Wetlands and the National Water Act:
the Ecological Reserve

• Resource-directed measures which focus on the water resource as an ecosystem and set clear objectives for the desired level of protection of that resource (eg. Classification of resources, determination of the reserve, setting of resource quality objectives, etc);

• Source-directed measures that include a wide range of regulatory measures that are intended to control the sources of impacts on water resources such that the objectives for resource protection are achieved (eg. Waste standards, water use licensing, etc);

• Demand Management to keep utilisation within the limits required for protection; and

• Monitoring of the status of the country's water resources to ensure that the Resource Quality Objectives are being met.

According to the National Water Act (No. 36 of 1998), a water resource is treated as an ecosystem, that includes the physical or structural aquatic habitats, the water, the aquatic biota, and the physical, chemical and ecological processes that link water, habitats and biota. In terms of the Act, Resource Quality Objectives (RQO's), set in terms of a national classification system, will be used to define the desired protection status of water resources in South Africa. Resource quality is defined in the Act as:

• The quantity, pattern, timing, water level and assurance of instream flow;
• The water quality, including the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of the water;
• The characteristics and condition of the instream and riparian habitat; and
• The character, condition and distribution of the aquatic biota.

The present and historical condition of a water resource, its sensitivity and importance and its potential for restoration are all factors that need to be taken into account in deriving the future management class and related Resource Quality Objectives.

The Act also makes provision for a "Reserve": a particular water quality and quantity to be set aside to protect the ecological functioning of aquatic ecosystems before water uses such as industry or agriculture can be authorised (Figure 1).

The Act recognises wetlands as a water resource and defines them as "land which is transitional between terrestrial and aquatic systems where the water table is usually at or near the surface, or the land is periodically covered with shallow water, and which land in normal circumstances supports or would support vegetation typically adapted to life in saturated soil." In the Act, wetlands are defined separately from rivers and estuaries and the definition does not include marine wetlands.

Wetlands are characterised by unique relationships between soils, geomorphology, hydrology and biota. Traditionally wetland conservation institutions have focussed on the protection of the site conditions of wetlands (i.e geomorphology and biota) with only cursory attention being paid to the management of offsite determinants such as water. The Act breaks new ground in this respect and provides a framework to start addressing this long neglected facet of wetland conservation. The first versions of methods for determining the rivers, estuaries, wetland and groundwater components of the ecological Reserve will be available from October 1999.

The criteria adopted for the development of these methods are:

• Wherever possible derive the method from available southern African or Southern Hemisphere technologies and understanding of ecosystems to promote greater confidence in its scientific validity and its acceptance. Preferably these technologies should be published in the scientific literature;

• Utilise a whole-ecosystem endpoint for the method rather than a purely hydrological or chemical one;

• Use expert judgement within a structured process to promote consistency and legal and scientific accountability;

• Document and justify all assumptions in the development and application of the method and verify by a group of specialists;

• Integrate independent review in the method; and

• Allow for ongoing refinement of procedures and tools used in the method and for the refinement of its outcome.