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The St Lucia estuary
(28°23' S;
32°25' E)
is situated north of the coastal town of Richards Bay in KwaZulu-Natal. It is the largest estuarine system in the country and has a catchment area of approximately 9 542 sq. km. Approximately 20 % of the catchment was under agriculture, mostly subsistence agriculture and forestry. About 8% of the St Lucia catchment was degraded, comprising degraded forest, bushland and grassland. Roughly 73% of the catchment was natural and comprised a mixture of forest and woodland, bushland, and grassland with waterbodies and wetlands associated with the St Lucia system. There was very little urban development in the St Lucia catchment (less than 1%) and most of this comprised mines and quarries located in the upper catchment, near the town of Vryheid, as well as some residential development.
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