EThekwini Municipality’s Buffelsdraai Reforestation Project
Text and photos by Errol Douwes
Did you know that more than half of the original vegetation cover of the eThekwini Municipal Area of 2297sq km has already been completely transformed? And how much of the untransformed balance is available to local biodiversity? How do we proceed, knowing that it will be almost impossible to meet the conservation targets for 5 of the 11 key vegetation types that occur within the municipal boundary? Even if we had the political support and financial resources needed to restore some of these, do we understand enough about how they function, to get it right? These are just some of the questions to reflect on when deliberating the merits of an ecosystem restoration project. For the past 12 years, I’ve been part of one such municipal-driven project and I share here some of what has been achieved to date.
Some readers may not have heard of the Buffelsdraai Reforestation Project and it is likely that most would not have had an opportunity to visit the site that is situated just inland of Verulam. Driving west from Verulam, the low-lying areas have a distinctly Eastern Valley Bushveld feel but this changes rapidly when moving away from the Mdloti River. As the altitude rises, the underlying bioregion was likely once a grassy mix of KZN Sandstone Sourveld and what I call Dwyka tillite Grassveld (or part of what is collectively termed KZN Coastal Belt Grassland), interspersed with wetlands, bushveld, riparian forest, scarp forest and steeply incised cliffs draped with cremnophytes.
Dwyka tillite is one of the dominant geologies within the Buffelsdraai Project site and it’s likely that the palette of grassland species found here would have been distinct from that of grasslands situated closer to the coast on other substrata. Only a small fragment of KZN Sandstone Sourveld remains on the westernmost, and highest (ca. 350—400m above sea level) part of the site. Most of the site and surrounding areas have been under sugarcane cultivation for about 150 years, so confirming the exact original mix of bioregion or veld types (and associated species) is not straightforward.
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| Figure 1. A recently burnt grassland patch with a flush of new growth, underlain by Dwyka tillite sedimentary rock, at the Buffelsdraai Reforestation Project. |
When eThekwini Municipality expropriated ca. 900 ha of land in the area for its new landfill site in 2004, about 75% was under sugarcane and the rest was a mix of fallow lands and degraded pockets of natural bush, grasslands, wetlands, etc. The landfill itself now occupies a central core of ca. 100 ha of land and is surrounded by the ca. 800 ha buffer zone, a legal requirement at the time when the landfill was first proposed. It is within this buffer zone that the Municipality sought to establish an ecosystem restoration project, or what is now known as the Buffelsdraai Reforestation Project.
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Figure 2. The buffer zone of the Buffelsdraai Landfill site, prior to restoration activities |
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| Figure 3. The buffer zone of the Buffelsdraai Landfill site, subsequent to restoration activities |
Ecosystem restoration is not a new concept in South Africa and an online search will, these days, yield results for a number of such projects. However, this was not always the case. The recognised need for active restoration of natural ecosystems appears to have grown substantially over the past 15 years. This is likely due to the ongoing loss, degradation, or fragmentation of these ecosystems through land uses such as agriculture and development and through invasion by alien plant species.
Another important factor driving the popularity of ecosystem restoration projects is climate change. Natural ecosystems can sequester carbon out of the atmosphere and so are an obvious choice for a (relatively) quick mitigation measure. Other advantages include the various climate change adaptation benefits or services that functional ecosystems provide. Such ecosystem services include flood mitigation through storm water retention, water purification, provision of timber and grazing to communities etc. A number of studies have also linked improved (human) psychological health to the presence of pristine ecosystems such as densely forested areas or well-maintained parks and gardens.
Figure 4. Pavetta lanceolata flowering in the new forest.
