4.4. Interpretation of macroinvertebrate data based on the SASS5 protocol for river health

Guidelines developed by Dallas [39] were used for the interpretation of the macroinvertebrate data. The guidelines stipulate range of SASS5 scores and ASPT values indicative of different ecological categories reflective of water quality/river health conditions for the upper and lower areas of each geo-morphological zone in South Africa. The Swartkops River is within the southern eastern coastal belt (lower zone) and the ranges of SASS5 scores and ASPT values for this zone were applied in this study to interpret the SASS5 data in order to determine the Swartkops River health condition (Table 1).
