E-flows science in the Crocodile River as part of the Incomati Transboundary Basin, southern Africa. Mozambique

Description

Location

Demosite Location
Demosite Location

Sketch

Demosite Location

Information about lithology/geochemistry:

The site is located on the Crocodile River, one of the three main tributaries of the Incomati Basin. Its is a relatively large (compared to rivers in the basin) perennial river in the lower reaches of the Crocodile River sub-catchment area, instream habitat dominated by alluvial sediments with rocky dykes providing bedrock dominated reaches of the river. While the ecoregion which the site occurs in is characteristic of a low-land river the rocky instream habitats associated with the dykes provides habitat characteristics that are representative of the middle reaches of the river. This diversity of habitats characteristic of lower and middle reaches of the catchment provides for a high diversity of fauna and flora and key ecosystem processes and functions.


Main Description

  • Perennial, highly seasonal river site with social and ecological value, located within the Kruger National Park in South Africa, upstream of Mozambique.

Conserve Ecohydrological processes in natural ecosystem

YES

Enhance ecohydrological processes in novel ecosystem

YES

Apply complementary Ecohydrological processes in high impacted system

NO


This table presents the different categories of ecosystem services that ecosystem can provide, divided in:

Provisioning Services are ecosystem services that describe the material or energy outputs from ecosystems. They include food, water and other resources.
Regulating Services are the services that ecosystems provide by acting as regulators eg. regulating the quality of air and soil or by providing flood and disease control.
Ecosystem services "that are necessary for the production of all other ecosystem services". These include services such as nutrient recycling, primary production and soil formation.
Cultural Services corresponds nonmaterial benefits people obtain from ecosystems through spiritual enrichment, cognitive development, reflection, recreation, and aesthetic experiences.

EH Principles

Quantification of the hydrological processes at catchment scale and mapping the impacts

Ecological engineering (integration, dual regulation and biotechnologies in catchment scale for enhancement of ecological potential)

ECOHYDROLOGY ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS

We have implemented a range of biomonitoring tools using aquatic and riparian vegetation as ecological indicators and in an adaptive management approach use these tools as indicators to monitor the wellbeing of the instream and riparian ecosystems.

Phytotechnology

We have upstream dams, weirs that provide flows to the reach being considered and we have specialist biotechnologies at the site including an ongoing FISHTRAC programme where we are using fish behaviour tracked and evaluated remotely and in real-time to monitor the ecosystem’s response to flow variability. We also have a 2D hydrodynamic model of the reach (Mike 2D model) including a sediment dynamism module to model and monitor the ecological infrastructure of the reach. Stakeholders have attempted to build fish pass structures and ensure they are operational to facilitate fish migration in the river but these structures are not operating adequately. The weir on the Crocodile River has been modified to include a radial gate to manage sediment movement in the river which is controlled to support e-flows.

Ecohydrological Infrastructure

We have established e-flow requirements (including the volume, timing, duration and frequency of flows) for the Crocodile River and complementary water quality and habitat targets or RQOs for the sustainable management of water resources in the river. We have also established tools to monitor flows in the basin.

Hydrological Flow

We have also implemented a range of biomonitoring tools using macroinvertebrates and fish as ecological indicators and in an adaptive management approach use these tools as indicators to monitor the wellbeing of the instream ecosystem. This includes supporting tools of lines of evidence (LoEs) to give us a confident understanding of the ecological value of the flows in the river (and non-flow) drivers. This tool is the FISHTRAC LoE which incorporates the use of tagged and tracked fish.

Faunatechnology

Major Issues

Social ecohydrological system

EH Objectives

Water:
Biodiversity
Services
Resilience
Cultural Heritage

EH Methodology


Catchment Ecohydrological sub-system

Objectives

  • Culture, Vulnerable human communities live along the river as it forms the southern bank of the Kruger National Park. Historically local communities have undertaken various cultural activities in the river which has reduced due to access restrictions imposed by the Kruger following increases in Rhino poaching issues. Below the site where the river flows out of the Kruger various cultural activities including recreational activities, religious activities and aesthetic benefits are recognised.

  • Education, The demo site is of interest to local universities, the Kruger National Park and stakeholders of the local river catchment forums for education purposes. Because of the facilities associated with the site including the weir and radial gate and fish pass the site is often used as a demonstration site.

  • Law, The site is a formal e-flows monitoring point for the Incomati Basin in South Africa and the Trans-boundary e-flow framework for the Incomati Basin. Resource Quality Objectives or sustainability targets are associated with this site as well as multiple use regulation monitoring.

  • Policy, The site has been used to contribute to policy development including catchment management strategy and formal resource directed measure (RDM) outcomes of the National Water Act. This includes the gazetting of e-flows and associated resource quality objectives to direct the management of the water resources in the basin.

  • Governance, The site is used by local and national regulators to monitor flows, e-flows and the socio-ecological consequences of multiple stressors. From this site we demonstrate various local, regional and international sustainable water resource governance approaches, methods and their implementation.

  • Stakeholders

  • University of Mpumalanga, Charles Sturt University, Stellenbosch University, North West University

  • Department of Water and Sanitation (South Africa) and the Inkomati-Usuthu Catchment Management Agency. Department of Environmental Affairs and the Kruger National Park.

  • Crocodile River Forum and the International Water Management Institute


  • Catchment Sociological sub-system

    Activities


    Expected Outcomes

    • Increased base flows, improved quality of the resource and local and international community wellbeing. Establishment of and buy in of sustainable water resource management policies for the Crocodile River and Incomati Basin.


    Latest Results


    Contacts

    Gordon O’Brien

    • gordon.obrien@ump.ac.za
    • University of Mpumalanga

    Overview

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