Thabang Maphanga

• Cape Peninsula University of Technology

This study examines how gender issues in Southern Africa, specifically gender inequality, place women at a disadvantage regarding food security because of climate change. The impacts of climate change have already significantly affected the livelihoods and living conditions of the poorest and most vulnerable (women and children), making agriculture...

In Africa, the legacy of mining has not only contributed to economic growth, employment, and prosperity but also brought risks to pollution exposure associated with detrimental health effects, ecological degradation, and social upheaval, such as the rapid Zama-Zamas. Due to this, illegal mining on the African continent has numerous environmental im...

The quality of education is significantly influenced by occupational health and safety (OHS) measures. To this end, a safety incident at a university could have far-reaching negative effects on facilitating teaching and learning for both lecturers and students. Although OHS standards are widely established in numerous industries, they are often ove...

There are distinct management approaches for communal properties and commercial agricultural properties concerning bush encroachment. The utilisation of community-based knowledge possesses the capacity to enhance our comprehension of localised circumstances and provide valuable experience in endeavours targeted at supporting local communities. The...

Plastic pollution is a global issue, with microplastics gaining international attention from Non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the government, the public, media and academia; microplastics are a growing source of concern. This research article aims to explore the Cape Town beachgoers’ general knowledge and understanding of microplastic polluti...

Savanna rangelands have experienced widespread degradation due to bush encroachment, raising significant concerns among conservationists and rural communities. In the context of climate change, these ecosystem shifts are likely to intensify, especially in South Africa's semi-arid regions. Understanding the impacts of climate variability and change...

Savannah rangelands provide a significant source of income for rural communities, which use them to manufacture a variety of products. Traditionally, rangeland managers used visual and/or physical monitoring methods that were time-consuming, labour-intensive, and expensive. The applicability of these methods to assessing rangeland vegetation remain...

The exploitation of resources and industrialized and societal activities has resulted in global freshwater contamination, which is a serious environmental concern. Climate variability exerts a significant influence on the metal concentrations in water sources. The monitoring of metal concentrations in surface water systems amidst climate change and...

South Africa's water resources have experienced significant negative effects resulting from poor quality effluent, posing a substantial threat to public health. The main aim of this study was to evaluate the existing technological condition of wastewater treatment and sanitary infrastructure in South Africa. The rationale for conducting this study...

Nature reserves have played a crucial role in biodiversity conservation for decades. Rapid urban sprawl has increased the amount of solid waste created by littering and illegal dumping in metropolitan nature reserves. This paper examines how two nature reserves, Wolfgat Nature Reserve and Witzands Aquifer Nature Reserves, can combine community cons...

Water quality problems are a major challenge that humans encounter in the 21st Century. Water security presents a pressing concern in South Africa due to persistent difficulties in ensuring water availability, accessibility, and quality. Given the numerous activities that are taking place adjacent to riverbanks, there has been a decline in water qu...

Freshwater is a limited resource experiencing accelerated contamination in several nations due to various reasons, including both natural and human-induced influences such as climate, topography, mining, industry, and agriculture. South Africa is characterized by water scarcity, a condition exacerbated by its status as a developing nation. Conseque...

The integration of indigenous knowledge systems into the discussion of bush encroachment management is of paramount importance. Indigenous knowledge and formal monitoring may be mutually beneficial, and using both approaches can improve natural resource management. Savannah rangeland landscapes hold deep cultural and spiritual significance for indi...

Groundwater supports over 2.4 billion people across the globe and is critical to food security. The spatial dynamics of groundwater vary from place to place. The irregularity of groundwater resource exploitation is recognized in drought-prone areas, putting pressure on the resource. Hence, accurate groundwater potential characterization is critical...

Many low-income developing countries struggle with waste collection and the development of disposal facilities, leading to issues such as illegal dumping and poor enforcement of waste management regulations. The pollution caused by street vendors' waste is particularly evident in the central business districts of cities in developing nations. The i...

The effluents from the South African wastewater treatment plant systems have a detrimental effect on the country's water resources and public health. Municipal wastewater services are often considered inadequate when compared to national standards and inter-national benchmarks. The objective of this study was to evaluate the quality of wastewater e...

Air pollution is a major issue in metropolitan areas, including the City of Tshwane in South Africa. With a growing urban population and increased vehicles on the road, the air quality in the city has become a concern. This study aims to assess air quality compliance in the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality by analysing the levels of PM10 a...

Municipalities face the greatest difficulty in implementing an efficient and effective waste collection system, especially in informal settlements with limited spatial planning. Illegal dumping is exacerbated by the proliferation of informal settlements and the lack of adequate waste management services provided by municipalities. A geographic info...

A key aspect of climate change is its impact on river water quality. Most research focuses on the impact of physiochemical parameters on water quality. However, the long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns coupled with anthropo-genic activities play a significant role in river contamination. Metals are known to have toxic effects and e...

Indoor and outdoor air quality ambient air pollution Mpumalanga highveld Particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide Mpumalanga province Indoor or Outdoor ratios There is a belief that ambient air pollution is accountable for degrading the air quality indoors. Although in principle the indoor air quality should be better than that of outdoor air qualit...

