Assessment of Pitman Model Capabilities in Modelling Surface Water-Groundwater Interactions in the Lake Sibaya Catchment, South Africa
- Authors: Ramatsabana, Phatsimo Pearl
- Date: 2023-10-13
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/424188 , vital:72131
- Description: Difficulties arising from data scarcity, input data error or uncertainty, heterogeneous environments, lack of process understanding, and model structural uncertainty frequently constrain hydrological assessments of South African catchments. This research aimed to assess the usefulness of a “simpler” conceptual model for the conjunctive management of surface water and groundwater. The idea is that, to leverage the limited available data and information, a compromise between model complexity and data availability is required, which improves the use of models to produce reliable hydrological systems assessments. The research methodology focused on catchment-scale lake-groundwater dynamics to explore the limits of the groundwater components of the modified Pitman model (Hughes, 2004) in this type of environment, thus, determining the potential for using this model for integrated water assessments in South Africa. The Pitman model (Pitman, 1973; Hughes, 2013) is one of the most widely accepted models regarding surface water hydrology in South Africa; however, the newly incorporated groundwater components (Hughes, 2004) have not been applied as extensively as the surface water components. There remains uncertainty regarding their capability to adequately simulate groundwater processes and accurately represent surface and groundwater interactions in some environments. The model was assessed based on how well simulated water balance variables accurately reflected available evidence and expected catchment response (objective 1). Secondly, the research identified and addressed uncertainties as regards the structure and application of the model’s groundwater interaction components (objective 2). The model was set up for the Lake Sibaya catchment, which is a predominantly groundwater-driven system and, thus, provides an important opportunity to interrogate different aspects of uncertainty in both the conceptualizing and quantifying interaction processes. The study’s overall conclusion is that the model performed satisfactorily as it was able to simulate the lake’s water balance correctly enough such that the influences of dominating components were sensibly reflected in variations in streamflow and lake volumes. The following key findings were noted; (i) the lake volume shows a continuous decline, (ii) the lake volume decreased with increasing development (forestry and abstractions) in the lake catchment, (iii) there is significant rainfall uncertainty in the study area and the model showed high sensitivity to rainfall differences, (iv) robust conceptual knowledge of local catchment conditions was valuable for reducing some of the data related uncertainty in the study area and for producing realistic model simulations, (v) the Pitman model (Hughes, 2013) updated GW components can provide a valuable tool for modelling integrated hydrological processes; nevertheless, when applying the model to specific environments, implicit approaches may be necessary to account for processes that are not fully represented in the model. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Institute for Water Research, 2023
- Full Text:
- Authors: Ramatsabana, Phatsimo Pearl
- Date: 2023-10-13
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/424188 , vital:72131
- Description: Difficulties arising from data scarcity, input data error or uncertainty, heterogeneous environments, lack of process understanding, and model structural uncertainty frequently constrain hydrological assessments of South African catchments. This research aimed to assess the usefulness of a “simpler” conceptual model for the conjunctive management of surface water and groundwater. The idea is that, to leverage the limited available data and information, a compromise between model complexity and data availability is required, which improves the use of models to produce reliable hydrological systems assessments. The research methodology focused on catchment-scale lake-groundwater dynamics to explore the limits of the groundwater components of the modified Pitman model (Hughes, 2004) in this type of environment, thus, determining the potential for using this model for integrated water assessments in South Africa. The Pitman model (Pitman, 1973; Hughes, 2013) is one of the most widely accepted models regarding surface water hydrology in South Africa; however, the newly incorporated groundwater components (Hughes, 2004) have not been applied as extensively as the surface water components. There remains uncertainty regarding their capability to adequately simulate groundwater processes and accurately represent surface and groundwater interactions in some environments. The model was assessed based on how well simulated water balance variables accurately reflected available evidence and expected catchment response (objective 1). Secondly, the research identified and addressed uncertainties as regards the structure and application of the model’s groundwater interaction components (objective 2). The model