Driftsands Nature Reserve
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Driftsands Nature Reserve is a Protected Area under the management of CapeNature. Proclaimed in 1983, the reserve is surrounded by communities such as Delft, Wesbank, Sikhumbule as well as informal housing settlements which are known as Green Park and Los Angeles. It is situated between the R300 to the west, the N2 to the south, Mfuleni on the east and Hindle Road to the North. DRIFTSANDS NATURE RESERVE BACKGROUND Driftsands Nature Reserve is a Protected Area under the management of CapeNature. Proclaimed in 1983, the reserve is surrounded by communities such as Delft, Wesbank, Sikhumbule as well as informal housing settlements which are known as Green Park and Los Angeles. It is situated between the R300 to the west, the N2 to the south, Mfuleni on the east and Hindle Road to the North. BIODIVERSITY VALUE Driftsands is not an important site in terms of plant species conservation with only one rare species confirmed from the site, however, the site comprises of Cape Flats Dune Strandveld (CFDS) with Cape Lowland Freshwater Wetlands. CFDS is endemic to the Peninsula and can only be conserved within the City of Cape Town boundaries. It is classified as Endangered with 56% of the original extent having already been transformed mostly due to development. The National Conservation target (set by SANBI) is 24% of the original extent and to date only 6% (which includes Driftsands) has been conserved CFDS occurs in two distinctive forms; the West Coast and the False Bay form. The False Bay form, which includes Driftsands, is fast becoming Critically Endangered with only 25% of the original extent remaining (latest analysis of remnant layer, July 2010). Together with Swartklip, Driftsands represents the only remaining example of inland CFDS longitudinal dune systems. The most important habitats within the reserve, from a biodiversity point of view, are the wetlands. The reserve has three wetland types; a largely artificial permanent open water system, several dune slack depression wetlands and floodplain wetlands associated with the Kuils River. These aquatic features form part of the Kuils River and are all important to the Kuils River as the river is naturally a seasonal system. The wetlands play a crucial role from a process point of view in that they filter the water from the highly impacted and polluted Kuils River and ensure that clean water flows into False Bay. The wetlands are in fact the only natural functionally process within the Kuils River system besides the catchment, seeing that most of the river is turned in to a canal system with artificial banks and it is also used as part of the storm water system with numerous drain pipes feeding into it. SOCIO-ECONOMIC VALUE Driftsands Nature Reserve is the only true urban nature reserve under CapeNature management, seeing that it is surrounded by settlements on all boundaries. Having a nature reserve in close proximity to millions of urban residents presents numerous opportunities. 1. Environmental Education 2. Stakeholder Participation The reserve embraces the participation of surrounding communities. It is only through creating partnerships with these communities that biodiversity can be conserved for future generations. The reserve has Protected Area Advisory Committees and Project Advisory Committees, which provide strategic advice on various management issues. These are valued members of the community, who represent the needs of the communities they come from, ensuring that benefits accrue beyond boundaries. 3. Access The reserve offers opportunities for access to communities for cultural, spiritual and traditional purposes. Quite often, requests are received for initiations, wood collection and traditional rituals. The reserve has a nursery, a medicinal plant garden and agreements with traditional communities who are already being trained on sustainable harvesting methods. Communities are encouraged to contact the reserve for further information and application processes to be followed in order to access these opportunities. 4. Job Creation and Skills Development Driftsands provides opportunities for skills development and income generation. To date:
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