Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 195-209). / The main theoretical question of the research concerns the importance of considering both the physical and social dimensions of urban flood risk. The following analytical questions are therefore considered: i) What constitutes urban flooding? ii) What processes influence the urban flood hazardscape? iii) What makes people vulnerable to urban flooding? iv) How does one assess urban flood risk? A realist and constructivist society-environment epistemology are considered. In particular, the platform generated through the aforementioned epistemologies for opening up the opportunity to incorporate an integrated hazardscape and vulnerability paradigm for integrated urban flood risk management is considered. The research adopts an analytical framework that includes elements of the Pressure and Release model, the Sustainable Urban Development framework and the Extended Alternative Adjustments framework to study flood risk in lowcost settlements. The research incorporates a review of the damage following three extreme weather events over George during 2006 and 2007. It selects a worst affected low-cost settlement for further flood risk analysis. In the flood risk assessment the research investigates the flood hazardscape of the settlement and physical adjustments undertaken by residents. Human flood vulnerability and vulnerability adjustments undertaken by the residents are also investigated. The research adopts a participatory hazardscape methodological approach drawing from hydrological methods within the physical sciences and qualitative methods from within the social sciences. Both primary and secondary sources are considered. The findings allow for a guiding Urban Flood Risk Circulation framework that explains the importance of considering both the flood hazardscape and human vulnerability in urban flood risk management.

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 158-165).

Bibliography: leaves 130-139. / It is the underlying position of this thesis that -sustainable development embraces the concept of integrating economic, social, environmental, demographic and political issues. High levels of poverty and previous unequal access to resources and power in South Africa emphasise the need for an integrated approach, with a critical focus on democracy, participation and transformation of institutions. Sustainable development requires trade-offs, for example through regulatory frameworks. City managers use these frameworks provide a just and equitable means for informed, integrated and sustainable decision-making. The thesis, in terms of theory and precedent attempts to derive an understanding of What integration is in terms of the broader context of sustainable development and how it is perceived in both Spatial Planning and Strategic Environmental Assessment processes. although both have, at times, common objectives, they have different rationales and the assumption is made that spatial planners believe their procedures and methods pare sufficient for the integration of biophysical, social and economic issues. The question is: how is it possible to ascertain whether integrated planning is occurring? The intention of this thesis is to evaluate the extent of integration which occurred in the Cape Town Metropolitan Spatial Development Framework (MSDF). The Integration Framework is used as a tool to evaluate the MSDF - it constitutes five dimensions, substantive, methodological, procedural, institutional and policy integration. These provide the criteria for determining the extent to which integration has occurred in the MSDF. The MSDF process was initiated in 1991 and was the first planning exercise attempting to change the city structure and reverse the legacy of apartheid. It took into account the unique environment of the Cape, its people and the economy; the plan itself was prepared during a period of political, legislative, institutional and social change. The MSDF was adopted in 1996 by the Cape Metropolitan Council. An Environmental Evaluation was also done for the first time at metropolitan level, giving the spatial planning process a new dimension.

Bibliography: leaves 36-42. / This paper reports on an interview-based survey of small and large wineries, which considered the perceptions and experiences of both ISO 14001 and an industry specific initiative, called the Integrated Production of Wine Scheme (IPW). Large wineries have not yet implemented ISO 14001 but several intend to in future. Small wineries had a poor knowledge of ISO 14001 and believed that ISO management systems (i) are not required by the niche-markets they sell to, (ii) require resources that they do not have, and (iii) are unsuitable for their informal management style. Although wineries do face market-related environmental pressure, especially those that export to large supermarkets, there is as yet no pressure to introduce ISO 14001. The majority of wineries are members of the IPW scheme and are willing to make the changes required by it. IPW needs effective systems for monitoring and for removing non-complying wineries if the system is to improve environmental performance throughout the industry and achieve credibility amongst stakeholders.

Includes bibliographical references. / The focal aim of this thesis is to assess whether the current coping and adaptation mechanisms of small-scale farmers in the South African Province of Mpumalanga are sufficient for dealing with projected climate change.

Increased urban development has resulted in increased impervious landcover and the removal of natural vegetation. The continued anthropic modification of the Earth's surface towards an urban state, has had profound effects on the surrounding natural systems (Thompson et al., 2008). Consequently, recent studies have highlighted a strong link between expanding urbanisation and thermal impacts on streams and rivers draining urban catchments (Roa-Espinosa et al., 2003; Arrington, 2003; Herb et al., 2009b). Anthropogenic perturbations such as thermal pollution can adversely disturb the natural thermal regime of a river (Boothe and Bledsoe, 2009). An important source of thermal pollution is thermally enriched stormwater runoff. During a rainfall event, runoff temperature is elevated as it makes contact with, and passes over surfaces which have a large heat storage capacity, such as pavements, roofs and roads (Young et al., 2013). However, the extent of impervious surfaces and resulting thermal pollution produced by them is poorly understood, although it is thought to be a major contributor to stream degradation. Previous research has focused on investigating the thermal effects of removing riparian vegetation. Additionally, a recent research approach has been to develop models of the urban surface-water-atmosphere systems. Finally, research in the field of fresh-water ecology has investigated the effects of temperature on aquatic biota. Water temperature affects all aspects of freshwater ecosystems and plays an important role in regulating physical and biological characteristics of a river (Olsen et al. 2011). Consequently, any anthropogenic modification to temperature can have devastating effects on the ecological functioning of a river and biodiversity of species within the river habitat. Important findings by Young et al. (2013) suggest the need for a detailed study of stormwater temperature changes in relation to rainfall events, at a catchment scale. Furthermore, data is required to show the point source effects of stormwater runoff from impervious surfaces on the temperature of the receiving water body. Therefore, the aim of this study is: To determine the extent and risk of thermal pollution at site specific discharge points, along the Liesbeek River. In order to achieve this aim, variables which cause temperature variations needed to be identified. The primary research method makes use of Thermocron iButton Temperature Loggers. These were placed in four stormwater outlet pipes, which frequently discharge event-based stormwater runoff into the Liesbeek River. Additionally, iButton loggers were placed in the river channel, to provide a reference temperature to compare stormwater discharge temperature. In addition, hourly rainfall and air temperature was acquired from the South AfricanWeather Service (SAWS) and was used in conjunction with the iButton temperature data.

