1.8-1.6 Mya Bredasdorp Coastal Margin Sediments

The Bredasdorp Group sediments, present along the southern Cape coastline and on the coastal plain,
show the results of climate fluctuations and sea-level changes over the last 2 million years. Similar age
deposits occur along the West coast (Sandveld Group), Eastern Cape (Algoa Group) and Durban-Zululand
coast (Maputaland Group). By studying these in the on- and off-shore we get a better understanding of
global warming, present-day sea-level rise and climate change.

The Bredasdorp Group deposits overlie older bedrock over large areas on the coastal plain between
Hermanus and Plettenberg Bay. The beds occur in a narrow belt that extends inland up to a maximum
distance of 25 km. It has been divided into five units or formations: - the De Hoopvlei and Wankoe
Formations (age: 1.8-1.5 million years), the younger Klein Brak and Waenhuiskrans Formations (age: 100-
80,000) and the youngest present day Strandveld Formation.