was set up for the Lake Sibaya catchment, which is a predominantly groundwater-driven system and, thus, provides an important opportunity to interrogate different aspects of uncertainty in both the conceptualizing and quantifying interaction processes. The study’s overall conclusion is that the model performed satisfactorily as it was able to simulate the lake’s water balance correctly enough such that the influences of dominating components were sensibly reflected in variations in streamflow and lake volumes. The following key findings were noted; (i) the lake volume shows a continuous decline, (ii) the lake volume decreased with increasing development (forestry and abstractions) in the lake catchment, (iii) there is significant rainfall uncertainty in the study area and the model showed high sensitivity to rainfall differences, (iv) robust conceptual knowledge of local catchment conditions was valuable for reducing some of the data related uncertainty in the study area and for producing realistic model simulations, (v) the Pitman model (Hughes, 2013) updated GW components can provide a valuable tool for modelling integrated hydrological processes; nevertheless, when applying the model to specific environments, implicit approaches may be necessary to account for processes that are not fully represented in the model. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Institute for Water Research, 2023
- Full Text:
Just stories?: Epistemic (in)justice and everyday resistance in the digital stories of family literacy practices by Grade 1-5 workers at a South African University
- Authors: Viedge, Jane Margaret
- Date: 2023-10-13
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/432308 , vital:72860
- Description: This thesis sets out to establish in what ways digital storytelling (DST) revealed instances of epistemic (in)justices inherent in the family literacy intervention experiences of four Black, working-class parents employed at a South African University1. Additionally, it explores how DST might be used by the participants (self-labelled the Storytelling Family Literacy - SFL Advocates) to correct any harm done. The context for the research is based on the deep-rooted harms of Bantu education in which Black South Africans were denied equal access to resources such as literacy practices. I investigated these aims by using the theories of DST, Communication for Social Change (C4SC) and epistemic (in)justice. As a participatory media practice supporting communications in marginalised communities, DST’s broad purpose is to assist these communities in telling stories of their lived experiences in ways that change dominant and, therefore, unchallenged views about them (Servaes & Malikhao 2014). In facilitating DST workshops with the SFL Advocates, I searched for evidence of epistemic (in)justice to enhance our (all stakeholders) understanding of their literacy experiences in ways that addressed their credibility status as ‘knowers’ (Fricker, 2007). Viewed through this lens, utilising DST provided a mechanism for understanding the impact of social interventions in a university setting that aimed to correct past injustices. The process involved online and face-to-face workshops with the participants during the Covid-19 Lockdown. The online format hampered data collection processes, and I resorted to face-to-face interactions for the workshops and interviews. These interactions were distinctly different from those I had experienced with participants in previous workshops, and they became a key focus in my analysis. Using narrative inquiry with critical realist and interpretive analysis techniques to interrogate the data, I discovered DST has both weaknesses and strengths as a C4SC communication tool. My findings revealed participants who, in the moment of leading their children and communities through the family literacy intervention, could claim to have redressed epistemic harms from the legacy of Apartheid education. However, by reflecting on this moment, the participants brought to light an epistemic harm that had been previously left unspoken: their sense of restored credibility as knowledge-bearers during the intervention was deeply shaken when the programme ended because they felt abandoned by the university. Therefore, the epistemic (in)justice lens unveiled hidden injustices that curtailed the participants’ ability to participate fully in the DST workshops. They described suffering the effects of pernicious and arbitrary acts of epistemic injustice at the hands of the University. Their participation in my workshops was erratic, and their stories were incomplete. As a result, I experienced difficulty analysing what I perceived as a lack of data. Moreover, despite my independent researcher status, my positionality as participant-observer was problematic as the participants may have perceived me as representative of the University and its institutional power. I responded to the problematic data by including a new theoretical framework in my analysis: the theory of everyday resistance (Vinthagen & Johansson, 2013). Combined with epistemic (in)justice theory and Vivienne’s ideas of using DST for everyday activism, I theorised how the participants negotiated their expressions of identity in epistemically unjust spaces. To put institutional epistemic injustice in perspective in the context of the University, I drew on Fricker’s three models of epistemic justice that enable fair and free conditions for marginalised workers to communicate for social change. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Journalism and Media Studies, 2023
