'Blame it on the weeds': Politics, poverty, and ecology in the new South Africa

Journal of Southern African Studies

Volumn 36, Issue 4, 2010, Pages 869-887

  Neely, Abigail H ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN MADISON   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

FIRE HISTORY; INTRODUCED SPECIES; INVASIVE SPECIES; NATURE CONSERVATION; POVERTY; VELD;

AGRICULTURE; ARTICLE; ECOLOGY; ECONOMICS; EDUCATION; EMPLOYMENT; ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION; ETHNOLOGY; FIRE; HISTORY; INTRODUCED SPECIES; LEGAL ASPECT; POLITICAL SYSTEM; POVERTY; PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECT; RESEARCH; SOCIAL STATUS; SOCIOECONOMICS; SOUTH AFRICA; WEED;

AGRICULTURE; CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES; ECOLOGY; EMPLOYMENT; FIRES; HISTORY, 20TH CENTURY; HISTORY, 21ST CENTURY; INTRODUCED SPECIES; PLANT WEEDS; POLITICAL SYSTEMS; POVERTY; RESEARCH; SOCIAL CONDITIONS; SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS; SOUTH AFRICA;

SOUTH AFRICA;

EID: 78650118244     PISSN: 03057070     EISSN: 14653893     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/03057070.2010.527642     Document Type: Article

References (152)

1. Throughout this piece I use the term 'natural' to refer to the uninhabited areas of fynbos on the Cape Peninsula because it is the term most commonly used in the press or in publications about the area. I recognise that using the term 'natural' unreflexively is problematic as it implies an absence of human involvement which is clearly incorrect. However, for the purposes of this article it serves as a useful signifier in talking about the non-human landscape. For an example of the use of the term on the Cape Peninsula see: National Botanical Institute with input from the Environmental Evaluation Unit, University of Cape Town, Environmental and Social Management Framework for C.A.P.E (Cape Action Plan for People and the Environment) (4 December 2003), available at http://www-ds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2003/12/10/000160016_20031210134756/Rendered/PDF/E8350PAPER.pdf, retrieved 20 July 2010. For more Footnote 1 continued information on debates about the idea of 'nature' a good place to start is: W. Cronon (ed), Uncommon Ground: Rethinking the Human Place in Nature (New York, W.W. Norton, 1996);
2. B. Braun and N. Castree (eds.), Remaking Reality: Nature at the Millennium (New York, Routledge, 1998);
3. A. Escobar, 'After Nature: Steps to an Antiessentialist Political Ecology', Current Anthropology, 40, 1 (1999), pp. 1-30.
4. TheCape ofFlames: TheGreat Fire of January 2000 (Kenilworth, SouthAfrica, Inyati Publishing, 2000), pp. i-11.
5. B.W. van Wilgen, interview by author, CSIR, Stellenbosch, South Africa, 6 July 2004.
6. 'Fynbos' is the term used to describe the vegetation in the Cape Floral Kingdom. Deriving from the Dutch term 'fijn-bosch'. Fynbos refers to the small or fine leaves of its vegetation.
7. See 'Preface', in R.M. Cowling (ed.), The Ecology of fynbos: Nutrients, Fire and Diversity (Cape Town, Oxford University Press, 1992), p. vii.
8. Ukuvuka Operation Firestop Campaign, 'Santam/Cape Argus Ukuvuka Operation Firestop Campaign Review 2000-2001' (2001), p. 2.
9. D. Euston-Brown, 'The Influence of Vegetation Type and Fire Severity on Catchment Stability After Fire: a Case Study from the Cape Peninsula, South Africa' (Final report, Fynbos Working for Water Programme, Cape Town, South Africa, 2000, electronic copy).
10. J. Comaroff and J.L. Comaroff, 'Naturing the Nation: Aliens, Apocalypse and the Postcolonial State', Journal of Southern African Studies, 27, 3 (2001), pp. 627-651.
