South African marine pollution survey Report 1979-1982

Abstract

The main objectives of the Marine Pollution Programme initiated in 1974 were to discover sources of marine pollution assess their magnitude and institute a national data centre where the information could be collected and collated most effectively. Most of the known impact areas and important estuaries as well as many beaches were surveyed between 1974 and 1979. The data have been summarised in the previous reports [20, 50]. This report, which covers the period 1979 to 1982, includes resurveys of the major impact areas and surveys of some estuaries in Natal and the south Eastern Cape which have not been previously covered. The impact areas were Tongaat, Durban and the Natal south coast beaches, East London, Algoa Bay, Mossel Bay, False Bay, Hout Bay, Camps Bay, Table Bay and Saldanha Bay. The estuaries were Siyaya, Umgababa, Buffalo, Sundays, Great Fish, Kowie, Kariega, Sundays, Gamtoos and Kromme. There were also a number of general studies including those on metal concentrations along the Cape coast, further studies of beach recovery following an oil spill, and a study of colonisation of an artificial reef