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| Figure 5. Volkameria glabra fruiting in the new forest. |
The idea for a restoration project at Buffelsdraai was born in 2008 following the announcement that South Africa would host the 2010 FIFA World CupTM. Municipal officials were looking for ways to achieve a carbon offset for the event and ideas were flowing about how and where a new forest could be planted. The Buffelsdraai site became an obvious choice given that it was municipal-owned and the status of the buffer zone as a no-go area for housing or other forms of development. It was calculated that stadium construction, accommodation and local transport associated with the Durban-based matches would spew out a not insignificant 307,208 tons of CO2equivalent (CO2e) (A carbon dioxide equivalent, abbreviated as CO2e, is a term for describing different greenhouse gases and their global-warming potential in a common metric measure. CO2e signifies the amount of CO2 which would have an equivalent global warming impact). Various projects (including hydro-electric and photo-voltaic) were assessed and tabled to jointly try and achieve the offset and to ensure a carbon neutral Soccer World Cup event. Following some in-field data collection and subsequent number crunching, the project at Buffelsdraai was forecast to offset 42,000 tons of CO2e after 20 years.
Successful discussions between two Municipality departments, namely the Cleansing and Solid Waste Department and the Environmental Planning and Climate Protection Department, as well as support from Municipal leadership, soon led to the appointment of the Wildlands Conservation Trust in 2009 as the on-site implementing agent. Wildlands had experience in undertaking similar restoration projects and had a proven methodology for involving local people. Training and support was offered to local ‘Treepreneurs’ - community members who would collect and grow tree seedlings at their homesteads and then trade the young trees with the project. Instead of cash payments, the seedlings were traded for credit notes that could be exchanged for food and basic goods or used to pay for school fees.
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| Figure 6. A Treepreneur from the nearby Osindisweni community. |
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| Figure 7. One of the nursery staff members. |
The socio-economic benefits of the Treepreneur model were obvious and community members were soon signing up to be included. Additional teams were also employed to dig holes and plant trees, as well as control invasive plant species and cut firebreaks. All of this was later demonstrated, through an independent study, to have significantly increased food security and livelihood opportunities for local community members and ensured better education options for local school children.
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| Figure 8 Seedling grown by one of the Treepreneurs |
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| Figure 9. Cutting grass and weeds around trees that have several years’ growth on the Project site. |
Deciding which ecosystems to restore on the site was largely guided by two important considerations. The first was the ease with which planting of trees supplied by the Treepreneurs could be tracked (including for carbon offset purposes) and funded. The second was the need to avoid the planting of fire-prone grasslands near a landfill that produces highly flammable methane. The earliest aerial photographs available (ca. 1931) confirmed the site as already being under sugar cane at that time, so an assessment of physical features (soils, geology, aspect and distribution and flow of water across the landscape) were used instead to guide the selection of tree species to plant in each area.
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| Figure 10. Trees planted in 2011 on this moist slope now stand about 4m high |
Although the project was initially tabled primarily as a carbon offset (climate change mitigation) initiative, it became clear that another benefit (climate change adaptation) was perhaps even more important. EThekwini Municipality, with various partners, had been developing a concept for a new community ecosystem-based adaptation (CEBA) approach for managing and restoring local ecosystems. The concept was rooted in ensuring that local communities were at the core of ecosystem-based climate change adaptation projects.
Soon after planting started, it became obvious that the restored ecosystems would deliver much needed climate-change adaptation benefits. Adaptation in this context refers to practical ways to reduce risks from climate change, including protection of and/or benefits to communities and local environments (as a spinoff from enhanced ecosystem services), as well as bolstering economic resilience. The benefits to biodiversity, in this instance, include improved biodiversity refuges, water quality, river-flow regulation, flood mitigation, sediment control, visual amenity and fire-risk reduction.
In terms of ongoing management of the site, regular and ongoing control of invasive alien plants has continued (and will continue) to be a high priority. All the usual suspects, including Chromolaena odorata, Lantana camara, Melia azedarach, Solanum mauritianum and Tithonia diversifolia are present in high densities across the site. The onsite restoration team implements control of these and other invasive species, primarily during the autumn and winter months when planting is halted (due to dry soils), which also helps to reduce biomass and fire risk. Dense stands of the invasive species on the site pose a high fire risk to the planted areas as they greatly increase fuel loads. Chromolaena odorata is particularly volatile and when burning, generates temperatures that can kill planted trees.
