The relationship between land use and soil erosion in the communal lands near Peddie town, Eastern Cape, South Africa

The origins and development of severe forms of erosion are traced in the communal villages located in a part of the dividing ridge between the Great Fish and Keiskamma rivers near Peddie town, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Progressive changes in land use and soil erosion distribution are reconstructed by analysing sequential aerial photographs of the area between 1938 and 1988. The distributions of the two phenomena are mapped and quantified at the different dates using PC ARC/INFO GIS. Observable soil erosion is confined to the communal lands at all the dates. Widespread abandonment of cultivated fields between 1965 and 1988 is noted as the most significant aspect of land use change in the communal lands. Gully initiation and intensification appear predominantly from the mid-1970s, coinciding with a period of extreme rainfall events. A close spatial correlation between abandoned cultivated land and severe gullies is identified. The research raises questions regarding both the cause for land abandonment and the reasons for its vulnerability to erosion. The observed land degradation is seen as the result of a complex interaction of social, economic and environmental factors which lead to land abandonment and its consequent erosion. Copyright (C) 2002 John Wiley Sons, Ltd.