Masters Degrees (Geography and Environmental Studies)
Recent Submissions
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Decision tree development for land cover classification in the Eastern Cape
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study was to develop a cost-effective and practical method for producing land cover maps by assessing the efficacy of classifier extension in a highly heterogeneous area. Effective ...
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Indirect soil salinity detection in irregated areas using earth observation methods
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Excessive accumulation of salt in the plant root zone has a deteriorating effect on vegetation growth, resulting in reduced crop yield and rendering fertile soil barren, and ultimately leads to decreasing ...
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Scaling patterns and drivers of species richness and turnover across the Afrotropics
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Understanding the broad scale patterns and environmental determinants of amphibian richness (α-diversity) and turnover (β-diversity) is becoming ever more crucial as communities, ecosystems and landscapes ...
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Methods for sugarcane harvest detection using polarimetric SAR
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Remote sensing has long been used as a method for crop harvest monitoring and harvest classification. Harvest monitoring is necessary for the planning of and prompting of effective agricultural practices. ...
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The extent of urban densification in Stellenbosch
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: There is a perpetual burden to supply accommodation to increasing population numbers in Stellenbosch. The most ideal way in which the property market is able to cater for this demand is through the ...
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The socio-economic wellbeing of small mining towns in the Northern Cape
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: With South Africa being a developing country in many respects, the management of natural resources is of high importance. It should therefore be determined how these resources are managed and what happens ...
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Spatial visualization of uncertainty
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Geospatial information has become more accessible since the early 2000s. Uncertainty has remained a constant in data, due to various factors, including scale and real world conceptualization. Geospatial ...
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The nature extent and locational dynamics of Tygervalley in the Cape Town economic inequality context
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Inequality is a persistent problem in post-apartheid South Africa. This study responds to the inequity in South Africa’s current pattern of spatial development and spatial trajectory, specifically the ...
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Assessment of coastal vegetation degradation using remote sensing in False Bay, South Africa
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The coastal zone, the interface between land and sea, faces much pressure from human activities. These coastal pressures make it difficult for the coastal zones to fulfil their natural functions, so ...
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Retail transformations and consumer preferences in Paarl and Stellenbosch: CBD versus decentralised mall
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-11-01)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Shopping malls represent high shopping convenience that contains much choice, and great access and entertainment. However, from an urban geographical standpoint, shopping malls represent decentralisation, ...
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Evaluation of SfM against tradional stereophotogrammetry and LiDAR techniques for DSM creation in various land cover areas
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-12)AFRIKAANS OPSOMMING:Struktuur-deur-Beweging (SdB) is moontlik ʼn effektiewe hulpmiddel om digitale oppervlak modelle (DOMs) en orto-mosaïek beelde te skep. Die toename in kamera-resolusie asook die ontwikkeling van ...
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Detecting informal settlements from high resolution imagery using an object-based image approach
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The aim of this study was twofold: evaluate different approaches to deriving normalised digital surface models (nDSM), and develop a robust and transferable methodology for mapping informal dwellings. In ...
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Automating land cover classification using time series NDVI: A case study in the Berg River Catchment Area
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The processing of large volumes of geographic information system (GIS) and remote sensing (RS) data necessitates the development of automated techniques which are cost-effective, faster and user-friendly ...
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The V&A Waterfront as workplace and leisure space for Capetonians
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: According to a report compiled in 2012 by Projects for Public Spaces (PPS) on behalf of UN-Habitat, one third of the world's population resided in cities in the 1950s. This figure increased to 50% in the ...
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Flood mapping in the Zambezi Region using Synthetic Aperture Radar
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Floods occur annually in the Zambezi Region during the rainy seasons, causing economic losses and social disruption. Projected changes in climate and land use could worsen the effects of floods. SAR sensors ...
