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Annual General Meeting |
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This important meeting is going to be held on
THURSDAY 8 MAY 2008, at 7.30 for 8.00pm in our
Education Centre. All members must please make every
effort to attend. You are welcome to bring friends
with you. |
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A very interesting power point presentation on “The
Origin of Rietvei” will be given by Niel Van Wyk |
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Please note that the committee intends to apply to
the Directorate of Non- Profit Organisations for
formal N.P.O status, but for this application to be
successful certain clauses needed to be inserted in
our constitution and other amendments made. These
amendments turned out to be quite numerous and it
was decided to replace the present Friends of
Rietvlei constitution with a completely new
constitution that will conform to the requirements
of both the Nonprofit Organisations Act, Act 71 of
1997, and the Income Tax Act, Act 58 of 1962 as
amended. |
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This new constitution is to be proposed to members
at the AGM – please see website
http://www.friendsofrietvlei.co.za for a copy of it.
If you do not have internet access please collect a
copy from the Rietvlei gate. |
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Membership Renewal |
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Along with the AGM comes the need for all Ordinary
and Family members to make sure they renew their
membership. The membership fees have been increased
minimally as will be seen on the attached renewal
form. Please use the form by paying at or before the
AGM ……………. THANK YOU!! |
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Our previous Evening Talk was held on Thursday 6
March. Our speaker was Pat Holmes and she spoke on
the restoration of fynbos. This interesting talk was
augmented by a pamphlet she left for those who are
interested in more detail on protocols for restoring
lowland sand fynbos. |
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Remembering Rob
Robertson
It was with sadness that the committee heard
of the untimely death of an active member of
Friends of Rietvlei. Rob died when knocked
down accidentally by a car near Milnerton
Lagoon. Rob was a sailor at Rietvlei as well
as a quiet but determined action man. Rob
took up the challenges of fighting
developments that would harm the natural and
human environments. His flat overlooked the
Milnerton Lagoon and he objected to the
proposed hotel development at the Milnerton
Golf Course, the Milnerton Lagoon Mouth
Development and the Potsdam Waste-water
Treatment Plant expansion, amongst others.
He was extremely thorough and meticulous in
researching information and documenting the
issues. He spearheaded the Potsdam Action
Group, arranging meetings, writing reports
and letters, and making sure that the
decision makers heard his point of view. We
will miss his friendly face and keen mind
here on the edge of Rietvlei, but know that
he now resides in a far more beautiful
place. Our condolences go to Gert and the
family. |
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The Typha Take-over |
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Bulrushes are taking over. In many of the reedbed
areas around Rietvlei bulrushes are displacing other
wetland plants, and in the Dolphin Beach ponds the
water area is gradually disappearing under bulrush
growth. But what is this reed and where does it come
from? |
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Typha latifolia occurs naturally on all
continents except South America and Australia, but
it has been introduced there and now occurs
world-wide; it is one of the most common of all
aquatic plants. The reed has many common names in
different parts of the world, we know it as bulrush,
cattail, or by the British name reed-mace. |
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Although often a nuisance, they are extremely
efficient in removing nutrients from water and are
thus very effective filters. Bulrushes grow in
wetlands, lakes, river courses, estuarine habitats
and even in marshy coastal habitats which is
predominantly fresh water. When conditions favour
Typha they form dense monocultures, spreading
rapidly by vegetative reproduction forming thick
mats of rhizomes and plant litter. This impacts on
other species by changing the habitat and forcing
other plants out; they can rapidly close open water
giving other plants few opportunities to establish.
Typha seeds are dispersed by winds, in water, on the
feet of birds and livestock, or by humans and
machinery. |
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However, Typha is also a very useful plant and is
used for many things. It is used as thatch for
roofing; woven into mats, chairs, hats, etc; it is a
source of fibre for rayon and a greenish brown
paper; it is used as torches and tinder for making
fires; the flower clusters are used for stuffing
pillows and mattresses, and for insulation, dressing
wounds, and lining diapers. Typha stands provide
important food and cover for wildlife and birds,
establishing habitat for many waterfowl. Many parts
of the plant is also edible for human consumption
and are an important source of protein in many parts
of the world; rhizomes are dried and ground into
flour or eaten as cooked vegetables; young stems are
eaten raw or cooked; and the pollen is used in
baking. Because of its very effective water
filtering properties, Typha is widely used in
artificial ponds to filter effluent and stormwater
runoff in many parts of the world, including Cape
Town. |
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Controlling excessive Typha growth is extremely
difficult and can be quite costly, particularly in
natural systems. Various methods have been tried and
tested all over the world, but there is no easy way
to control the plant. |
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Herbicides can be effective when applied when the
plant is flowering, but the disadvantage is that the
decaying plant material accumulates and results in
hypertrophic conditions, this plant material also
provides a good substrate for regrowth of Typha.
Some herbicides may also have negative effects on
other plant and animal life in the system. |
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Mechanical removal is difficult because of the depth
and volume of the rhizomes, but it can be effective
in reducing the size of infestations. Manual removal
works best on small seedlings when they can be
easily pulled out of the damp soil. |
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The best way to control Typha seems to be using fire
and physical cutting in conjunction with flooding.
If the reeds are burnt and/or cut when water levels
are low, and then flooded, growth is considerably
inhibited. An effective control can be achieved by a
combination of mechanical and hand cutting at the
end of the growing season and when water levels are
low, two clippings about a week or two apart will
achieve best results, but then the cut area must be
submerged as soon after in at least 8 to 10 cm of
water when water levels rise again. |
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Something will have to be done about the Typha
growth in certain areas of Rietvlei, but any control
operation will be costly and time-consuming. Using
fire will help a great deal, but there are inherent
dangers that must be considered. Access to the
affected areas for cutting or mechanical control is
not always easy and further complicates control
operations. |
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Compiled by Niel van Wyk from
various sources. |
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Snippets |
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Our chairman has volunteered to be on the Ward 4
Committee of the Blaauwberg Subcouncil. He will be
keeping up with Council matters that affect the
environment. |
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The pumping of water from the North Vlei onto the
Central Pan has been successfully done this summer
and the Central Pan is submerged. One must question
the long term sustainability of and impact to the
seasonal wetland habitat. The long awaited Estuary
Rehabilitation Plan has still not begun. The CAPE
Estuaries co-ordinator has indicated that the
consultants should start their work in May. |
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Milnerton Racecourse Conservation Area - The grysbok
capture and relocation, and the controlled burn of
the northern half of the southern area, have been
undertaken in April. Due to logistical reasons these
happened in April instead of ideally March, but
luckily the absence of rain in April allowed these
activities to occur. |
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| Thanks go to Chevron Refinery for
sponsoring envelopes for the posted newsletter. |
