Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences

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    Mapping ecological zones in the Kruger National Park using remote sensing
    (2010-08) Ratshibvumo, Thihanedzwi; Munyati, C.; Ogola, J. S.
    See the attached abstract below
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    Flood Frequency Analysis of Annual Maximum Stream Flows for Luvuvhu River Catchment, Limpopo Province, South Africa
    (2012) Singo, L. R.; Kundu, P. M.; Odiyo, J. O.; Mathivha, F. I.; Nkuna, T. R.
    Luvuvhu River Catchment (LRC) is one of the regions in South Africa where floods have caused enormous damage and impacted negatively on fauna and flora. Over the years, the catchment has experienced floods resulting from heavy rainfall associated with the ITCZ. Annual maximum flow data from 8 stations with 50 years hydrological data were used to analyze flood frequencies in the catchment. To derive the probability of occurrence of flood events, the frequency distributions which could best describe the past characteristics and magnitudes of such floods were tested. This involved the determination of the best flood frequency models, which could be fitted to the available historical recorded data. The distribution models used included the Generalized Extreme Value, Gumbel or Extreme Value type 1, Log-Normal and the Log Pearson type III distributions. The extreme value analysis showed that the Gumbel and Log Pearson type III distributions provided the best fit.
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    A comparative evaluation of rural development programmes in the Thulamela Municipality : a case study of Sidou and Malavuwe Villages
    (2013) Musiwalo, Takalani Enos; Nelwamondo, T. M.; Mudau, N. V.
    The focus of the study is on the comparative assessment of Rural Development Programmes between Sidou and Malavuwe Village within Ward 22 of the Thulamela Municipality. The study aims to investigate the gap that exists between effective programme implementation and less effective programme implementation in rural areas. To achieve this, the study uses Malavuwe Village as a control village and Sidou Village as an experiment village. The study found that there was a discrepancy in service delivery between the two villages; more services were delivered effectively at Malavuwe than at Sidou Village. The study further investigates the causes of this discrepancy in service delivery between the two villages and also suggests feasible approaches that can be employed by the Thulamela Municipality to enhance programme implementation and service delivery within the study area. The study found that Sidou Village lacked community services such as clinics, high schools, community halls, sporting facilities and income generating community projects. On the contrary, Malavuwe Village had most community services. Based on the findings of the study, it is recommended that the Thulamela Municipality should ensure thorough provision of services and encourage community participation through consultation and partnership at Sidou Village. Such an approach will be bottom-up and will encourage community members at Sidou Village to be actively involved in the prioritisation and implementation of vital services, thus raising the socioeconomic conditions and infrastructure development in the village
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    An evaluation of the effects of climate change on flood frequency in the Luvuvhu River Catchment, Limpopo Province, South Africa
    (WIT Press, 2014) Kundu, P. M.; Singo, R. L.; Odiyo, J. O.; Nkuna, R. N.
    Climate change poses a great risk to natural resources and agriculture in the Luvuvhu River Catchment. The catchment has experienced floods resulting from higher than normal rainfall associated with the Intertropical Convergence Zone and cyclones, which have caused enormous damage to property and impacted negatively on fauna and flora and human livelihoods. In order to understand the dynamics involved in the effects of climate change in the catchment, annual maximum flow data was used to evaluate flood frequencies. The distribution models used in the study included the Generalized Extreme Value distributions, the Gumbel Extreme Value type I distribution, the Log-normal distribution and the Log Pearson type III distribution. The extreme value analysis showed that the Log-normal and Log-Pearson type III distributions provided the best fit, which could be used to derive the probability of occurrence of flood events. The results showed a general increase in the frequency of extreme events, accompanied by floods of higher magnitude.
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    Adsorption of oxyanions of As, B, Cr, Mo and Se from coal fly ash leachates using A1/Fe modified bentonite clay
    (2014-01-10) Masindi, Vhahangwele; Gitari, Wilson Mugera; Tutu, Hlanganani
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    Assessing the impacts of riparian land use on gully development and sediment load : a case study of Nzhelele River Valley, Limpopo Province, South Africa
    (2015) Mavhuru, Blessing; Nethengwe, N. S.; Dondofema, F.
