Investigating and surveying underwater forests: Studying the Kelp dispersal areas, density, and biomass along the South African West Coast
Project Background & Details
To determine Kelp bed dispersal and extent together with density and biomass calculations along the South African West Coast, multiple stakeholders initiated a project to gather more precise orthorectified aerial imagery as the current National Biodiversity maps were found to be largely inaccurate. These stakeholders included the University of the Western Cape (UWC), the Department of Fisheries, Forestry, and Environment (DFFE) Seaweed Unit, the kelp industry, and two conservation organizations, SANParks, and CapeNature.
The intention was to survey the 32 km coastline near Gansbaai, a coastal town 160 km south of Cape Town. The area covered started approximately 4 km north of the Gansbaai harbour in the east, continuing around the Gansbaai peninsula, and ending short of the Pearly Beach residential area in the west. To capture the extent of the kelp, about 75% of the nearshore ocean had to be included in the survey swathe. The Dyer Island survey area included the kelp beds surrounding the island as well as the kelp beds between the island and the closest shore, resulting in an area of roughly 6.5 km².
What is Kelp?
Kelp (lat. Ecklonia maxima and Laminaria pallida) is a vital component of marine ecosystems, providing numerous ecological, commercial, and environmental benefits. Its rapid growth and ability to form dense underwater forests make it an important species for marine biodiversity and coastal health. Kelp can help improve water quality by absorbing excess nutrients and pollutants from the water whilst also absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Efforts to map and to study kelp are crucial for understanding and preserving these valuable underwater forests.
Project Delivery
SAEON, the South African Environmental Observation Network (SAEON) was commissioned for project delivery. SAEON is a science network of people, organisations and, most importantly observation platforms, that perform Long-Term Ecological Research in South Africa and its surrounding oceans. With its headquarters in Pretoria and network of six local research offices (nodes) throughout South Africa, SAEON’s Elwandle Coastal Node, based in Port Elizabeth at the Ocean Sciences Campus of the Nelson Mandela University – and focusing on long-term monitoring and research on South Africa’s coastal zone – was the ideal partner with local knowledge and expertise to deliver this project in the short timeframe required.
Read the full article here www.geolas.com(case-study and learn more about the data acquisition technology and how the data were collected. In addition, you will learn more about the data processing and which challenges SAEON was faced to, during the project.
