Sewerage causing a stink in Sabie
It’s been more than a week since several power cables were stolen from the plant, bringing it to a standstill.
SABIE – The sewerage works at Sabie is in a dire state and is in fact, non-operational.
It’s been more than a week since several power cables were stolen from the plant, bringing it to a standstill.
According to Mr Willie Jacobs, this is now an ecological disaster with millions of litres of raw sewerage leaking into the Sabie River, with or without chlorine having been added.
“It not only affects the ecology but also water uses lower down, which include Hazyview and the Kruger ational Park. Tourism is the heartbeat of Sabie’s economy.” He added that he had reported the issue to the Green Scorpions.
According to information received, a private company had tried to assist with the repair of the sewerage plant. Mr James Sheard of Sabie Chamber of Commerce & Tourism said the chamber would, with the assistance of York Timbers, try to repair it this week.
“We have informed the municipality of the issue. They basically say there is no money to repair it. We are, however in discussion with the MEC for cooperative governance and traditional affairs. The residents of Sabie are treating the water with chlorine. If untreated, it could become a major health issue.”
According to Mr Albert Fourie, Thaba Chweu Municipality’s water quality manager, it is true that all the cables were stolen from the site. “It happened over a weekend with heavy rain. During the downpour the thieves’ tracks were washed and there were no leads.
We are aware of the situation and everything has been reported. The MEC said that they would provide funds for the repair of the plant.”
The newspaper submitted queries to TCM regarding the problem. It asked what was being done to get the plant up and running again, and whether TCM had the necessary funds in place to do so.
The municipality said it was aware of the situation. “On March 20 we met the business chamber at Sabie to see how best we could solve this problem. York Timber was one of the stakeholders we met, and has promised to fix the electrical works so that the plant could start operating in few days, say end of March.
As soon as procurement process had been done by York Timber, its technicians would initiate repairs and hopefully it would be operational by the end of the week. As the municipality of Thaba Chweu we regret this unfortunate and unforeseen incident. We are in the process of appointing a security company to safeguard our key-point areas.”
