Environment and Land in Bushbuckridge, South Africa

1. The Bushbuckridge environment and potentials for conflict The Bushbuckridge area of South Africa, together with the Pilgrim's Rest and Graskop area that adjoins it at the top of the escarpment, is a complex and sensitive environment of human settlement, commercial agriculture and nature reserves. Bushbuckridge town, from which the region is named, is a small trading and administrative centre approximately midway on a north-south line between Nelspruit, the capital of Mpumalanga Province, and Tzaneen, a major centre of commerce and agriculture in the lowveld of Northern Province. Bushbuckridge is bounded on east by Kruger National Park, one of the world's largest game parks, and on the east by the sensitive watershed and forests of the Drakensberg Mountains, the southernmost extension of the great African rift valley and mountain system. The terrain is primarily a sandy plain interrupted by rocky ridges that extend from the escarpment eastwards into the South African lowland bush that grades continuously—except for the low Lebombo Mountains that run along the Kruger National Park's eastern border-into the coastal plain of Mozambique. Bushbuck ridge is one such ridge, and is the feature from which the region takes its name. It is the southern natural boundary of a region. It is naturally bounded on the north by the Olifants river that flows through a spectacular gorge in the escarpment and across the plain into the Kruger Park. The escarpment is a sensitive watershed for much of the lowveld and the region hosts many wildlife conservation and restoration projects, such as the Kapama cheetah breeding station, and recovery facility for injured and damaged animals at Mariepieskop. Some of the most beautiful scenery within the Kruger National Park occurs along this river that almost bisects the park into northern and southern halves. Just south of the Olifants, the Blyde River flows through South Africa's oldest gold 3 Environment and Land in Bushbuckridge, South Africa strike country with many old mines, such as those at Pilgrim's Rest, a restored nineteenth-century mining town. Evidence of mining goes back thousands of years. At 'Bourke's Luck' the river flows through deep swirling potholes in the Blyde River and near the village of Graskop, 'God's Window' provides a thrilling view of lowveld stretching towards the Kruger National Park. The Blyde's waterfalls pour through gorges clad in indigenous African vegetation along the walls and floors of the escarpment. At the top of the escarpment, and around …