11. Comaroff and Comaroff, 'Naturing the Nation', p. 631.
12. Q.C.B. Cronk and J.L. Fuller, Plant Invaders: The Threat to Natural Ecosystems (London, Chapman & Hall, 1995), p. 1.
13. For example see: Cronk and Fuller, Plant Invaders; P. Pyšek, K. Prach, M. Rejmánek and M. Wade, Plant Invasions: General Aspects and Special Problems (Amsterdam, SPB Academic Publishing, 1995).
14. D.M. Richardson, P. Pyšek, M. Rejmanek, M. Barbour, D. Panetta and C. West, "Naturalization and Invasion of Alien Plants: Concepts and Definitions', Diversity and Distribution, 6 (2000), pp. 93-107.
15. L. Head and J. Atchison, "Cultural Ecology: Emerging Human-Plant Geographies', Progress in Human Geography, 33, 2 (2009), pp. 236-45.
16. Depending on who is writing, and when he or she is writing, the terms used to refer to invasive alien species vary. For example, historically invasive species were referred to as noxious weeds, and to this day 'weed' is a popular term used to refer to invasive species (though it does not always refer to non-native species). In addition, the line between invasive species and exotic species is often blurred and depends on what the plants are used for and each person's understanding of his or her environment. As a result, the same plant might be an exotic to one person and an invasive to another.
17. A. Crosby, Ecological Imperialism: The Biological Expansion of Europe, 900-1900 (New York, Cambridge University Press, 1986). For an updated view of plant transfers
18. see: C.A. Kull and H. Rangan, "Acacia Exchanges: Wattles, Thorn Trees, and the Study of Plant Movements', Geoforum, 39 (2008), pp. 1,258-1,272.
19. W. Beinart and K. Middleton, "Plant Transfers in Historical Perspective: A Review Article', Environment and History, 10 (2004), pp. 3-29;
20. J.R. Kloppenberg, First the Seed: The Political Economy of Plant Biotechnology, 1492-2000 (Madison, WI, University of Wisconsin Press, 2004);
21. J.A. Carney, Black Rice: The African Origins of Rice Cultivation in the Americas (Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 2001).
22. L. van Sittert, "'The Seed Blows About in Every Breeze": Noxious Weed Eradication in the Cape Colony, 1860-1909', Journal of Southern African Studies, 26, 4 (2000), pp. 657.
23. Ibid., 659-662.
24. While most noxious weeds were invasive aliens, some were actually problematic native species.
25. Van Sittert, ""The Seed Blows About in Every Breeze"', p. 666.
26. P. Robbins, "Comparing Invasive Networks: Cultural and Political Biographies of Invasive Species', The Geographical Review, 94, 2 (April 2004), pp. 139-156.
27. Paul Robbins is a well-respected political ecologist and uses actor-network theory (ANT) to inform his understanding of invasive alien species. ANT seeks to show how both human and non-human actants that make up networks are constructed relationally. One of the most significant insights of this theoretical approach comes from its ability to give non-human actants agency. For more information on actor-network theory,
28. see J. Law, "Actor Network Theory and Material Semiotics', version of 25 April 2007, available at http://www.heterogeneities.net/publications/Law-ANTandMaterialSemiotics.pdf (retrieved on 18 May 2007);
29. B. Latour, Reassembling the Social: An Introduction to Actor-Network-Theory (Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2005).
30. There are some valuable alternatives to the network approach. For example, in his definition of alien plants Marcel Rejmánek writes, '[Alien plants] reflect three different viewpoints: anthropocentric (weeds are plants growing where they are not desired), ecological (colonizers appear early in successional series), and biogeographical (invaders are spreading into areas where they are not native)'. While this definition touches on both social and biological aspects of invasives it keeps the different components separate. As a result, I find the sociobiological network approach more useful.
31. M. Rejmánek, "What Makes a Species Invasive?', in Pyšek et al. (eds), Plant Invasions, p. 3.
32. Robbins, "Comparing Invasive Networks'.
33. Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Act No. 108 of 1996.
