**2.1. Study site description**

of the total land area being degraded, ultimately affecting the livelihoods of about 1.5 billion people worldwide [2]. Notably, this soil degradation is occurring in addition to

The degradation of rangelands is a consequence of several key activities, including overgrazing, livestock trampling and soil erosion [3, 4]. The widespread occurrence of soil degradation is also due to the mismanagement of marginal lands (semiarid, steep, shallow soils) in harsh and highly variable climates [5, 6]. With increasing population densities and the associated

Land degradation adversely depletes soil nutrients, which in turn directly affects their fertility, productivity and overall soil quality [9]. According to Vanlauwe et al. [8], soil fertility decline is directly linked to low productivity and food insecurity and is at the heart of rural poverty. Because soils are one of the largest stores of carbon that are in direct exchange with the atmosphere, soil degradation also negatively affects society through climate

Because soil fertility depletion is one of the major threats to the sustainability of rangelands, precise determination of changes in soil quality is important in understanding the role of soils in the global cycle [11, 12]. A better understanding of the mechanisms of land degradation is crucial, not only to limit its consequences but also for mitigation and sustainable soil management [13]. While environmental degradation is expanding globally at an alarming rate, there is a major gap in our knowledge on the extent, severity and intensi-

For many smallholder farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), communal rangelands are grazed by livestock, which provide rural people with meat and dairy products and a source of income. However, one of the greatest challenges is that the rangelands are in a state of degradation due to an increase in human activities on marginal lands, misuse and mismanagement (overgrazing) and the associated problems of soil erosion [7, 9, 15, 16]. Soil fertility depletion and soil quality decline are major threats to the sustainability of these communal rangelands, partly because fertilizer inputs are not available or affordable

Little is known on the impact of different intensities of land degradation on soil quality, with the most pertinent key issue being the threshold at which the effect of degradation will lead to a decline in soil quality. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of a decrease in grass aerial cover as a consequence of land degradation on the quality of soil in a communal rangeland in the uplands of the Drakensburg region, KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa, that is managed by smallholder farmers. Grass cover was used as an indicator of land degradation, and quantification of such a land degradation indicator was done to help identify areas under threat and provide a basis for developing effective land management and rehabilitation options to improve the quality of communal

historic degradation.

82 Land Degradation and Desertification - a Global Crisis

change feedbacks [10].

ty of land degradation [14].

in sufficient quantities [12].

rangeland soils [17, 18].

pressures on land, soil degradation is intensifying [7, 8].

The study was carried out at the Potshini catchment, which is 10 km north of the Bergville District in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa (longitude: 29° 21′; latitude: –28° 48′). The site has a mean annual precipitation of 684 mm, the majority of which falls during the summer months (October and March), a mean annual potential evaporation of 1600 mm and a mean annual temperature of 13°C [19]. The altitude ranges from 1080 to 1455 m.a.s.l. The site is on a dark brown sandy loam soil (15% clay) derived from sandstone, mudstone and intruding dolerite boulders and classified as Acrisol [20], with the dominant clay mineral being kaolinite. The soil is moderately deep and well-drained and has an undulating slope of 6–8%. It is acidic (pH 3.78–3.86), with an effective cation exchange capacity (ECEC) ranging between 1.86 and 5.86 cmolc kg–1 and an acid saturation ranging between 48 and 80%. The vegetation in the area is classified as Moist Highland Sourveld [21], and the dominant vegetation species include *Hyparrhenia hirta* and *Sporobolus africanus*.
