The portfolio committees on Agriculture and on Forestry, Fisheries and Environment received briefings from the departments of Agriculture; Land Reform and Rural Development; and Forestry, Fisheries and Environment (DFFE) on the dredging in the Mfolozi and Msunduzi flats and the opening of the St Lucia estuary mouth. Thereafter, the Portfolio Committee on Agriculture received its weekly update from the Department of Agriculture on the foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak and interventions to control the spread of the disease.
The committees heard from iSimangaliso Wetland Park that the application for authorisation to dredge was made in April 2023. However, the DFFE refused the application due to insufficient information to allow for a decision to be made. iSimangaliso then commissioned a basic assessment in June 2023 with field work and specialist studies initiated on sedimentation, hydrology and ecology.
An application for a basic assessment report (BAR) was submitted in February 2024 and thereafter the amended BAR was submitted in July 2024. In October 2024, the DFFE refused this amended application and iSimangaliso lodged an appeal in November 2024. In February 2025, the Forestry, Fisheries and Environment Minister set aside the environmental authorisation (EA) refusal and indicated that iSimangaliso must collaborate to find a solution that applies to both the DFFE and the iSimangaliso Wetland Park.
iSimangaliso consulted with the communities, research and science bodies, government departments and industry stakeholders, and an intergovernmental task team was formed. Thereafter, the EA was approved in February 2026. The committees heard that the successful implementation of the environmental authorisation will be achieved through continued collaboration with all stakeholders throughout the project lifecycle. Dredging and vegetation removal will be implemented strictly in accordance with the EA, the environmental management programme and maintenance management plan with compliance monitored and enforced at every phase.
The committee also heard that one of the service provider for the assessment absconded with the data and the Chairperson of the Agriculture portfolio committee, Ms Dina Pule, noted that this service provider should be blacklisted to prevent it working with any government department again. She also said that where farming land is affected during the dredging, alternate suitable land for farming should be found for these farming communities, especially during times of flooding.
The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Forestry, Fisheries and Environment, Ms Nqabisa Gantsho, said that the St Lucia lake system requires a careful balancing of conservation objectives with the livelihoods of communities dependent on tourism, small-scale fishing and commercial farming, each of which has legitimate and often competing interests. The sustainable and equitable future for the system rests on collaboration, transparency, meaningful consultations and the integration of science with lived community experience. It is unacceptable that data was lost when a service provider disappeared because this is basic contract management. This should not happen again, and preventative details should form part of the next briefing with the committees.
Ms Pule further said that the committee welcomes the assurance that the proposed dredging, silt and vegetation removal will have limited impact. She added that efforts should be made to prevent unintended consequences, such as a freshwater or high salinity estuary, which would affect various animal species and people who depend on the lack system for their livelihoods.
The committees will schedule a joint follow-up meeting for an update on timelines, recommendations from High Level Panel and impact monitoring in line with the environmental authorisation that iSimangaliso secured.