The Vegetation and Restoration Potential of the Arid Coastal Belt Between Port Nolloth and Alexander Bay, Namaqualand, South Africa.
This thesis introduces the environment and the vegetation of the Namaqualand coastal belt between Port Nolloth and Alexander Bay. Aspects of the abiotic environment are discussed and related to patterns and processes observed in the vegetation of the study area. The restoration of the natural vegetation impacted by diamond mining activities is discussed. 1-4 The study area, located within the winter rainfall area of the Namib Desert, is one of four global fog deserts. The area is characterised by a near ubiquitous covering of Recent to Tertiary amorphous dunes of marine origin. The dunes can be divided into two broad categories: Recent, mobile white dunes, and Tertiary to Late Quaternary, semi-mobile red dunes. The red dune soils are considered arenosols, underlain by dorbank and calcrete hardpans, whereas the white dunes generally lack this structure, unless they are superimposed on an older dune series. The dune landscape is interrupted by outcrops of bedrock, such as river canyons (Holgat River); inselbergs (Buchu Twins); and koppies. Gravel plains and rocky outcrops cover much of the area on the south bank of the Orange River, as far south as Cape Voltas. The low rainfall.
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Centre for Statistics in Ecology, the Environment and Conservation