Includes bibliographical references. / ISO 14001's increasing importance in trade considerations and growing status within regulatory policies means that eventually, few organizations of any size and in any country will be able to ignore it. But does the standard discriminate against the Developing World? Is it accurate to measure the success a country has had in implementing ISO 14001 without taking its size and wealth into account? Are critics of the standard missing the point? This paper examines these questions from the South African perspective and proposes a new method to measure the extent of ISO 14001 acceptance between countries of differing population and economic output.

[T]his study sought to explore and examine the role of human agency in reducing and managing everyday risks in two African informal settlements through the lens of child injury prevention. The methodology used for data collection and data analysis comprised both qualitative and quantitative research methods. A total of 100 household questionnaires were administered in the two study sites. In addition, field observations, two focus group discussions in each study site were facilitated and key informants interviews were conducted. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse quantitative data, which was complemented by qualitative data.

Bibliography: pages 27-33. / Ecotourism is often endorsed as an ideal tool sustainable development that can successfully link the dual goals of nature conservation and rural development. However, critics have highlighted that the negative impacts ecotourism on local communities can undermine the value community development. The participation of local communities in planning for, and implementing, ecotourism development has, therefore, been recommended. This paper addresses some of the problems facing a local community that has the opportunity to develop its own ecotourism venture. It focuses on the difficulties that have been encountered in securing the necessary local participation in planning for a proposed tourism development. These problems include a lack of local awareness about the proposed development, lack of support for the development and lack of capacity to plan a marketable, environmentally sustainable tourism product. Some of the actions for eliciting greater local participation and equipping local to plan for and accommodate tourism are presented. The application of these to the case study reveals a need for sensitivity to local conditions on the part of external agents of change.

Bibliography: pages 107-118. / This study examines the sensitivity of the atmospheric circulation to vegetation change over South Africa in the context of the portended global warming. This is achieved using a vegetation model driven by climate change information and subsequently incorporated within a general circulation model (GCM). The stand-alone vegetation model is driven using precipitation, temperature and relative humidity derived from downscaling using artificial neural networks. The vegetation model is then run with perturbed precipitation, temperature and relative humidity from downscaled model data from lxCO₂ and 2xCO₂ GCM simulations. The resultant vegetation perturbation response to climate change is then examined and incorporated into the GCM in order to ascertain the atmospheric sensitivity to vegetation changes. The off-line results of the vegetation model indicate a moderate degree of sensitivity of the vegetation to perturbations in precipitation, temperature and relative humidity. The general trend in response to the CO₂ climate is a westwards and altitudinal shift of lowland vegetation over the eastern part of the country, and a southwards and eastwards shift of the more dryland vegetation in the west. These shifts are in accordance with expected responses, since lowland vegetation responds more to temperature changes and the dryland vegetation to precipitation changes. Nonetheless, the use of the model provides a physically justifiable scenario on which to base the GCM studies, and at a finer resolution than otherwise available. A GCM simulation with the perturbed vegetation was then performed using sea surface temperature boundary conditions for 1980 and compared to an identical GCM run without the perturbation. 1980 was chosen since this year does not represent either a strong El Niño or La Niña year. The atmospheric sensitivity to the vegetation perturbation has been examined in terms of climatic variables such as temperature, precipitation, pressure, specific humidity, horizontal divergence, and sensible and latent heat fluxes. The results show that the atmosphere is quite sensitive to relatively small vegetation changes. Atmospheric response to vegetation perturbations indicates greater sensitivity over the NW and SE regions of southern Africa. The perturbation indicates a reduction in precipitation over the SE interior, related to less moisture feeding in over the interior from the SE Indian Ocean. Wind speed changes over the adjacent ocean were also evident, and are probably related to the changes in the South Atlantic and Indian high pressures. A southwards extension of the Hadley Cell was also suggested, as well as changes in sensible and latent heat fluxes, relating to precipitation and temperature changes. It is suggested that changes may be in response to the general drying out of the country and the associated increase in aridity. This research forms the preliminary investigation for further work incorporating the atmospheric perturbation response back into driving the vegetation model in order to examine the direction of the feedback -- whether this is positive or negative in the longer term. Thus, this study has demonstrated that the atmosphere is significantly sensitive to vegetation changes over South Africa and reinforces the need for improved land surface parameterization schemes and vegetation models in general circulation models.