Weltevreden Landfill Site reopens after temporary closure
Stakeholders are due to meet this week.
The Weltevreden Landfill Site reopened to the public on Monday following its temporary closure as a result of escalating criminal activity linked to illegal mining.
The CoE announced the facility’s closure on Friday after a shootout ensued among illegal miners. The EMPD deployed officers to monitor the situation, and members of the public were advised to avoid the area.
Ward 97 Clr Brandon Pretorius told the Brakpan Herald he was notified of the site’s closure on Friday morning due to what appeared to be a turf war between zama zamas.
“There is no doubt in my mind that this incident is linked to what happened last month,” he said.
As reported in the Herald’s February 14 edition, violence erupted in the Plastic City informal settlement over the weekend of February 8 and 9, resulting in the loss of three lives.
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There were reports at the time that the violence was sparked by ethnic conflict or an illegal mining turf war, but this was not confirmed by police.
The shootings sparked fear among the settlement’s residents, with dozens of people, mostly women and children, fleeing with some of their belongings.
Criminal incidents along Main Reef Road have also been on the increase, with motorcyclists a soft target for hijackers.
Numerous cases have been reported to local police over the last few months, with the culprits either blocking the road or forcing their victims off their motorbikes at gunpoint.
Other victims have been knocked off their bikes with sticks, or had objects thrown at them. The hijackers also operate at all times, with attacks taking place during the day and night.
“After what transpired last month, I wrote written questions to the Department of Human Settlements to be answered through council to establish the current status of Plastic City, and what the way forward is pertaining to the settlement,” continued Pretorius.
“The department responded and confirmed that the settlement is located on the remainder of portion 36 Weltevreden 118 IR.
“After asking the department about the settlement’s legality, the department stated that studies conducted by the department do not refer to the legality of the settlement.
“Instead the department facilitated the feasibility study which was conducted in April 2018 and the recommendations of the study were negative. The department confirmed that studies conducted refer to a number of environmental constraints.
“The study mainly indicates that the land portion is not feasible for development due to environmental constraints and stated that the land is enormously affected by the 500m buffer from the Weltevreden Landfill Site situated across the road.”
From this response and others he has received, Pretorius believes it is clear the CoE has no political will to deal with the settlement and the illegal activities in the vicinity.
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“Plastic City remains an umbrella, hiding all the obvious illegal activities residents of Brakpan are faced with,” said Pretorius.
“In late February this year, I engaged with the Minister of Home Affairs, Leon Schreiber, after no response was received locally by the city or by the department of Home Affairs to assist us locally with a solution and intervention to the issues faced at ground level as the problems we are faced with as a town needs immigration intervention.
“The minister’s office responded and gave instruction to his department provincially to assist with grafting a plan to deal with the situation.
“There is a planned visit this week with all relevant stakeholders to look at the best possible approach. If Plastic City as an illegal settlement is not dealt with, none of the illegal activities surrounding the area will be resolved.
“The impact that the settlement has had on Brakpan as a town is probably irreversible at this stage, but the eradication of the settlement will at least give the community of Brakpan a fighting chance to rebuild.”
He added that he is in daily contact with Stephen van Neel, head of Immigration Law Enforcement at the Department of Home Affairs, to ensure a solution is found and action is taken.
“This issue needs law enforcement, nothing else, and with the assistance we now have from a national level we might just see some action,” concluded Pretorius.