    Human activities on land degradation have triggered several environmental problems especially in rural areas that are under developed. The main aim of this study is to analyse the contribution of different land uses to gully development and sediment load on the Nzhelele River Valley in the Limpopo Province. Data was collected using different methods such as observation, field data techniques and experiments. Satellite digital images, topographic maps, aerial photographs and the sediment load static model also assisted in determining how land use affects gully development and sediment load. For data analysis, the researcher used the following methods: Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficient and statistical correlation methods. The results of the research illustrates that high land use activities create negative changes especially in areas that are highly fragile and vulnerable. Distinct impact on land use change was observed within settlement area (9.6 %) within a period of 5 years. High correlation between soil organic matter and soil moisture (R=0.96) was observed. Furthermore a significant variation (p ≤ 0.6) between the soil organic matter and soil moisture was also observed. A very significant variation (p ≤ 0.003) was observed in bulk density and extreme significant variations (p ≤ 0.0001) were observed in organic matter and soil particle size. The sand mining and agricultural activities has contributed significantly to the amount of sediment load in the Nzhelele River. A high significant amount of total suspended sediment (55.3 %) and bed load (53.8 %) was observed within the agricultural area. The connection which associates the development of gullies to various land use activities determines the amount of sediment load. These results are consistent with other previous research and suggest that land use activities is likely to exacerbate the development of gullies and sediment load in the Nzhelele River Valley
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    Bioremediation of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) on contaminated soils : a case study of Rietvlei Farm Borehole No. 11, Limpopo Province, South Africa
    (2015) Sengani, David; Potgieter, Natasha; Mojapelo, M. P.
    Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are worldwide environmental pollutants which contaminate the environment through careless disposal practices and accidental spills or leakages from electrical transformers. These organic compounds are lipophilic chemicals soluble in fats, slightly soluble in water and readily bioaccumulated in the fatty tissues of fish, birds, animals and humans. The main objective of this study was to isolate and identify PCB degrading bacteria from PCB contaminated soils and test them for their degradation ability of PCBs in natural habitat conditions. Three bacteria species which comprise of Gram negative and Gram positive microorganisms were isolated and identified through biochemical tests, catalase tests, oxidase tests and morphological study and included Burkholderia cepacia, Pasteurella pneumotropica and Enterococcus faecalis. The results indicated that, there was an overall decrease of PCB concentration level and the readings ranged between -1.51 and -1.79 respectively for all the microorganisms. Enterococcus faecalis remove as much as 32% of PCBs in the contaminated soil samples. Whereas Pasteurella pneumotropica could remove 24% of PCBs, Burkholderia cepacia 21% of PCBs and the mixed culture removed 23%. Data showed that the 3 bacterial strains could tolerate high concentration of PCBs. The results provided the evidence that naturally occurring bacteria in soil contaminated with PCBs have the potential to degrade PCBs. Statistical analysis showed that there was a significant positive correlation between bacteria growth and treatment with a coefficient of (r) =0.1459 and p value <0.001.
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    Willingness to pay for water services in two communities of Mutale Local Municipality, South Africa : a case study
    (2015) Rananga, H. T.; Gumbo, Jabulani R.
    The provision of reliable and adequate drinking water services in rural communities is important. Here, the researchers reported on a study that evaluated the respondents’ willingness to pay for water services in the two communities in Mutale Local Municipality, South Africa. The study was accomplished through open-ended questionnaire interviews with selected respondents. The study showed that respondents were dissatisfied with the unreliable water services (89.9%) but were willing to pay for water services to secure reliable water services (95.5%). The respondents with tertiary level education were willing to pay R 150 per month per 6 kilolitres. The maximum 6 kilolitres is the free basic water services that the municipality can provide without collecting water revenues. The following variables: literacy levels; household size of 3 to 6 members; the age of 40; and monthly incomes, had a significant effect (p = 0.005) on the monetary amount and the willingness to pa
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    An evaluation of the performance of tourism at Mapungubwe National Park, South Africa
    (2015) Sinthumule, Ndidzulafhi I.
    Mapungubwe National Park is one of the parks that were created to conserve both biodiversity and cultural heritage in South Africa. It has also been awarded the status of a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). This study evaluates the performance of tourism at the park and the cultural landscape. Data on visitations and lodging occupancy after the Park was declared as a World Heritage Site were examined. In order to understand possible causes of tourism trends, visitation data was supplemented by social survey data. The study established that there is no sharp increase on the tourist numbers to the Park. In addition, bed occupancy is below 50% since the Park was declared a World Heritage Site. Potential barriers contributing to low bed occupancy are discussed. The study concludes that the World Heritage Site status did not trigger an increase in tourism in Mapungubwe National Park. Contributing factor is newness of Mapungubwe as a national park in South Africa.
