Farmers rise to challenge of restoring an ecosystem
The WWF Nedbank Green Trust is funding a project to rehabilitate the diverse Renosterveld biome in the Western Cape, writes Heather Dugmore
A portrait of the Western Cape 300 years ago would show rolling expanses of a vegetation type with an extraordinary diversity of bulb species. Renosterveld was grazed by large numbers of big game, including the extinct bluebuck and quagga, and the eland and black rhino that gave it its name. The herds of game have gone and the Renosterveld is down to 5% of its original expanse, with less than 50 remaining fragments in the Overberg that are more than 100ha and fewer of this size in the Swartberg. An emergency response is required to prevent the extinction of this jewel in the Cape Floristic Region: the smallest and richest plant kingdom on Earth. What is required is the restoration of the watercourses that link and feed these fragments, which are the only source of intact biodiversity in the region’s farming landscape. The WWF Nedbank Green Trust is funding this through a three-year project that started in September 2015. "Renosterveld is one of the richest ecosystems in the world, m...
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