34. J. Clarke, Coming Back to Earth: South Africa's Changing Environment (Houghton, South Africa, Jacana, 2002), p. 271.
35. For historical background on nature conservation in South Africa, and the Western Cape in particular,
36. see: D. Hey, A Nature Conservationist Looks Back (Cape Town, Cape Nature Conservation, 1995);
37. J. Carruthers, The Kruger National Park: A Social and Political History (Pietermaritzburg, University of Natal Press, 1995).
38. Cape Action Plan for the Environment: A Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan for the Cape Floral Kingdom (Cape Town: WWF South Africa, 2000), p. 9.
39. For more information on the history of conservation in South Africa
40. see: W. Beinart, The Rise of Conservation in South Africa: Settlers, Livestock, and the Environment 1770-1950 (New York, Oxford University Press, 2003).
41. Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, No. 108 of 1996, G 17678, 18 December 1996, c. 2, n. 24.
42. Working for Water, "Working for Water Annual Report 2002/2003' (2003), p. 3;
43. van Wilgen, interview. For ecological evidence
44. see: B.W. van Wilgen, D.M. Richardson, D.C. Le Maitre, C. Marais, and D. Magadlela, "The Economic Consequences of Alien Plant Invasions: Examples of Impacts and Approaches to Sustainable Management in South Africa', Environment, Development and Sustainability, 3, 2 (2001), pp. 145-168;
45. D.M. Richardson and B.W. van Wilgen, "Invasive Alien Plants in South Africa: How Well Do We Understand the Ecological Impacts?', South African Journal of Science, 100, 1-2 (2004), pp. 45-52.
46. B.W. van Wilgen and D.C. Le Maitre, "Postscript: Ecosystem Services, Efficiency, Sustainability and Equity: South Africa's Working for Water Programme', TREE 13, 9 (1998), p. 378.
47. For an evaluation of the cost and benefits of invasive aliens in South African watersheds
48. see: D.C. Le Maitre, B.W. van Wilgen, C.M. Gelderblom, C. Bailey, R.A. Chapman, and J.A. Nel, "Invasive Alien Trees and Water Resources in South Africa: Case Studies of the Costs and Benefits of Management', Forest Ecology and Management, 160, 1-3 (2002), pp. 143-159.
49. B.W. van Wilgen, D.M. Richardson, F.J. Kruger, and H.J. van Hensbergen (eds), Fire in South African Mountain Fynbos: Ecosystem, Community and Species Response at Swartboskloof (Berlin, Springer-Verlag, 1992), p. VI.
50. B.W. van Wilgen, "Scientific Challenges in the Field of Invasive Alien Plant Management', South African Journal of Science, 100, 1-2 (January/February 2004), p. 19.
51. For a more complete explanation of the creation and implementation of Working for Water
52. see: J.A. Binns, P.M. Illigner, and E.L. Nel, "Water Shortage, Deforestation and Development: South Africa's Working for Water Programme', Land Degradation and Development, 12 (2001), pp. 341-355.
53. Table Mountain National Park is a part of and sometimes referred to as the Cape Peninsula National Park.
54. Zane Erasmus, interviewed by author, Cape Town, South Africa, 28 June 2004.
55. A floral kingdom is a broad grouping of vegetation, generally conforming to bioclimactic parameters. Cape Peninsula National Park, "The Invasive Alien Plant Clearing Programme 2002: Restoring the fynbos and Forests to the Cape Peninsula National Park' (2002), p. 1.
56. Table Mountain National Park was designated a World Heritage Site in 2004. At the time of the fires in 2000 South Africa was working on its application to UNESCO. "Five New Natural Sites Placed on World Heritage List', Environment News Service (1 July 2004), available at http://earthhopenetwork.net/five_new_sites_on_world_heritage_list.htm (retrieved on 29 August 2004).
57. M. Cohen, "Cape Town Fires Becoming "Major Disaster"', Associated Press, International News, (19 January 2000);
58. "Fire Ravages Rich Homes', Herald Sun (Melbourne, Australia) (21 January 2000).