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    Assessment of As and Hg in mine tailings and indigenous grass : a case study of non-functional New Union Gold Mine, South Africa
    (2015) Mundalamo, Tsedzuluso; Gumbo, Jabulani R.; Muzerengi, Confidence; Dacosta, Francis
    The present study was carried out to assess the uptake of toxic metals, arsenic (As) and mercury (Hg), by Cynodon dactylon grass species at New Union gold mine tailings, Limpopo Province, South Africa. The samples were collected from New Union Gold Mine tailings and from Ka-Madonsi Village (control), and concentrations of As and Hg in soil and plant material were determined by ICP-MS. The average dry weight concentrations of As and Hg in mine tailing dam A were 2.53 and 1.18 µg/g, respectively, and 2.24 and 0.91 µg/g, respectively, in mine tailings B. The average dry weight of As and Hg in the control soil samples were 0.30 and 0.05 µg/g, respectively. The C. dactylon, on average dry weight, absorbed 5.45 µg/g of As, and 1.72 µg/g of Hg from mine tailings A, and 4.29 µg/g of As; and 1.55 µg/g of Hg from mine tailings B. The control grass, on average dry weight, absorbed 0.53 µg/g and 0.01 µg/g of As and Hg, respectively. In most cases, significant differences were observed between bioaccumulation of Hg and As in plant tissue from mine sites and control sites. The study showed that the bioconcentration factor was less than 1 for the acidic mine tailings, with exception of the root and rhizome system which was greater than 1. This contrasted sharply with the control site where the pH was alkaline, and As and Hg levels were low. The pH values were significantly different (p <0.05) between the soils originating from mine tailings and the control site. The electrical conductivity (EC) of soil at mine tailings A and B were 1847.35 and 1777.5 µS/cm, respectively. The EC for the control site was significantly different (p < 0.05) at 543.3 µS/cm. C. dactylon was found to be capable of bioaccumulation of As and Hg, effective at soil stabilization, and grew well under the acidic conditions. The control grass was healthy and thrived under the alkaline conditions.
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    An evaluation of urban and rural land use change, conflict and competition
    (2015-02-06) Nemukula, Nkhangweleni Lennox; Musyoki, A.; Nethengwe, N. S.
    This study set out to evaluate the extent of land use change, competition and conflict in Polokwane city and in selected land restitution areas of Limpopo province. The methods of data collection and analysis included document analysis, triangulation of quantitative and qualitative survey methods, use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) techniques and field observations. The restitution studies relied on information from the regional land claims commission regarding land dispossessions, land claims and post settlement activities which were analysed using content analysis. Land use maps and data from department of land affairs were obtained covering different time periods from 1994 to 2002 and GIS analysis was used to document land use change, competition and conflicts. A questionnaire survey involving a sample of 240 residents, 164 business people and 16 government officials was conducted and analysed quantitatively to establish perceptions and experiences with land use changes. In-depth interviews with key informants were also conducted and information analysed qualitatively. The researcher also engaged in extensive field observations in the city and surrounding land restitution areas. The study found that both Polokwane city and the surrounding land reform areas were characterised by rapid land use change, competing interests, conflict, disputes and tensions related to access, control and use of land resources historically and currently. Other key findings include the fact that the structure of Polokwane area is a result of apartheid planning. It has a distorted spatial pattern, the result of political factors that can be identified as: a legacy of apartheid; land use policy; competition among potential users; inadequate legislation and planning; low provisions for land use control and rezoning; land use speculation and lack of adequate public participation in the planning processes. Polokwane interaction with the rural areas is inadequate and does not support development of these areas leading to persistent service delivery issues. A management strategy is recommended with the following features: Capacity building, Conflict resolution, Stakeholders participation and Governance. Adequate land use control mechanism need to be put in place; public policies should minimise conflicts between alternative land development strategies; existing policies and procedures applicable to land management should be reviewed. An effective national land reform programme is required to drive development; public participation is key in all planning activities. Mediation is essential because it is a more efficient and less costly means of concluding land use conflicts. Polokwane needs to play a greater role in managing land use, changes, competition and conflicts both in the capital city and in the surrounding rural areas.
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