The rôle of geology in the development of Maputaland, South Africa

Maputaland, the coastal plain on the eastern sea-board of South Africa, is underlain by late Mesozoic to Quaternary sequences. It lacks any major mineral wealth, apart from heavy minerals in the Holocene coastal dunes. Mining of these dunes is a controversial environmental issue whilst the whole area is not suitable for industrialization. Development options for Maputaland therefore are largely limited to the rational and sustainable utilization of its renewable natural resources. The development and improvement of the region's agricultural output and eco-tourism industry are the best options to pursue in order to provide much needed employment for a rapidly growing and already impoverished rural community. The region has a high biodiversity due to its being a tropical-subtropical transition zone and to east-west variations in geology and climate. These have been the reasons for the establishment of various conservation areas. Future improvements to the agriculture and the reserves depend upon important geological input both on the environmental side, in order not to interfere with natural long-term changes, as well as on the applied side, particularly concerning the development of an infrastructure for the eco-tourism industry.