59. The Task Team: Toward Improved Veldfire Management in South Africa, A Review of the Veld Fires in the Western Cape During 15 to 25 January 2000: Report to the Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry and Premier of the Western Cape (Pretoria, South Africa, 2000), p. 62.
60. M. Calvin and D. Wettlaufer, "Fires in the Southern Cape Peninsula, Western Cape Province, South Africa January 2000' (IFFN No. 22 - April 2000), pp. 69-75, available at http://www.fire.uni-freiburg.de/iffn/country/za/za_14.htm (retrieved on 9 March 2004).
61. The Task Team, A Review of the Veld Fires, p. 72.
62. Guy Preston, interviewed by author, Cape Town, South Africa, 14 July 2004;
63. B.W. van Wilgen and D.F. Scott, "Managing Fires on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa: Dealing with the Inevitable', Journal of Mediterranean Ecology, 2 (2001), p. 202.
64. D. Bullard, "How Do You Like Your Mountain: Rare, Medium or Well-Done?', Business Times (30 January 2000).
65. J. Lovell, "Historic Cape Town Ravaged by Fires', Courier Mail (Queensland, Australia) (21 January 2000). Other examples include: 'South Africa: Risking their Lives to Beat the Inferno', Mail and Guardian (21 January 2000);
66. M. Dynes, "Ferocious Cape Fires Ravage Wine Crops', The Times (London) (21 January 2000).
67. Greg Forsyth, interview by author, CSIR, Stellenbosch, South Africa, 6 July 2004.
68. 'Blame it on the Weeds'. In their article the Comaroffs run through two alternative narratives about the 2000 fires, neither of which gained much traction or popular support in the weeks that followed. They write that Die Burger, an Afrikaans newspaper, viewed the fires 'as an indictment of the ANC government, of its inefficiency, its inability to deliver emergency services, its wanton neglect of the Cape, and so on'. They also note that while the English and Afrikaans press debated who was to blame for the fires, the poorest members of the Cape Peninsula were dealing with the fires and their aftermath in very different and often unnoticed ways. Many residents of informal settlements set in the Cape Peninsula Mountain Chain literally saw their livelihoods go up in smoke during the 2000 fires. People like Thami Mandlana make their living by selling wood gathered from the natural veld. When the fires swept through the mountains they '[obliterated] his only means of income'. In its coverage of the awesome destructive power of the fires and later in the search for whom to blame, the media paid almost no attention to how the fires affected the most disenfranchised members of the Cape Peninsula and the informal economy, even though the very same fires that threatened multi-million Rand homes affected their livelihoods. For members of the informal wood-selling economy the fires, regardless of what or who was to blame, meant a real, tangible loss in income and a threat to livelihood.
69. See: Comaroff and Comaroff, "Naturing the Nation', pp. 641-643;
70. B. Jordan, "Ash City: Why the Fires Were So Bad', Sunday Times (23 January 2000).
71. The Task Team, A Review of the Veld Fires, p. 84.
72. For example see: B.W. van Wilgen, W.J. Bond and D.M. Richardson, "Ecosystem Management', in The Ecology of Fynbos, pp. 345-371
73. P. de V. Booysen and N.M. Tainton (eds), Ecological Effects of Fire in South African Ecosystems (Vol. 48, Berlin, Springer-Verlag, 1984);
74. Van Wilgen et al. (eds), Fire in South African Mountain Fynbos;
75. van Wilgen, Everson, and Trollope, "Fire Management in Southern Africa';
76. A.W. Macdonald and M.L. Jarman (eds), Invasive Alien Organisms in the Terrestrial Ecosystems of the Fynbos Biome, South Africa, Foundation for Research Development, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, South African National Scientific Programmes Report No. 85 (Pretoria, CSIR, 1984);
77. van Wilgen and Scott. "Managing Fires on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa'.