- Full Text:
- Authors: Viedge, Jane Margaret
- Date: 2023-10-13
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/432308 , vital:72860
- Description: This thesis sets out to establish in what ways digital storytelling (DST) revealed instances of epistemic (in)justices inherent in the family literacy intervention experiences of four Black, working-class parents employed at a South African University1. Additionally, it explores how DST might be used by the participants (self-labelled the Storytelling Family Literacy - SFL Advocates) to correct any harm done. The context for the research is based on the deep-rooted harms of Bantu education in which Black South Africans were denied equal access to resources such as literacy practices. I investigated these aims by using the theories of DST, Communication for Social Change (C4SC) and epistemic (in)justice. As a participatory media practice supporting communications in marginalised communities, DST’s broad purpose is to assist these communities in telling stories of their lived experiences in ways that change dominant and, therefore, unchallenged views about them (Servaes & Malikhao 2014). In facilitating DST workshops with the SFL Advocates, I searched for evidence of epistemic (in)justice to enhance our (all stakeholders) understanding of their literacy experiences in ways that addressed their credibility status as ‘knowers’ (Fricker, 2007). Viewed through this lens, utilising DST provided a mechanism for understanding the impact of social interventions in a university setting that aimed to correct past injustices. The process involved online and face-to-face workshops with the participants during the Covid-19 Lockdown. The online format hampered data collection processes, and I resorted to face-to-face interactions for the workshops and interviews. These interactions were distinctly different from those I had experienced with participants in previous workshops, and they became a key focus in my analysis. Using narrative inquiry with critical realist and interpretive analysis techniques to interrogate the data, I discovered DST has both weaknesses and strengths as a C4SC communication tool. My findings revealed participants who, in the moment of leading their children and communities through the family literacy intervention, could claim to have redressed epistemic harms from the legacy of Apartheid education. However, by reflecting on this moment, the participants brought to light an epistemic harm that had been previously left unspoken: their sense of restored credibility as knowledge-bearers during the intervention was deeply shaken when the programme ended because they felt abandoned by the university. Therefore, the epistemic (in)justice lens unveiled hidden injustices that curtailed the participants’ ability to participate fully in the DST workshops. They described suffering the effects of pernicious and arbitrary acts of epistemic injustice at the hands of the University. Their participation in my workshops was erratic, and their stories were incomplete. As a result, I experienced difficulty analysing what I perceived as a lack of data. Moreover, despite my independent researcher status, my positionality as participant-observer was problematic as the participants may have perceived me as representative of the University and its institutional power. I responded to the problematic data by including a new theoretical framework in my analysis: the theory of everyday resistance (Vinthagen & Johansson, 2013). Combined with epistemic (in)justice theory and Vivienne’s ideas of using DST for everyday activism, I theorised how the participants negotiated their expressions of identity in epistemically unjust spaces. To put institutional epistemic injustice in perspective in the context of the University, I drew on Fricker’s three models of epistemic justice that enable fair and free conditions for marginalised workers to communicate for social change. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Journalism and Media Studies, 2023
- Full Text:
Coastal movements and estuarine use of sub-adult and adult leervis, lichia amia: results from long-term acoustic tracking
- Authors: Mxo, Rebecca Vuyolwethu
- Date: 2023-03-29
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/422314 , vital:71930
