Wetlands of South Africa

GI Cowan (ed).1995.

Wise use of wetlands by rural indigenous people. The Kosi Bay Nature Reserve: a case study

R Kyle

Abstract

The Kosi Bay Nature Reserve is situated on the east coast of South Africa and has a surface area of about 11 000 ha over half of which is water. The system flows northwards, parallel to the ocean, through a series of lakes and channels, to enter the Indian Ocean just south of Mozambique.

It was proclaimed as a nature reserve in 1987. The area has a tradition of human exploitation of the renewable natural resources and many aspects of this have been monitored since 1980, creating a large database. The policy of the KwaZulu Bureau of Natural Resources (KBNR), who administers the reserve, is to allow wise, sustainable and appropriate utilization.

Traditional harvesting methods have been investigated in detail and were found to be generally compatible with the wise use concept. Modern methods are controlled by a comprehensive set of regulations aimed at maintaining stocks. Several other methods, often blends of traditional and modern methods without any constraints, have led to over-utilization and have, therefore, been discouraged.

In recent years several initiatives have been introduced in an attempt to complement extant utilization methods without over-exploiting the resources. Two such initiatives are gill-net experimentation and controlled utilization of Juncus kraussii sedges. These have been set up jointly with the local community (tribal) authority.

Present utilization is discussed in the context of the wise utilization concept and against a background of rural poverty. Some of the advantages of the wise use management option as well as some problems associated with implementation are discussed, using examples from the Kosi Bay Nature Reserve.

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	This page is maintained by the South African Wetlands Conservation Programme and was last updated on 12 January 1999.

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