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Figure 11. Control of invasive alien plants in an area previously planted with indigenous trees. |
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| Figure 12. Solanum mauritianum with flowers and fruit |
Post 2016 a decision was taken to increase the diversity of tree and shrub species planted. This followed recommendations from a UKZN student research project that compared onsite biodiversity with a reference ecosystem at Kenneth Stainbank Nature Reserve. The results were unequivocal: if the restored ecosystems at Buffelsdraai were to achieve similar levels of ecosystem functionality, a more diverse planting pallet would be required. The planting pallet was increased from around 60 tree species (with 80% of the trees planted coming from just 10 of these species) to 141 species (the list now also includes locally indigenous shrubs, climbers and herbaceous species).
Importantly, although much of the focus of this project is on natural forest restoration, there are a number of grasslands and wetlands on the site that are also being restored. Close working relationships with the provincial conservation authority (Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife) and other organisations (e.g. Endangered Wildlife Trust, Johannesburg Zoo and University of KwaZulu-Natal) have also allowed for the successful reintroduction of Black-headed dwarf chameleon (Bradypodion melanocephalum) and Pickersgill's reed frog (Hyperolius pickersgilli) to selected parts of the site. It is hoped that other important species can also be introduced in due course but many will no doubt continue to arrive on their own. Regular bird counts on the Project site have confirmed an increase since Project inception, with 197 bird species now recorded.
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Figure 13. Black-headed dwarf chameleon (Bradypodion melanocephalum) |
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| Figure 14. Pickersgill's reed frog (Hyperolius pickersgilli) |
A research partnership between the Municipality and UKZN, known as the Durban Research Action Partnership, has helped to deliver a range of research outputs. This was primarily achieved through the funding of post-graduate research projects and providing on-site support to students during their field work. An example of long-term monitoring on the site was the establishment of 15 two-hectare research plots, where plant species diversity and growth will be tracked and measured. The intention is to increase understanding of the effectiveness of different planting approaches and how these influence tree diversity over time. A ruin of an old farmhouse on the Project site has also been fully renovated and equipped to provide a base where students and researchers can work. It runs completely off the power and water grid.
Figure 15. Extreme makeover of an old
farmhouse into what is now the Reforestation Centre of Excellence building
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| Figure 16. Interior of the Reforestation Centre of Excellence building. |
A key requirement for long term success will be the Municipality’s ongoing commitment to management of the site and the ability to deal with issues such as land invasions, illegal sand mining, hunting and muthi plant collection. The rapid transformation of surrounding areas, including through expansion of informal settlements, hints at a potential increase in these issues. Ongoing monitoring and research of the biota and ecosystem functionality are also essential, not only to keep management interventions relevant but to inform other restoration work that the Municipality takes on.
The Project has been validated by the internationally accredited Climate Community Biodiversity Alliance (CCBA) as delivering social, biodiversity and carbon sequestration benefits to an international standard. Maintaining these standards and accreditation are one way to track overall Project performance. Another is through ensuring that the site maintains its status as a Conservancy (the entire site was registered as a conservancy in 2017) through conforming with the ethos and guidelines of the National Association of Conservancies & Stewardship South Africa (NACSSA).
The Project has a long way to go and it remains to be seen if and how the restored areas achieve all anticipated targets. It has certainly already highlighted the way that natural ecosystems support and protect human communities and the way that human communities can support, restore and protect local ecosystems. This mutually supportive relationship is one of the reasons why the Project has won several awards. It was also nominated and showcased as one of the United Nations ‘Momentum for Change’ initiatives because of its ability to address climate change through climate-resilient and low-carbon mechanisms, while ensuring optimal benefits for local communities.
My own involvement in this Project has been a steep learning curve, not only when grappling with the complexities of ecosystem restoration and climate change but in managing staff, contractors and researchers and overseeing infrastructure and vehicle acquisitions and maintenance. Certainly, the most fulfilling part was taking time to watch how nature has responded to the restoration efforts. What stands out for me is the need to share these experiences and learnings (whether through conference presentations, peer reviewed literature or popular articles) so that others can learn from the successes and mistakes. With the United Nations recently declaring a new ‘Decade of Restoration’, it’s clear this work is urgent and it’s about to go mainstream. We all need to reflect on our place in the world and about how we can assist in restoring nature. It may present us with the only chance to save ourselves.
