NEWS
Amazing satellite photos show
how alien trees are being wiped
out in Cape Town
Jay Caboz
Reprinted From: http://bit.ly/2ToWvEr
U
sing satellite images, Glenn Mon-
crieff, a data scientist at the South
African Environmental Observa-
tion Network (SAEON), captured this
mind-blowing 10-year transformation as
alien trees were removed to make way
for critically endangered sand fynbos.
The images come from project Fynbos
Node, which monitors fynbos rehabilita-
tion in the Western Cape.
The Cape Floral Region, one of six de-
clared floral kingdoms in the world, con-
tains almost 9,000 plant species, and of
these, two-thirds are found nowhere
else.
The Kareedam, which supplies Cal-
vinia, running dry and filling up again:
https://gph.is/2RX9Q5i
Here are some more
incredible environmental
transformations Moncrieff
has captured:
The Elandsfontein phosphate mine
next door to the West Coast National
Park, within a critical biodiversity area:
https://gph.is/2Q1VMKf
Two years of illegal sand mining on the
banks of the Umgeni River, KwaZulu-
Natal: https://gph.is/2FrW3SC
See also: This map of South Africa's riv-
ers is captivating – and now its creator
is trying to figure out why: http://bit.
ly/2Tlcao6
Using a programme called Planet, Mon-
crieff can access satellite imagery going
as far back as 2009 to give scientists reli-
able long- term data for their research.
“Planet’s satellite data has a great way
of helping people visualise the impact
of humans on the environment. It goes
deeper for scientists. The satellites cap-
ture information we can’t see, like infra-
red, which as a scientist can help us tell
how healthily a forest is, or unhealthy,”
he says.
Mining has stalled since 2017 follow-
ing a court challenge. The mine hopes
to restart operations in 2019.
Dune forest clearing, near Richards
Bay, for titanium mining: https://gph.
is/2PznPl3
SAEON is a body established by the
Department of Science and Technol-
ogy to conduct long-term observation
and promote an informed and timely
response to global change.
“Science has been grappling for years
with translating information into some-
thing the public can relate to," says
Moncrieff. But now we have the tools to
get people interested in our work.
Once you have the interest, you can get
people to start listening to the insights,
and then get people to know about
your research. That’s what we are trying
to do here.”
13
Communities downstream face in-
creasing flood risk due to the removal
of sand. Hundreds of these mines can
be spotted along rivers in rural KZN.
The evolution of the MeerKAT satel-
lite project in the Karoo: https://gph.
is/2PAsLG8
Richards Bay Minerals (RBM) clears
dune forests to mine titanium in a
global biodiversity hotspot. While in-
tensive restoration of deforested areas
is undertaken, many species will never
return.
Grassroots
The MeerKAT is a precursor to the
Square Kilometre Array (SKA).
Vol 18
No 4
December 2018