Gauteng mayors unite to tackle toxic rivers

Experts are keen to see what will come from the meeting this week involving three major metro mayors on the state of rivers in Gauteng.

City of Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya announced that the City of Tshwane will join Ekurhuleni and Joburg to tackle rehabilitation of the Kaalspruit catchment area.

“We have, for too long, been plagued by the declining state of the Hennops River and overwhelmed by helplessness because of our inability to address the upstream causes of pollution.”

Pollution linked to raw sewage and population pressures

The Kaalspruit conjoins river streams from Tshwane and Joburg. Moya said the causes of pollution include raw sewage, municipal waste and debris.

There is excessive erosion and the entire system past Hennops River to Hartbeespoort Dam is silted up.

“Everyone is deeply concerned about the state of the Kaalspruit as a reflection of population growth, the gap between service delivery demand and supply and the throttling effect of the resource gap,” she said.

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Experts slam government inaction

WaterCAN’s Ferrial Adam said the rivers were seriously polluted.

“What is interesting is government’s lack of responsibility for this mess. Wastewater treatment works are in a critical state and there is no enforcement to hold polluters accountable.”

Adam said the priority was to fix wastewater treatment works and to put boots on the ground to enforce laws.

Hennops River Revival founder Tarryn Johnston said after six years and over five million kilograms of waste removed by the team from Hennops River, without help from government, sustainable solutions would be welcome.

Nature matters

• Over the weekend a collaboration by the Nimbostratus Foundation, the Aaptwak Foundation and the Hennops River Revival Foundation saw the removal of 1 292 bags of waste from the river and surrounding areas.
• Aaptwak Foundation founder Walter Pretorius said what began as a call to action to restore one of the region’s most polluted waterways turned into an expression of unity, commitment and love for the environment.
• ‘We were joined by two large volunteer groups. On Saturday, we welcomed a team from Ohio, US and on Sunday, the spirit of celebration continued with support from the Egyptian embassy, who sponsored a DJ adding a joyful rhythm to the hard work. It was about remembering why nature matters.’

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