Residents to be moved from radioactive area
Mogale City has decided to relocate Tudor Shaft informal settlement residents to a safer and more permanent place.
The residents of Tudor Shaft informal settlement will be relocated to a safer area in the near future.
Late last month Koketso Calvin Seerane, the Mogale City Executive Mayor said the municipality has finalised processes to effect the community’s relocation.
“Tudor Shaft was established as a transit camp for communities affected by evictions when West Rand mining companies folded their operations as a result of reduced ore production. As it happened in other parts of the country many people who were attracted by economic opportunities in the province, trekked to Mogale City and found a way of settling in Tudor Shaft, thus leading to growth of the settlement,” the municipal newsletter, Dikgang Isa Mogale, reads.
The National Nuclear Regulator had found that portions of land on which the informal settlement has developed had uranium deposits with the potential of exposing people to radioactivity.
“This necessitated relocation of the community,” it added.
Alan Fuchs, the Democratic Alliance’s Constituency Head in Mogale City said in a press statement the DA believes only some of the residents will be moved before the 2016 local government elections.
The municipality is planning on relocating 197 families from highly radioactive planes.
Seerane said, “As a caring government, we could not fold our arms in the midst of objective findings and advice by an authoritative institution such as the National Nuclear Regulator that told us that health risks are facing communities residing in Tudor Shaft.
“When we were convinced the land was able to be developed and could accommodate the densities we were looking at. We committed funds and came up with proper processes to effect relocation.
“Government has set aside R32 million to relocate residents of Tudor Shaft to Leratong Nodal Development, Kagiso Extension 13, Chief Mogale Phase 2 and other developments around the city.”
The community also was informed that contractors already were demarcating sites and installing bulk infrastructure services. They were asked not to build new shacks in the area.
Related articles:
• Squatter camp relocation: too close for comfort
• Broken promises haunt informal settlers
