The Crocodile River Reserve was proclaimed on the 2nd October 2019 formed by two clusters of properties declared as nature reserve and one formed by properties with the protected environment status.
It might be useful to clarify the differences between the two statuses of protected area. This document tries to simplify the matter. It should however be considered that the differences in the Crocodile River Reserve (CRR) are minimal and temporary. A property was declared protected environment because no single point of its border is touching another property with the status of nature reserve. When over time the Crocodile River Reserve will expand to incorporate other properties the condition of adjacency will hopefully be met and then the status will be changed to nature reserve.
Both types of protected areas have been declared in perpetuity.
CRR Nature Reserves are proclaimed in terms of the National Environment Management: Protected Areas Act (NEM:PAA) and their management is supplemented by agreements between landowners, the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (GDARD) and its MEC in order to protect biodiversity in the long term.
This category is reserved for sites with exceptionally high biodiversity. Sites participating at this level must make an essential contribution to the conservation of vegetation types, species, ecological processes or ecosystem services, and in doing so make a meaningful contribution to South Africa’s protected area network.
The CRR Nature Reserves are declared in perpetuity.
Nature Reserves are subject to restrictions in terms of permissible development and activities.
Restrictions are made binding on successors in title by being lodged against the title deed of the property.
Substantial benefit and support is made available to landowners of Nature Reserves, including being excluded from paying property rates on the conserved area, income tax incentives and substantial support with ecological management.
The biodiversity elements and the need to protect the property ecosystems of the CRR Protected Environment Cluster are not of inferior quality or recognition to the ones of the Nature Reserve Clusters. It has been the fragmentation of the wide area that momentarily forced the differentiation between properties with a Nature Reserve status and properties that are declared as Protected Environment in perpetuity.
The NEM:PAA (clause 28) specifies that: “A declaration under subsection (1)(a) [(a) declare any area specified in the notice – (1) as a protected environment,..] may only be issued …
(b) to enable owners of land to take collective action to conserve biodiversity on their land and to seek legal recognition therefore;
(c) to protect the area if the area is sensitive to development due to its (i) biological diversity; (ii) natural characteristics; (iii) scientific, cultural, historical, archaeological or geological value; (iv) scenic and landscaping value; […]
The CRR Protected Environment Cluster has all the above reasons to be part of the Protected Area and to be re-qualified as a Nature Reserve when the CRR expands by including additional properties in the Protected Area.
The Crocodile River Reserve will become bigger over time. New properties will be added to the Clusters. Landowners will see the benefits: living in a pristine nature, enjoying their leisure time, children discovering the many elements of biodiversity, sharing values in a community where conservation has high value, participating in enjoyable events, slowly riding or walking along paths through great landscapes, and listening to the quiet sounds of our nights.
Each Member of the Reserve is a Green Ambassador as well as a Champion of conservation; all together they offer to the residents and visitors of the City of Tshwane and the Greater Johannesburg a secure and stress-free experience.
Should you wish for your property to be incorporated as part of the Crocodile River Reserve, you will need to complete an Expression of Interest form and send it to admin@crocodileriverreserve.co.za.
The CRR is situated in the City of Tshwane Region 4 between the R512 and R511 routes, south of the Schurveberg Mountain range and north of Diepsloot;
It is in the buffer zone of the World Heritage Site, the Cradle of Human Kind; and also in the buffer zone of the Magaliesberg Biosphere Reserve.
According to all the relevant spatial planning tools, including the City of Tshwane Spatial Development Framework (SDF), the area is identified as only suitable for conservation and eco-tourism activities, and it is identified as a special control zone for conservation in the Gauteng Environmental Management Framework (EMF, 2015);
The City of Tshwane by-laws are very strict as to what type of activities are allowed in this area; and
Due to the protected area declaration of October 2019, certain activities in Listing Notice 3 of the National Environment Management Act (NEMA) will be triggered for land portions directly adjacent to the CRR, which then might require either a Basic Assessment or an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).
Extract from National Environment Management: Protected Areas Act, 2003
Constitution
