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RESTORATION AND REHABILITATION FEATURE

Footpath at a riparian rehabilitation Riparian rehabilitation in Tulbagh: Klein Berg River
site on the Berg River

A local indigenous garden in Tulbagh Planting on the banks of the Berg River Riparian rehabilitation in Tulbagh: Klein Berg River
and riparian rehabilitation
sharing knowledge are both essential parts Projects
of riparian restoration and it is advisable to Intaba has completed numerous projects but gives the following as three of its favourites:
consult a specialist freshwater ecologist and • landscaping and rehabilitation of a private farm along the Klein Berg River in Tulbagh;
restoration specialist before embarking on • rehabilitation of the Berg and Breede Rivers (www.westerncape.gov.za/eadp/berg-river-
a project of this nature. improvement-plan-brip). A detailed article on this project will be featured in a future issue of
Landscape sA.
Many restoration ecologists use the • rehabilitation of a degraded habitat near a communication tower on top of a mountain in the
principles of SER (Society for Ecological Western Cape.
Restoration) as a tool to assist them in the
work they undertake. The SER Africa Chapter In the first project above, which started in 2013 and is ongoing, Intaba worked together with
is a non-profit organisation that aims to Patrick Watson, who did the initial landscaping designs. They then undertook the following: a
advance the science, practice and policy site assessment, rehabilitation plan, clearing of alien plants and trees, monitoring, propagation of
of ecological restoration in order to sustain specific local plants, seed collection, planting of trees and plants along the river and planting of
biodiversity and assist with the recovery indigenous plant species in the garden. In total, 188 species were used and the riparian zone that
and management of degraded ecosystems. was rehabilitated was 750 metres in length.
SER Africa, established in 2020, has over
240 members and is led by a board which is Intaba partners with SER, WWF SA, Cape Nature, Landcare South Africa, CREW, BotSoc, University
spread across Africa. of Stellenbosch and the Green Fingers Initiative.

www.greenintaba.co.za
www.youtube.com/channel/UCHGKz3hJgRVUBoqKp0OLKNw
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Landscape SA • Issue 112 2022 17