Rachel Wynberg

Disturbance associated with bait-collection for sandprawns (Callianassa kraussi) and mudprawns (Upogebia africana): Long-term effects on the biota of intertidal sandflats

The sandprawn Callianassa kraussi and the mudprawn Upogebia africana are used extensively as fish bait in southern Africa. A holistic analysis of disturbance associated with experimental prawn-collecting was undertaken to determine its repercussions upon the sediment and associated macrofaunal, meiofaunal, microbial and microalgal communities. Patterns of recovery were examined for 18 months following the disturbance. The recovery of both C. kraussi and U. africana was far more protracted than predicted, taking 18 months for completion. Sedimentary compaction, associated with the removal of prawns, could account for these prolonged recoveries. Both C. kraussi and U. africana suffered greater depressions of population densities (ca. 70%) than would have been expected from the proportions removed (ca. 10% and 46% respectively). This suggests that disturbance and sedimentary compaction have greater effects than the removal of sand- and mudprawnsper se. One month after the disturbance of C. kraussi, chlorophyll levels increased above control levels and remained elevated for a further 2-3 months. In contrast, the removal of U. africana resulted in nett decreases in chlorophyll levels for approximately one month following the disturbance. A short-lived decline in bacterial numbers was apparent following the removal of C. kraussi but not U. afiicana. Meiofaunal numbers declined immediately after disturbance of both C. kraussi and U. aficana, but this depression was followed by explosive increases and then a return to control levels. The macrofauna was slower to recover and, after initial reductions of numbers, biomass and species richness, still showed signs of depression 18 months after the disturbance. Three response patterns were apparent: species which were immediately reduced by the treatments and were also slow to recover; species which appeared to have their recruitment suppressed relative to the control; and species which were unaffected by the treatment. Only a single macrofaunal species, the hermit crab Diogenes brevirostris, benefited from the disturbance. Similar trends were observed following the harvesting of both C. kraussi and U. africana.

Land reform and biodiversity conservation in South Africa: complementary or in conflict?

In South Africa, following decades of apartheid, which included racially-based land dispossessions, the post-apartheid government has implemented a land reform programme, which allows people to re-claim the land they were forcefully removed from. Many of these land claims are targeting conservation areas, and this has resulted in the conservation and land reform sectors often coming into conflict. The paper analyzes current experiences in South Africa with regard to land reform in conservation areas, and, through the use of case studies, explores synergies and tensions, which currently exist between these two seemingly disparate objectives. The paper concludes that South Africa has achieved minimal success in reconciling these objectives. First, the divergent goals of the land and conservation sectors result in conflicts, which often lead to delays in the process of resolving land issues. Second, the joint management model used in South Africa to resolve land claims in protected areas appears unsuitable given current power imbalances between conservation agencies and poor rural people. Third, with the retention of the conservation status of land in all cases, land and resource rights remain unclear. Stronger and more secure land rights for the local people are therefore needed. Also needed are flexible strategies for resolving this dilemma, which may include alternative land uses other than ecotourism, and broader bioregional strategies for conservation that look beyond protected areas in terms of planning, conservation and economic development.

An assessment of bait-collecting for Callianassa kraussi stebbing in Langebaan Lagoon, Western Cape, and of associated avian predation

Bait-collectors annually remove less than 0,01 per cent of the sand- and mudprawn populations at Langebaan Lagoon. Activities are concentrated on the centre banks, where, approximately 800 000 prawns are removed per annum, equivalent to 3,2 per cent of the population there. In terms of numbers removed, bait-collecting is thus no threat to the prawn populations at Langebaan Lagoon, although there are signs that sandprawn densities and modal body sizes have been reduced in areas of intense bait-collecting. In addition, bait-collecting disturbs large quantities of sediment and, inadvertently, this results in the disturbance of other components of the biota. Approximately 54 g of macrofauna is disturbed with each bag limit of 50 prawns, amounting to an estimated maximum of 1 300 kg of macrofauna being disturbed annually by bait-collectors. Although the fate of this disturbed macrofauna has not been completely determined, the results of predation experiments suggest that approximately 80 per cent of the biomas...

Marula Policy Brief. Marula commercialisation for sustainable and equitable livelihoods.

Marula (Sclerocarya birrea) features prominently in the semi-arid, deciduous savannas of southern Africa, and constitutes an essential part of the livelihoods, culture and spirituality of rural communities in its distribution range. Virtually all parts of the tree are used, including the fruits (locally consumed as fruit, or in beer/wine and jams, and internationally traded liqueur), kernels (food), oil (cooking, personal care products), bark, roots and leaves (medicine), and wood (carving, utensils, fuelwood). Commercialisation of marula products takes many forms, from household level trade in beer/wine to international markets for Amarula liqueur and the use of kernel oil in personal care products, such as by The Body Shop in a new cosmetics range.