Consulted references and further readings and resources;
Boon, R., Cockburn, J., Douwes, E., Govender, N., Ground, L., McLean, C., Roberts, D.C., Rouget, M., Slotow, R. 2016. Managing a threatened savanna ecosystem (KwaZulu-Natal Sandstone Sourveld) in an urban biodiversity hotspot: Durban, South Africa. Bothalia - African Biodivers. Conserv. 46(2) a2112.
Climate Community Biodiversity Alliance. Climate, Community and Biodiversity Standards (CCB Standards) https://www.climate-standards.org/ccb-standards/
Douwes, E., Buthelezi, N.L.P., Winn, R., Alli, F., Mavundla, K., Zungu, B., Muirhead, K. 2018. Seeing the wood for the trees: Forest restoration at the Buffelsdraai regional landfill site, Durban, South Africa. Conference Proceedings of the Landfill 2017 Seminar. Durban.
Durban Botanic Gardens Trust. 2015. The Durban Forest. Ed. Mattson, M. umKhuhlu volume 1. Durban.
EThekwini Municipality. 2019. State of Biodiversity Report 2018 / 2019. http://www.durban.gov.za/City_Services/development_planning_management/environmental_planning_climate_protection/Publications/Pages/default.aspx
EThekwini Municipality. 2020. Durban Strategic Environmental Assessment - Environmental Analysis Phase: Environmental Status Quo Summary Document, eThekwini Municipality, June 2020.
Guterres, A. 2020. The State of the Planet Speech, by UN Secretary-General António Guterres. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1sKQfZFLTQ
Mucina, L. and Rutherford, M.C., Eds. 2006. The Vegetation of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. Strelitzia 19, South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria.
National Association of Conservancies and Stewardship (NACSSA). Undated. Conservancy Handbook. http://www.nacssa.co.za/index.htm
Mugwedi, L.F., Ray-Mukherjee, J., Roy, K.E., Egoh, B.N., Pouzols, F.M., Douwes, E., Boon, R., O’Donoghue, S., Slotow, R., Di Minin, E., Moilanen, A., Rouget, M. 2018. Restoration planning for climate change mitigation and adaptation in the city of Durban, South Africa. International Journal of Biodiversity Science, Ecosystem Services & Management 14(1):132-144
Roberts, D., Boon, R., Diederichs, N., Douwes, E., Govender, N., McInnes, A., McLean, C., O'Donoghue, S., Spires, M. 2012. Exploring ecosystem-based adaptation in Durban, South Africa: “learning-by-doing” at the local government coal face. Environment and Urbanization 24(1), 167–195.
Roy, K. 2015. An evaluation of the Buffelsdraai Landfill Community Reforestation Project. Unpublished MSc Thesis, University of KwaZulu-Natal.
Society for Ecological Restoration International Science & Policy Working Group. 2004. The SER International Primer on Ecological Restoration. https://www.ser-rrc.org/resource/the-ser-international-primer-on/
Snoball Films. 2014. Buffelsdraai Community Reforestation Programme https://youtu.be/4KpMCDAp_qE
Acknowledgements
Thanks to Jo Douwes, Bianca Boshoff and the PlantLife editors for comments on earlier drafts of the manuscript.
About the author:
I’m based in the city of Durban, South Africa, where I work for local government (eThekwini Municipality) and manage the municipality’s Restoration Ecology function. Projects are wide-ranging, largely because of the diverse number of ecosystems present: examples include wetland, grassland, thicket and forest restoration. I’m passionate about nature and restoring natural ecosystems and have a special interest in re-establishing highly diverse systems within the urban landscape. It’s astounding how much biodiversity can appear in restored sites relatively soon after work begins - perhaps tribute to Durban falling within a global biodiversity hotspot. As an honorary research fellow, at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal, I enjoy collaborating with local researchers and assisting students. Other interests include invasion biology, ethnobotany and sustainable land management. I enjoy bird-watching, trekking in the mountains, photography and gardening for wildlife.
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