Identification, Delineation and Importance of the Strategic Water Source Areas of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland for Surface Water and Groundwater

Abstract

This report builds on a previous study by WWF-SA and CSIR which ident ified 21 Strategic WSAs (SWSAs) which covered 8% of South Africa and supplied 50% of the mean annual runoff. These SWSAs for surface water (SWSA-sw) were included in the 2013 National Water Resources Strategy as areas needing protection for water security. Groundwater was not included in the 2013 study although it is an important, and often the only, reliable water source in much of South Africa. This study, through extensive consultation with stakeholders, redefined what is meant by a WSA to include groundwater, has refined the Strategic Water Source Areas for surface water (SWSA-sw) and has identified a number of Strategic Water Source Areas for groundwater (SWSA-gw). Strategic Water Source Areas (SWSAs) are now defined as areas of land that either: (a) supply a disproportionate (i.e.

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