Beverage giant Coca-Cola has invested about R18-million into five projects to remove ‘thirsty’ alien invasive plants and replenish up to 2.8-billion litres of water in South Africa’s key water catchment areas.

The company’s philanthropic arm, The Coca-Cola Foundation, is targeting the removal of the invasive alien plants from five main water catchment areas that feed major cities and towns through its Replenish Africa Initiative (RAIN).

Alien invasive plants consume millions of litres of water each year in these areas, exacerbating water shortages in an already stressed water system, while contributing to the loss of billions of rands in damage to South Africa’s economy every year.

“These plants pose a direct threat not only to South Africa’s biological diversity but also to water security, the ecological functioning of natural systems and the productive use of land,” says Coca-Cola South Africa GM Luis Avellar.

These plants are reducing water availability by 4%, with the risk of this threat increasing to 16% if left unchecked, he warns.

The projects aim to clear more than 750 ha of invasive alien plants with implementing partners the Nature Conservancy, the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) and Living Lands.

The Nature Conservancy is focusing on expanding the alien invasive plant removal site for the Greater Cape Town Water Fund to the Wemmershoek dam.

The WWF is working on catchment restoration in the upper Umzimvubu and Matatiele, in the Eastern Cape, as well as wetland rehabilitation with the Wolseley Water Users Association, in the Western Cape.

Living Lands is focusing on invasive alien plant removal, as well as landscape restoration in Diep river, Langkloof, as part of the Algoa Water Fund for Nelson Mandela Bay municipality.

Meanwhile, the EWT is working on water conservation in the Soutpansberg mountains, in Limpopo, which serves towns such as Polokwane, Mokopane, Mookgopong, Modimolle, Louis Trichardt, Musina and Lephalale

The work builds on two other RAIN projects in South Africa, including the 2018 seed funding provided by The Coca-Cola Foundation for the Nature Conservancy’s Greater Cape Town Water Fund on the Atlantis aquifer.

This has since been expanded to employ more than 50 women and young people. The project will conclude at the end of 2019.

The Coca-Cola Foundation also invested in catchment restoration in Baviaanskloof, in the Eastern Cape, with implementing partner Living Lands.

This work concluded in March, successfully restoring 1 460 ha of degraded lands.

“On the back of the foundation’s seed investment, Living Lands was able to raise funding to provide operational security for their Baviaanskloof work for five years,” Avellar adds.

“Apart from reducing water use in our plants, we are investing in providing cost-effective solutions to managing water security in South Africa.”

These investments in ecological infrastructure are designed to address issues of water security upstream – in watersheds – in cost-effective and locally appropriate ways, rather than prohibitively expensive solutions downstream, such as groundwater extraction or desalination.

“Over the next five years, we must continue to grow our efforts. We need to work together to improve stream- and river-related ecological infrastructure by clearing invasive alien plant infestations, especially in mountain catchments and riparian areas, [as well as] reinstating, restoring, rehabilitating and maintaining the buffers of natural vegetation along streams and rivers,” says Environment, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Barbara Creecy.

Further, she notes the need to improve wetland- and estuary-related ecological infrastructure through restoration and rehabilitation, as well as expand protected areas to include the formal protection of key catchment areas.

“Our Working for Water programme has focused on clearing invasive plant species for the past 24 years and has cleared over 3.4-million ha of invasive plants in almost 800 primary catchment areas.

These interventions have created over 600 000 work opportunities and transferred R7-billion in wages to some of the most marginalised communities over the twenty-five-year period.”

“The economic empowerment of vulnerable communities is a key element of our water stewardship efforts, as we seek to contribute to job creation and inclusive growth in South Africa,” adds Avellar.