Over the past weeks, heavy earthmoving machinery has been excavating the section of the Loopspruit running through the park. The hyacinth there was so dense that the surface of the water has been covered for years.
Not only does it look bad, but the fast-growing hyacinths also use up the oxygen in the water, killing fish and other plants.
When the Herald contacted the Merafong City Local Municipality about the progress this week, it came to light that the community, and not government, had taken the initiative for the clean-up.
“A heavy earthmoving company, SPH Kundalila, in conjunction with Miss Fochies Junior 2019 decided to clean the Piet Viljoen Park dam area. They are doing it free of charge as their social responsibility,” a municipal spokesperson says. “After the project had been done, the parks section will remove all the hyacinths and rubbish,” she added.