- Description: Information on fish movement is important not only for understanding a species’ ecological importance, but also for developing appropriate conservation and management policies that are critical for food security and biodiversity preservation. This information is particularly important for species that occupy different habitats at different life history stages, and display predictable movement patterns, such as an annual spawning migration. Leervis Lichia amia is an estuary-dependent fishery species of high ecological and recreational importance in South Africa. There has been a steady decline in catch-per-unit-effort in the marine recreational fishery for this species over the past 20 years, and the most recent stock assessment classified the adult stock as collapsed. This study investigates L. amia multi-year coastal migrations and estuarine habitat use of sub-adult and adult fish tagged with long-life acoustic transmitters Seventy-eight L. amia (two juveniles, fifty-four subadults, and twenty-one adults) were tagged throughout their South African distribution and monitored between 2011 and 2020 producing a decade long dataset. Results show that regardless of the tagging region, clear migration patterns were observed, demonstrating that both sub-adult and adult L. amia migrate annually to KZN in the austral winter and predictably return to the WC and EC waters in the summer. The likelihood of partial migration was also identified, with the coexistence of migratory and resident behaviors within a single L. amia population. In addition, Overwintering behaviour was also observed with L. amia adults that remained resident throughout the year, foregoing the annual migration, phenomenon known as skipped spawning, and homing behaviour, where L. amia, particularly those tagged in the EC and WC, were recorded returning to previously occupied tagging locations and surrounding areas. The importance of estuaries to sub-adult and adult fish was also assessed and identified the importance of estuaries not only to subadults but also to adults. Estuary visits were strongly influenced by the environment which the fish was tagged in, temporal and seasonal changes, and life-history stages. The predictability of their migrations (almost to the day), the varied migratory behaviour (overwintering), returning to sites of familiarity post-migration, and long-term dependency on estuaries even as sub-adults and adults, provide motivation for increased protection of this species, including extending the network of estuarine protected areas in the country, and a closed fishing season, particularly during the annual winter migration. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Ichthyology and Fisheries Science, 2023
- Full Text:
- Authors: Mxo, Rebecca Vuyolwethu
- Date: 2023-03-29
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/422314 , vital:71930
- Description: Information on fish movement is important not only for understanding a species’ ecological importance, but also for developing appropriate conservation and management policies that are critical for food security and biodiversity preservation. This information is particularly important for species that occupy different habitats at different life history stages, and display predictable movement patterns, such as an annual spawning migration. Leervis Lichia amia is an estuary-dependent fishery species of high ecological and recreational importance in South Africa. There has been a steady decline in catch-per-unit-effort in the marine recreational fishery for this species over the past 20 years, and the most recent stock assessment classified the adult stock as collapsed. This study investigates L. amia multi-year coastal migrations and estuarine habitat use of sub-adult and adult fish tagged with long-life acoustic transmitters Seventy-eight L. amia (two juveniles, fifty-four subadults, and twenty-one adults) were tagged throughout their South African distribution and monitored between 2011 and 2020 producing a decade long dataset. Results show that regardless of the tagging region, clear migration patterns were observed, demonstrating that both sub-adult and adult L. amia migrate annually to KZN in the austral winter and predictably return to the WC and EC waters in the summer. The likelihood of partial migration was also identified, with the coexistence of migratory and resident behaviors within a single L. amia population. In addition, Overwintering behaviour was also observed with L. amia adults that remained resident throughout the year, foregoing the annual migration, phenomenon known as skipped spawning, and homing behaviour, where L. amia, particularly those tagged in the EC and WC, were recorded returning to previously occupied tagging locations and surrounding areas. The importance of estuaries to sub-adult and adult fish was also assessed and identified the importance of estuaries not only to subadults but also to adults. Estuary visits were strongly influenced by the environment which the fish was tagged in, temporal and seasonal changes, and life-history stages. The predictability of their migrations (almost to the day), the varied migratory behaviour (overwintering), returning to sites of familiarity post-migration, and long-term dependency on estuaries even as sub-adults and adults, provide motivation for increased protection of this species, including extending the network of estuarine protected areas in the country, and a closed fishing season, particularly during the annual winter migration. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Ichthyology and Fisheries Science, 2023
- Full Text:
Crop fields abandonment: assessing the dynamics of degradation in relation to leverage points for sustainable land management in the Macubeni catchment, South Africa
- Authors: Sibiya, Silindile
- Date: 2023-03-29
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/422470 , vital:71945
