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Environment
Invasive alien plants clearing
Agenda #3August 20, 2026
Summary
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The Council will consider a memorandum of agreement with The Nature Conservancy for the clearing of invasive alien plants in the catchments of the Western Cape Water Supply System for the 2026/27 to 2028/29 financial years.
Invasive alien plants such as pine, gum (eucalyptus) and wattle (Australian acacia) use far more water than native fynbos. This reduces how much rain reaches rivers and dams. The Greater Cape Town Water Fund's business case estimated that over 55 billion litres of water, about two months' supply for Cape Town, is lost every year to these plants in the seven priority sub-catchments that feed the main city dams. The Western Cape Water Supply System (WCWSS) is the linked network of dams and rivers that supplies Cape Town and other users.
The City has worked with The Nature Conservancy (TNC), a global non-profit, since 2021. It committed R50 million to a two-year contract to clear catchments such as Wemmershoek, Steenbras, Berg River and Theewaterskloof. The City treats this work as part of its New Water Programme. Since April 2019, 41,306 hectares have been cleared in priority sub-catchments, with a further 50,644 hectares of follow-up clearing to control regrowth. Follow-up work matters because cleared land can quickly re-seed.
A renewed agreement has been reported. The partnership will continue removing invasive alien plants from major catchments until 2028/29. The programme is expected to add around 20 billion litres of water a year to the WCWSS. The City presents clearing as a cost-effective complement to supply projects such as groundwater abstraction and managed aquifer recharge. It also supports jobs. This matters because of drought risk and below-average rainfall in the past hydrological year.
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