78. The Task Team, A Review of the Veld Fires, p. 29.
79. Philip Prince, interviewed by author, Newlands Forest, Cape Town, South Africa, 14 July 2004.
80. B. Jordan and J. Heard, "Officials Under Fire', Sunday Times (23 January 2000);
81. "Fire Officials Likely to Be in Host Seat', Business Day (21 January 2000).
82. "Blame it on the Weeds'.
83. Macdonald and Jarman, Invasive Alien Organisms, p. 34.
84. Richardson et al., 'Plant and Animal Invasions', in The Ecology of fynbos, p. 289.
85. Ibid., 291-292.
86. P.M. Holmes and R.M. Cowling, 'The Effects of Invasion by Acacia salinga on the Guild Structure and Regeneration Capabilities of South African Fynbos Shrublands', Journal of Applied Ecology, 34 (1997), pp. 317-32.
87. Richardson et al., "Plant and Animal Invasions', p. 299.
88. Ibid., 296-299.
89. Erasmus, interview; Macdonald and Jarman, Invasive Alien Organisms.
90. Van Wilgen, "Managing Fires on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa'; Macdonald and Jarman, Invasive Alien Organisms, pp. 12, 14.
91. B.W. van Wilgen and E. van Wyk, "Invading Alien Plants in South Africa: Impacts and Solutions', in D. Eldridge and D. Freudenberger (eds), People and Rangelands: Building the Future, Proceedings of the VI International Rangeland Congress (Townsville, Australia, 1999), p. 568.
92. Macdonald and Jarman, Invasive Alien Organisms, pp. 18-19.
93. Van Wilgen et al., "The Economic Consequences of Alien Plant Invasions', p. 152.
94. B.W. van Wilgen and D.M. Richardson, 'The Effects of Alien Shrub Invasion on Vegetation Structure and Fire Behaviour in South African Fynbos Shrublands: A Simulation Study', Journal of Applied Ecology, 22 (1985), pp. 955-66.
95. A crown fire is a fire in the leaves of a plant. In trees, crown fires occur in the treetop. Because these fires tend not to affect the bottoms of trees they neither clear ground cover nor provide the heat needed for fire-dependent seed dispersal.
96. Van Wilgen and Richardson, "The Effects of Alien Shrub Invasions on Vegetation Structure and Fire Behaviour', p. 964.
97. As van Wilgen and van Wyk write, 'The principal negative impacts of alien plants on biodiversity are displacement by direct competition, reduced structural diversity, increased biomass and disruption of the prevailing vegetation dynamics'.
98. Van Wilgen and van Wyk, "Invading Alien Plants in South Africa', p. 577.
99. Macdonald and Jarman, Invasive Alien Organisms in the Terrestrial Ecosystems of the Fynbos Biome, p. iii.
100. Holmes and Cowling, "The Effects of Invasion by Acacia salinga', p. 318.
101. Ibid. p. 317-318.
102. R. Kasrils, "Foreword', The Working for Water Programme Annual Report 2001/2 (Working for Water Programme, Pretoria, 2002).
103. Richardson et al., "Plant and Animal Invasions', p. 271.
104. Despite inconclusive ecological evidence about the role of invasives in fire, as I talked to various key players on the fire scene in Cape Town I continually heard the same things-invasives are bad for fynbos and their eradication is good for South Africa. Piet Smith, interview by author, Cape Town, South Africa, 1 July 2004; Preston, interview; van Wilgen, interview;
105. also see: D. Euston-Brown, S. Botha and W. Bond, "Influence of Fire Severity on Post-Fire Vegetation Recovery on the Cape Peninsula' (Working for Water Programme, Cape Town, South Africa, June 2002, photocopy).
106. A Review of the Veld Fires, p. 84.
107. "Ukuvuka Goals and Objectives' from "The Santam/Cape Argus Operation Firestop Campaign - A Wake Up Call for the People of Cape Town!', available at http://www.ukuvuka.org.za (retrieved on 4 May 2004).
