Frustrated residents of Tzaneen took to the media seeking answers after the disgusting practice of illegal dumping on a stand at one of the entrances to town escalated at an alarming rate.

According to information, the Highgrove Lodge accepted a few loads of clean soil (soil not contaminated with any sort of matter) from a contractor in order to level out and increase the parking area at their facility.

This idea (with good intentions) soon turned into a nightmare as certain members of the community saw an opportunity to dump sand, soil and building rubble onto the property adjacent to Highgrove instead of dumping it at the official dumpsite situated just outside of town on the D523 Agatha Road. It wasn’t long before all sorts of waste was being dumped which included plastics and household waste.

The mentioned property belongs to the Greater Tzaneen Municipality (GTM) and a while ago a rumour was doing the rounds that it was earmarked for a low cost housing project while another propagated the building of a soccer pitch.

This situation however has taken a turn for the good as it is now confirmed that a long term lease agreement will be signed between the GTM and the Hoërskool Ben Vorster who will be building a cricket oval on the property.

The community will also benefit from this project as the use of the facility will not be exclusive to Ben Vorster.

When the LETABA HERALD visited the area last Wednesday morning, two earth moving machines hired by the GTM were on site busy leveling the the rubble while another team responsible for removing plastic and other non-organic material was soon to be deployed.

Compliments to the GTM for responding to the situation and by last Friday the rubble heaps had been flattened, ‘no dumping’ signs have been put up, hazard warning displays erected next to the main road and barrier tape had been placed around the area. The community is once again requested not to use this property as an illegal dump site.

The HERALD will keep you posted on further developments.