Bush encroachment threatens rangelands’ biodiversity and productivity, impacting savannah ecosystems based on location, management practices, and factors like erratic rainfall, climate change, and environmental variability. Considering these challenges, this study therefore seeks to evaluate bush encroachment changes over-time (1992–2022) in the So...

Sand mining has gained popularity in rural South African communities, as a result of the growing need for building materials in the surrounding villages and as a source of income for rural communities. Consequently, sand is a vital natural resource for every civilization in the world. Despite the growing dependence of rural communities on sand, com...

Despite being classified as informal, street vendors play a crucial role in urban economies. Street selling and rubbish picking are the primary occupations engaged in by those affected by unregulated urbanization. These activities also subject them to other waste-related challenges within the outdoor setting. This waste is not properly disposed of,...

Despite being classified as informal, street vendors play a crucial role in urban economies. Street selling and rubbish picking are the primary occupations engaged in by those affected by unregulated urbanization. These activities also subject them to other waste-related challenges within the outdoor setting. This waste is not properly disposed of,...

The quality of surface water has a significant impact on human health and the entire ecological system. Sewer spillages from the surrounding informal settlements discharging into the river, carrying high concentrations of fecal coliforms, are one of the major causes of extreme pollution in the rivers of South Africa. These informal settlements are...

Fixed air quality monitoring stations generally monitor the air quality in developing countries. However, this practice, in addition to being costly, inherently contains drawbacks associated with the inability to capture the spatial distribution of air pollutants. Against this limitation, it is necessary to employ flexible and dynamic monitoring te...

Illegal disposal of solid waste is a significant issue in many parts of the world, particularly in urban areas. Because of unprecedented urbanization, these areas are crowded, putting pressure on the already inadequate municipal services such as waste management. As municipalities fail to provide adequate and effective waste management services, th...

This paper investigates the impact of ENSO on water quality by looking at COD, SS, and Escherichia coli along the Crocodile River. Water samples were collected between 2016 and 2021 at three strategic sites on the river and were tested in an accredited laboratory. Python (version 3.8), Spyder and Microsoft Excel 2019 were used to analyze the data....

Human land use has begun exerting pressure on global ecosystems, causing a decline in biodiversity, and putting pressure on the biosphere's ability to support life. Migration and rapid population growth in urban areas have resulted in a growing volume of solid waste in nature reserves due to littering and illegal dumping. The existence of illegal d...

The indiscriminate disposal of solid waste is detrimental to the environment and health. Given that, whilst the environmental health risks of indiscriminate solid waste disposal are well documented; the contributing factors are mostly overlooked especially within the informal settlement found in metropolitan cities. The study sought to examine fact...

Since food waste is a contemporary and complicated issue that is widely debated across many societal areas, the world community has designated the reduction of food waste as a crucial aspect of establishing a sustainable economy. However, waste management has numerous challenges, such as inadequate funding, poor waste treatment infrastructure, tech...

The declining state of municipal wastewater treatment is one of the major contributors to the many pollution challenges faced in most parts of South Africa. Escherichia coli and Chemical Oxygen Demand are used as indicators for the performance of wastewater treatment plants. Wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) efficiency challenges are associated wit...

Excessive discharge of poorly treated effluent has impacted global water resource systems intensely. The declining state of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) is a significant source of pollution in water resources. There is evidence of water resource quality deterioration in natural environments caused by effluent discharges. We assessed the impa...

Public participation is an integral part of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process, as it provides opportunities for interested and affected parties (I&APs) to participate in the decision making process. This process is part of the legislative regime in South Africa and recognized as the main instrument to ensure that the proposed develo...

Introduction: South Africa has the highest ambient air pollution exposure associated with morbidity in the Sub-Saharan region, accounting for a total number of 14356 confirmed cases of mortality on an annual basis. The study assessed air pollution exposure levels of Khayelitsha and Marconi-Beam neighbourhoods that are not monitored by the fixed-sit...

Water quality is declining due to the rise of urbanization, overpopulation, industrial production, climate change, non-compliance of wastewater treatment plants, and agricultural waste. The mushrooming of informal settlements along the bank of the Diep River due to population growth in Dunoon compromises the quality of water. Inadequate sanitation...

An increase in shrubs or woody species is likely, directly or indirectly, to significantly affect rural livelihoods, wildlife/livestock productivity and conservation efforts. Poor and inappropriate land use management practices have resulted in rangeland degradation, particularly in semi-arid regions, and this has amplified the bush encroachment ra...

The deteriorating state of municipal and industrial wastewater treatment facilities and infrastructure globally is one of the largest contributors to pollution in water resources, especially surface water. This article presents a review of the impact of discharged effluent on the receiving water resources from a South African perspective. It furthe...

Purpose To investigate whether soil clay content, cultivar and seasonal variation have any effect on soil CO 2 emission rates and leaf CO 2 assimilation rates in a drip-irrigated commercial Citrus sinensis orchard. Methods The study was carried out in the field as a randomised complete block design in a 2 × 2 factorial consisting of two soil types...