108. G. Preston, "Invasive Alien Plants and Protected Areas in South Africa' (paper presented to the World Parks Congress, Durban, South Africa, 13 September 2003), p. 2.
109. Ukuvuka Operation Firestop Campaign, "The Santam/Cape Argus Ukuvuka Operation Firestop Campaign Draft Business Plan: 2000-2004' (Ukuvuka, Cape Town, 1 June 2000, printed copy), p. 5.
110. Cape Action Plan for the Environment, p. 10;
111. also see: S. Fakir, F. Kruger, J.R. Pretorius, "The State of the Environment in South Africa, Political', available at http://www.ngo.grida.no/nsoer/issues/politic/index.htm, retrieved on 18 May 2004.
112. Richardson and van Wilgen, "Invasive Alien Plants in South Africa'.
113. Van Wilgen and Scott, "Managing Fires on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa', p. 197;
114. van Wilgen, interview. Forsyth, interview.
115. For example see: van Wilgen et al., "The Economic Consequences of Alien Plant Invasions',
116. P. Dye and C. Jarman, "Water Use by Black Wattle (Acacia mearnsii): Implications for the Link Between Removal of Invading Trees and Catchment Streamflow Response', South African Journal of Science, 100 (2004), pp. 40-44.
117. A.H.M. Görgens and B.W. van Wilgen, "Invasive Alien Plants and Water Resource in South Africa: Current Understandings, Predictive Ability and Research Challenges', South African Journal of Science, 100, 1-2 (January/February 2004), pp. 27-33;
118. Dye and Jarman, "Water Use by Black Wattle'.
119. H.G. Zimmermann, V.C. Moran, and J.H. Hoffmann, "Biological Control in the Management of Invasive Alien Plants in South Africa, and the Role of the Working for Water Programme', South African Journal of Science, 100, 1-2 (January/February 2004), pp. 34-40.
120. A.M. Latimer, J.A. Silander Jr, A.E. Gelfand, A.G. Rebelo, and D.M. Richardson, "Quantifying Threats to Biodiversity from Invasive Alien Plants and Other Factors: a Case Study from the Cape Floristic Region', South African Journal of Science, 100, 1-2 (January/February 2004), pp. 81-86.
121. D. Magadlela and N. Mdzeke, "Social Benefits in the Working for Water Programme as a Public Works Initiative', South African Journal of Science, 100 (January/February 2004), pp. 94-96.
122. South African Journal of Science, 100, 1-2 (January/February 2004).
123. Van Wilgen, "Scientific Challenges in the Field of Invasive Plant Management'.
124. Magadlela and Mdzeke, "Social Benefits in the Working for Water Programme'.
125. Van Wilgen, "Scientific Challenges in the Field of Invasive Alien Plant Management', p. 19.
126. Richardson and van Wilgen, "Invasive Alien Plants in South Africa', p. 50.
127. S. Matthews, "More Money for Research', The Water Wheel (July/August 2003), p. 12.
128. "A New Strategy and Action Plan for Research within the Working for Water Programme' (18 March 2005), available at http://www.dwaf.gov.za/wfw/docs/WfWResearchStrat.pdf (retrieved on 3 July 2010).
129. "Profile of CSIR', available at http://www.csir.co.za/profile_of_csir.html (retrieved on 6 July 2010).
130. Indeed, the institutional description on one of his recent articles states that van Wilgen is at the 'Centre for Invasion Biology, CSIR Water, Environmental and Forestry Technology' simultaneously.
131. B.W. van Wilgen, J.L. Nel, and M. Rouget, 'Invasive Alien Plants and South African Rivers: A Proposed Approach to the Prioritization of Control Operations,', Freshwater Biology, 52 (2007), p. 711.
132. Much of this information comes from van Wilgen's 2006 c.v. which is available for download from the CSIR website at http://www.csir.co.za/csir_fellows.html (retrieved on 8 July 2010).
