3 3 3 6 3 Sum: 48 39 39 43 5 35 37 40 V VL Sensitivity rating: L VL VL L L VL L Impacts: The significance assessment of impacts on the terrestrial aquatic ecosystems is as follows: Community Community Community 3 6 8 Certainty (ε) 5 5 5 Intensity (α) 4 4 4 Duration (β) 5 5 5 Scale (δ) 1 1 1 Significance (α+β+δ)*ε: 50 50 50 Significance rating: Moderate Moderate Moderate Mitigation measures during the construction phase of the proposed expansion of the abattoir and provision of feedlots for cattle: • Development should be contained within the footprint of the proposed expansion of the abattoir/feedlots and unnecessary disturbance adjacent to the site should be avoided. • Minimise large-scale clearance of natural vegetation and disturbance at the sites. iii Ekotrust CC Tweefontein 2012 • Use existing and dedicated access roads to limit disturbance of the natural vegetation. • Dust control measures should be implemented during construction. • The areas which have been denuded and disturbed as a result of construction on site, should be re-vegetated as soon as possible. • Prevent soil erosion from the disturbed areas by rehabilitation of the sites. • All plant species recorded on site are considered as ‘least concern’, except for Boophone disticha and Hypoxis hemerocallidea that are classified as “declining”. Only Boophone disticha occurs in the footprint of the proposed development (communities 3 & 6) and because it is a geophyte, the success rate of transplanting such species is relatively high. The individuals should therefore be transplanted to similar habitat adjacent to the proposed sites. This is also applicable to the Aloe species in community 6. • Indigenous trees and shrubs should be retained