- Description: Soil erosion is a major global environmental problem and a pervasive forms of land degradation that threatens land productivity and food and water security. Some of the biggest sources of sediment in catchments are previously cultivated lands. Regardless of this factor, the abandonment of cultivated fields is not well-researched. Sustainable land management (SLM) interventions can play a significant role in mitigating and halting land degradation. This study investigated the dynamics of degradation exhibited by crop fields and the potential impacts of SLM interventions, using a leverage points framework and a case study in the Macubeni catchment of South Africa. The research answers three questions: (1) What is the relationship between the usage status of crop fields and degradation in Macubeni? (2) What are the drivers of crop field abandonment and how do they interact in the system? (3) Can proposed sustainable land management interventions tackle the dynamics of land abandonment, and associated degradation, at the root cause level? An empirical-analytical approach using a four step multi-method process was followed, in which crop fields were mapped using ArcGIS tools, literature was reviewed alongside stakeholder engagements, qualitative systems mapping modelling was undertaken, and a Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA) with leverage points hierarchy was used to integrate all the steps together. The results revealed that the various drivers of crop field abandonment include natural environmental factors, socio-economic and social factors. 47.41% of the total crop fields in Macubeni were classified as highly degraded, and abandoned fields covered 37.47%. The statistical Chi-Square Test also confirmed that there is a significant relationship between the usage status and degradation level in crop fields. The SLM interventions assessed in the study have the potential to tackle the dynamics of land abandonment at a root cause level, however, there is a need to first shift the community’s mental models to address the existing sources of change resistance that are hindering successful implementation. Furthermore, the innovative multi-method approach applied in this study can further provide a holistic, dynamic, and integrated decision-support to land conservation and rehabilitation projects in similar settings across South Africa and other developing countries as opposed to the more traditional one-dimensional approaches. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Environmental Science, 2023
- Full Text:
- Authors: Sibiya, Silindile
- Date: 2023-03-29
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/422470 , vital:71945
- Description: Soil erosion is a major global environmental problem and a pervasive forms of land degradation that threatens land productivity and food and water security. Some of the biggest sources of sediment in catchments are previously cultivated lands. Regardless of this factor, the abandonment of cultivated fields is not well-researched. Sustainable land management (SLM) interventions can play a significant role in mitigating and halting land degradation. This study investigated the dynamics of degradation exhibited by crop fields and the potential impacts of SLM interventions, using a leverage points framework and a case study in the Macubeni catchment of South Africa. The research answers three questions: (1) What is the relationship between the usage status of crop fields and degradation in Macubeni? (2) What are the drivers of crop field abandonment and how do they interact in the system? (3) Can proposed sustainable land management interventions tackle the dynamics of land abandonment, and associated degradation, at the root cause level? An empirical-analytical approach using a four step multi-method process was followed, in which crop fields were mapped using ArcGIS tools, literature was reviewed alongside stakeholder engagements, qualitative systems mapping modelling was undertaken, and a Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA) with leverage points hierarchy was used to integrate all the steps together. The results revealed that the various drivers of crop field abandonment include natural environmental factors, socio-economic and social factors. 47.41% of the total crop fields in Macubeni were classified as highly degraded, and abandoned fields covered 37.47%. The statistical Chi-Square Test also confirmed that there is a significant relationship between the usage status and degradation level in crop fields. The SLM interventions assessed in the study have the potential to tackle the dynamics of land abandonment at a root cause level, however, there is a need to first shift the community’s mental models to address the existing sources of change resistance that are hindering successful implementation. Furthermore, the innovative multi-method approach applied in this study can further provide a holistic, dynamic, and integrated decision-support to land conservation and rehabilitation projects in similar settings across South Africa and other developing countries as opposed to the more traditional one-dimensional approaches. , Thesis (MSc) -- Faculty of Science, Environmental Science, 2023
- Full Text:
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