Spatial Description

The Dihlabeng Local Municipality is situated within the regional boundaries of the Thabo Mofutsanyana District Municipality. The geographical area of the municipality is 7550.4910 square kilometres. The major towns that form part of Dihlabeng are Bethlehem, Clarens, Fouriesburg, Paul Roux and Rosendal.

Municipal Biodiversity Summary

The municipality covers an area of 473898.3ha of which 62.9 % has remained as natural habitat. There is one formal land-based protected area in the municipality, namely the Golden Gate Highlands National Park. There are no RAMSAR sites in the municipality.There is one biome in the Dihlabeng Municipality, namely Grassland. Seven vegetation types cover 473898.3ha of the municipality. There are two vulnerable ecosystems, covering 67101.9ha, of the municipal area. There are the Eastern Free State Clay Grassland and the Eastern Temperate Freshwater Wetlands.The Freshwater Ecosystems in the municipality are characterized by four water management areas. Twelve rivers run through the municipality. Wetlands cover 1.6 % of the Dihlabeng municipality.