The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Water Research Commission have determined that up to 50% of the yearly inflows into the Western Cape’s Berg river dam catchment and Limpopo’s De Hoop dam catchment could be used up by alien plants, if uncleared, over the next 45 years – the average lifespan of dams in South Africa.
The study was published in the Water South Africa journal, titled “Impact of invasive alien plants on water provision in selected catchments” and authored by water experts and academics Dr David Le Maitre, Dr James Blignaut, Professor Lynette Louw, Professor Tally Palmer and Ian Preston.