Ekurhuleni houses 206 of 791 wetlands found across the country.
Two per cent of the 206 are totally destroyed, 64 per cent are partially destroyed but under threat and 34 per cent have little impact on them.
Wetland refers to land that is wet for more than two weeks of the year down to a depth of 50 centimetres under dry conditions.
Councillors converged on the Dinwiddie Hall, last Friday, for a workshop to learn about the importance of conserving these water bodies so as to educate the communities they lead.
Ekurhuleni is situated at the headwaters of the major water supply sources for Gauteng such as the Vaal Dam, Rietvlei Dam and Hartebeespoort Dam which makes it important for the metro to conserve its wetlands.
Failure to conserve the wetlands will, in turn, compromise the neighbouring areas dependent on our water streams for water supply in dry seasons.
During the workshop, councillors learnt about a number of benefits offered by wetlands, such as flood reduction, natural water quality cleansing, habitat for biodiversity, aesthetics, and improvement of overall quality of life.
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Councillors unanimously raised general concerns affecting the health of wetlands in their communities, such as the issue of water pollution by households or industries, illegal dumping, infrastructure encroachment by roads and housing, inadequate stormwater management measures, as well as invasive vegetation infestation.
Clr Tiaan Kotze, the Ward 37 councillor, which features a wetland in Dinwiddie, said he is committed to imparting the knowledge he acquired at the workshop to his residents so as to equip them with more information on how to conserve the wetland in their area.
“Currently in my ward, we don’t have issues of misconduct around the wetland. I believe, however, that the residents still need to learn more about the conservation of the wetlands,” Kotze said.
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