133. Van Wilgen has authored a number of papers through CSIR that were funded by Working for Water.
134. For example, see: B.W. van Wilgen, G.G. Forsyth and D.C. Le Maitre, "The Prioritisation of Species and Primary Catchments for the Purposes of Guiding Invasive Alien Plant Control Operations in the Terrestrial Biomes of South Africa', CSIR Natural Resources and the Environment Report No. CSIR/NRE/ECO/ER/2008/0070/C (2008);
135. M.R. Levendal, D.C. Le Maitre, B.W. van Wilgen, and P. Ntshotso, "The Development of Protocols for the Monitoring and Evaluation of Benefits Arising from the Working for Water Programme', CSIR Natural Resources and the Environment, Report No. CSIR/NRE/ECO/ER/2008/0066/C (2008);
136. B.W. van Wilgen, M.P. deWit, H.J. Anderson, D.C. Le Maitre, I.M. Kotze, S. Ndala, B. Brown, and M.B. Rapholo, "Costs and Benefits of Biological Control of Invasive Alien Plants: Case Studies from South Africa', South African Journal of Science, 100, 1-2 (January/February 2004), pp. 113-122.
137. For example see: C. Marais and A.M. Wannenburgh, "Restoration of Water Resources (Natural Capital) through the Clearing of Invasive Alien Plants from Riparian Areas in South Africa - Costs and Water Benefits', South Footnote 98 continued African Journal of Botany, 74 (2008), pp. 526-537;
138. M.J. Samways and S. Taylor, "Impacts of Invasive Alien Plants on Red-Listed South African Dragonflies (Odonata), South African Journal of Science, 100, 1-2 (January/February 2004), pp. 78-80;
139. M.P. De Witt, D.J. Crookes, and B.W. van Wilgen, "Conflicts of Interest in Environmental Management: Estimating the Costs and Benefits of a Tree Invasion', Biological Invasions, 3 (2001), pp. 167-178.
140. For example see: Levendal, Le Maitre, van Wilgen, and Ntshotso, "The Development of Protocols for the Monitoring and Evaluation';
141. T.N. Mgidi, D.C. Le Maitre, J. Nel, M. Rouget, D.M. Richardson, C. Midgley, N. Mdzeke, B.W. van Wingen, L. Scholegevel, L. Henderson, S. Neser and B. Egoh, "An Assessment of Invasion Potential of Invasive Alien Plant Species in South Africa', CSIR Report No. ENV-S-I-2004-108 (2005);
142. S.G. Hosking and M. du Preez, "A Cost-Benefit Analysis of the Working for Water Programme on Selected Sites in South Africa', Water SA, 30, 2 (2004), pp. 143-152.
143. Van Wilgen, Nel and Rouget, "Invasive Alien Plants and South African Rivers', pp. 721-722.
144. B.W. van Wilgen, D.C. Le Maitre, B. Reyers, L. Scholegevel, and D.M. Richardson, "A preliminary assessment of the Impacts of Invasive Alien Plants on Ecosystem Services in South Africa' (paper presented at the Fifteenth Australian Weeds Conference, Adelaide, Australia, 24-28 September 2006), p. 2.
145. Van Wilgen, Bond, and Richardson, "Ecosystem Management', p. 368.
146. Van Wilgen et al., "The Economic Consequences of Alien Plant Invasions', pp. 162-163.
147. Görgens and van Wilgen, "Invasive Alien Plants and Water Resource in South Africa', p. 32.
148. For an ecology-related article see: Richardson and van Wilgen, "Invasive Alien Plants in South Africa';
149. S. Milton, "Grasses as Invasive Alien Plants in South Africa', South African Journal of Science, 100, 1-2 (January/February 2004), pp. 69-75;
150. for a poverty-relief related article see: Magadlela and Mdzeke, "Social Benefits in the Working for Water Programme'.
151. Van Wilgen, "Scientific Challenges in the Field of Invasive Alien Plant Management', p. 20.
152. Van Sittert, "The Seed Blows About in Every Breeze', p. 674.