Residents contend with ‘unbearable stench’
Some city residents have had to bear with an unbearable stench because of raw sewage flowing into the Elands River.
Andrew Ngozo
Residents of Baviaanspoort correctional facility, Leeuwfontein and Franspoort, have had to contend with an unbearable stench owing to a lack of purified air in the vicinity.
The DA said raw sewage from Dr Florence and Fabien Ribiero rehabilitation centre at Magaliesoord in Cullinan was flowing into the Elands river.
Councillor Danie Erasmus said this was unacceptable as it puts the health and lives of residents at risk.
“The metro failed to maintain and service all installations to ensure the health and safety of residents in the concerned communities. This boils down to the fact that services are not being [properly] delivered in these areas,” he claimed. Erasmus said what further compounded the problem was that the entire region 5 had no air monitoring equipment.
Tshwane metro said while it was aware of the problem, it was not entirely its fault that there was no air monitoring equipment in the area.
Metro spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said the area did not have any air quality monitoring stations when the Metsweding district was incorporated into the metro.
“We are prioritising investment in air quality monitoring stations and are guided by national policy which says priority must be given to air quality hotspots,” he said.
Mashigo said Ekandustria industrial park was a hotspot, hence the metro was building a new [air quality monitoring] station there.
Mashigo said an investigation into the origin of the stench was done on 11 September and it was deduced that the odours emanated from the Baviaanspoort wastewater treatment works. Thus a number of steps will be taken, he said.
“A letter will be sent to the applicable directors responsible for the Baviaanspoort wastewater treatment works, informing them of the complaint and requesting measures be implemented to mitigate the problem as soon as possible,” said Mashigo.
He said the metro‘s industrial effluent and water pollution control section will be contacted in terms of water quality monitoring results of the Elands river before and after the Baviaanspoort wastewater treatment works to track initiation of the problem, measure mitigation and promote collaboration between said section and the environmental management services department to resolve the matter.
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