Knowledge on Sclerocarya birrea subsp. caffra with emphasis on its importance as a non-timber forest product in South and southern Africa: A Summary Part 2: Commercial use, tenure and policy, domestication, intellectual property rights and benefit-sharing

Synopsis Sclerocarya birrea (marula) forms an integral part of the diet, tradition and culture of rural communities in southern Africa and also is central to various commercial initiatives. This second part of a review on the species provides an overview of current commercial activities, the policy framework within which commercialisation occurs, and future prospects with regard to domestication. Much work has been conducted over the years on the properties of S. birrea fruit, juice, nuts and oil. Despite this research there has been little commercialisation. Two main commercial enterprises trade marula products in South Africa: one, a large corporation, and the other, a rural development project. In Namibia, marula commercialisation is undertaken through a collaborative project between primary producers, a cooperative, contract processors and a local NGO. Commercialisation is influenced by a wide set of customary and government laws which regulate marula use in southern Africa, comprising different tenure systems, access rights, and levels of protection. Strong customary rules can be linked to the long history ofmarula use in the region, with clear evidence of early domestication and the selection of desirable traits by local people. Such knowledge has been applied in the development ofmarula domestication strategies, both by private plant breeders in Israel and southern Africa, and by the International Centre for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF), which works with small-scale farmers to develop agroforestry options. A number of issues are raised by the domestication of marula which relate to intellectual property and benefitsharing. They include the compensation of small-scale farmers and original holders of local knowledge for the commercial use of such knowledge; the impact ofPlant Breeders Rights on communities using marula; and the possibility of domestication shifting benefits from poorer groups of farmers to richer ones. Current and future commercialisation strategies clearly need to take these factors into account, and to balance associated costs and benefits.

Less is Often More: Governance of a Non-Timber Forest Product, Marula (Sclerocarya birrea subsp. caffra) in Southern Africa

SUMMARY Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are often seen as tools to promote rural development and biodiversity conservation but little attention has been given to the different policy approaches adopted for their governance, nor to the role played by customary law. Through the lens of one of the most revered and economically important trees in Africa, marula (Sclerocarya birred), NTFP governance is explored in case studies across South Africa and Namibia. Results are presented from a study that examined the interface between statutory and customary rules and regulations governing marula conservation and use. The major finding is that ‘less’ is often ‘more’ when it comes to government regulation of marula, a result that resonates with other NTFP studies from around the world that indicate the need for state-led interventions to be purposely crafted to reflect local circumstances and needs. Such interventions are also most effective when government and traditional authorities cooperate, authorities have legitimacy and sufficient capacity, and there is acceptance of the rules by user groups. It is suggested that state intervention may be least useful where traditional governance is strong, and with the exception of areas and cases in which customary law and traditional authority fall short and commercial pressures on species are significant, governments might do best by leaving well enough alone.

Green Diamonds of the South: An Overview of the San-Hoodia Case

One of the most famous benefit-sharing initiatives to date is the San-Hoodia case. The San peoples are the oldest human inhabitants of southern Africa, but after centuries of genocide and marginalization by colonialists, they now number only about 100,000 people in Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Angola. Their current lives are characterized by abject poverty, yet they still possess traditional knowledge about local biodiversity.

People, Power, and the Coast: a Conceptual Framework for Understanding and Implementing Benefit Sharing

The concept of benefit sharing has seen growing adoption in recent years by a variety of sectors. However, its conceptual underpinnings, definitions, and framework remain poorly articulated and developed. We aim to help address this gap by presenting a new conceptual approach for enhancing understanding about benefit sharing and its implementation. We use the coast as a lens through which the analysis is framed because of the intricate governance challenges which coastal social-ecological systems present, the increasing development and exploitation pressures on these systems, and the growing need to improve understanding about the way in which greater equity and reduced inequalities could reduce conflicts, protect coastal ecosystems, and ensure greater social justice. Key elements of the framework include the range of actors involved, the natural resources they access and use, the interventions introduced to redistribute benefits, and the benefits and losses that result from these interventions. The framework underscores the importance of process in determining who gets what, as well as the wider institutional, political, social, and economic context. Power relations and imbalances underpin many of these elements and remain the central reason for benefits being distributed in the way that they are. The framework has relevance and application for coastal livelihoods, rural governance, and resource sustainability in a context in which community rights are increasingly undermined through land grabbing, unequal power relations, and externally driven development interventions.

The next decade of environmental science in South Africa : a horizon scan

Environmental systems are in constant flux, with feedbacks and non-linearities catalysed by natural trends and shocks as well as human actions. This poses challenges for sustainable management to promote human well-being. It requires environmental understanding and application that can accommodate such fluxes and pressures, as well as knowledge production systems and institutions that produce graduates with appropriate skills. In this article we consider these challenges in the South African context. Firstly, we summarise six significant environmental realisations from the last decade of environmental science internationally and question what they mean for the teaching of environmental science and research into environmental systems in South Africa in the near future. We then consider these lessons within the context of a horizon scan of near-term pressing environmental issues in South Africa. These include water-use efficiency, poverty, food security, inequities in land and resource access, urbanisation, agrochemicals and water quality, promoting human well-being and economic adaptability in the face of climate change, and imbuing stronger environmental elements and stewardship into the integrated development planning processes and outcomes. Lastly, we consider the knowledge areas and skills that environmental graduates will require to be able to confront these problems in South Africa and simultaneously contribute to international debates and understandings around the complexity of environmental systems and how to manage them.

The trade in Pelargonium sidoides: Rural livelihood relief or bounty for the ‘bio-buccaneers’?

Historically, the trade benefits of medicinal plants have been skewed towards technologically advanced Northern countries, despite originating from the biologically rich South. Since the 1990s, attempts at rectifying this situation have been stepped up globally. In southern Africa, a substantial industry has developed around the use of the endemic plant Pelargonium sidoides as a cure for respiratory tract infections. Rural communities harvest the plant for trade and also hold traditional knowledge about it. However, the industry has been plagued by concerns about the sustainability of the resource and equitable sharing of benefits, and accusations of ‘biopiracy’. This study examines the value chain to identify blockages preventing better benefit capture by the rural poor. We conclude that the Biodiversity Convention offers opportunities for redress but that monopolistic control, complex and uncoordinated laws, elite capture of benefits and increased cultivation undermine benefit sharing. These problems need to be overcome if rural communities are not to lose their benefits to large corporations exploiting Pelargonium sidoides.