Profile of the Municipality

Spatial description

The Moqhaka Local Municipality is situated in the southern part of Fezile Dabi District. The area of jurisdiction includes the former Transitional Local Councils of Kroonstad, Steynsrus and Viljoenskroon and sections of the erstwhile Transitional Rural Councils of Riemland, Kroonkop and Koepel. 

Municipal Biodiversity Summary 

The municipality covers an area of 792456.3ha of which 65 % has remained as natural habitat. There are no formal land-based protected areas or RAMSAR sites in the municipality. There are two biomes covering 792456.3ha in the municipality. These are Grassland (96.21 %) and Savanna (3.7 %). Twelve vegetation types cover the municipality. There is one endangered ecosystem, namely the Vaal-Vet Sandy Grassland 12.2 % of the municipality. There are also three vulnerable ecosystems, covering 6.4 % of the Moqhaka Municipality. These are the Eastern Free State Clay Grassland, Rand Highveld Grassland and Vredefort Dome Granite Grassland. 

The Freshwater Ecosystems in the municipality are characterized by two water management areas, namely the Middle Vaal and Upper Vaal. Eight rivers run through the municipality, including the Blomspruit, Heuningspruit, Klein-Rietspruit, Renoster, Rietspruit, Vaal and Vals. Wetlands cover 2.6 % of the Moqhaka municipality.