Alien Invasion

Alien Invasion

'Welcome to Mpumalanga - the water wise province'. This and several other signs bearing the 'Working for Water' logo and ethos greet motorists around Nelspruit and White River in South Africa's lowveld. It is an encouraging sign and evidence of the continued efforts of the visionary project instated by Kader Asmal's ministry soon after the country's political change in 1994. Knowledge, after all, is power: the more people know about alien vegetation and its effects on indigenous ecosystems and, most importantly, water supplies, the more likely we are to succeed in eradicating it.

Bearing some resemblance to Teddy Roosevelt's alphabetical government agencies over the Great Depression, the 'Working for Water' program has two main tenets. Firstly alien vegetation is in danger of overwhelming numerous parts of the country: from the Port Jackson Wattle in the Cape's Mediterranean climate, to the Prickly Pear and Jointed Cactus in the more arid areas, and the Triffid Weed and Lantana in the moist eastern regions. This has the effect of compromising and out-competing indigenous vegetation, that have natural biological checks and balances such as seed predators, and of depleting water resources by choking and invading streams. This of course threatens whole ecosystems dependent on this water and indigenous vegetation. Even reserves such the Kruger National Park and Hluhluwe are under threat.

Secondly, South Africa suffers from unemployment as high as 50% or more in some areas. Due to the systems of the past and disadvantages in educational and others aspects, most of this unemployment involves unskilled people. What better way to combat invasive alien vegetation that by creating jobs and utilising unskilled labour to manually cut out the offending plants? Two birds with one stone as the saying goes.

This is only one part of the problem though and phase II of the project is of course education and awareness. This is a massive undertaking. Many people value plants only for their attractiveness or usefulness. The fruit of the Prickly Pear therefore makes this plant more desirable than an indigenous tree such as a Jacket Plum which bears much smaller, less palatable fruit and is slow growing to boot. Lantana likewise is attractive and the composite orange flower heads decorate many suburban gardens. Similarly numerous amounts of people languish in the ignorant bliss that these plants are in fact indigenous. The widespread timber and paper industry for example has spawned whole landscapes of exotic vegetation that for many of the younger generation have always been there. Even the Golden Gate National Park, while acknowledging the alien nature of the Poplars in the park, accepts their presence there based on a long history in the area.

Of course some alien plants represent far more of a threat than others and perhaps the Free States's Poplars and Pretoria's Jacarandas have their place. Lantana and Triffid Weed, among numerous others, do not! This is a threat that all South African's should be aware of and strive to overcome.

-Chris Roche-

Posted: Plants by CC Africa, Date: 21 November 2006