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Grassland rehabilitation after alien invasive tree eradication: landscape degradation and sustainability in rural Eastern Cape
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Rehabilitating grassland, a threatened biome, requires a comprehensive management approach that integrates the environmental, economic and social matters in sustaining this system. In the Eastern Cape of ...
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Environmental reasoning of secondary-level schoolchildren : case study of Okahandja, Namibia
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Okahandja has been identified as one of the ‘dirtiest towns’ in Namibia. The town’s location makes it an important node serving as a gateway to the leisure and tourism periphery in Namibia. However, ...
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Integrated use of polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and optical image data for land cover mapping using an object-based approach
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Image classification has long been used in earth observation and is driven by the need for accurate maps to develop conceptual and predictive models of Earth system processes. Synthetic aperture radar ...
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Monitoring rehabilitation success using remotely sensed vegetation indices at Navachab Gold Mine, Namibia
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Remote sensing and vegetation indices were evaluated for its usefulness to monitor the success of the rehabilitation programme of the decommissioned tailings storage facility (TSF1) of the Navachab Gold ...
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Impacts of sugarcane farming on coastal wetlands of the north coast of Zululand, Kwadukuza, South Africa
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-04)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Wetlands are key to providing important ecosystem goods and services yet they are under threat from a number of anthropogenic activities. In particular, in this study area, agriculture in the form of ...
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Evaluating holistic management in Hwange communal lands, Zimbabwe : an actor-oriented livelihood approach, incorporating everyday politics and resistance
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-04)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Rangelands in the semi-arid and arid regions of the world support livelihoods through their provision of multiple goods and services. Livestock production, for example, occurs in rangelands both as extensive ...
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Farming in the Langkloof : coping with and adapting to environmental shock and social stress
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-04)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: During the period 2006-2012, the Langkloof area, situated in the Eden District Municipality, suffered severely from environmental shocks and social stress including drought, flooding, hail, wildfire, ...
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The impact of high rainfall and flood events on Eucalyptus camaldulensis distribution along the central Breede River
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-04)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh., or River Red Gum, is a commercially valuable yet recognised invasive alien plant (IAP) of riparian zones throughout South Africa. The invasive potential of E. camaldulensis ...
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Mapping spatial requirements of ecological processes to aid in the implementation of corridors
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-04)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The ultimate goal of conservation planning is to ensure persistence of biodiversity. Biodiversity patterns and ecological processes are important aspects in conserving biodiversity. Although most researchers ...
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Urban land cover classification from high resolution Geoeye-1 imagery using a lidarbased digital surface model
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-04)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Urban planning and management require up-to-date information about urban land cover. Producing such geospatial information is time consuming as it is usually done manually. The classification of such ...
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Identifying african wild dog (Lycaon pictus) corridors outside Gonarezhou National Park and Save Valley Conservancy using maxent species distribution modeling
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-04)ENGLISH ABSTRACT:The African wild dog (Lycaon pictus) is one of the most endangered large carnivores. Gonarezhou National Park (GNP) and Savè Valley Conservancy (SVC) that hold part of the few remaining viable populations ...
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Socio-spatialities of visual art in Stellenbosch
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-03)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The social and spatial dimensions of any settlement are widely recognised in the international literature as having been shaped notably by art in some of the so-called cities of art or culture, such as ...
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Using remote sensing indices to evaluate habitat intactness in the Bushbuckridge area : a key to effective planning
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-04)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Anthropological influences are threatening the state of many savanna ecosystems in most rural landscapes around the world. Effective monitoring and management of these landscapes requires up to date maps ...
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A review of land reform in the Matzikama municipal area
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2014-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Land reform is a vital political issue that has been fiercely debated in recent years, especially in South Africa. With the historical background of South Africa consisting of colonialism and political ...
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Geographical information systems for environmental impact assessment : a feasibility study
(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2014-12)ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study acknowledges the status quo in South Africa as a country in transformation. Leaders concur that people live under the spell of the evil triplets of poverty, inequality and unemployment amidst ...
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