FF+ reports municipalities to Green Scorpions

The Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus) recently lodged a complaint about illegal dumping sites against the Polokwane and Thabazimbi municipalities with the Environmental Management Directorate (Green Scorpions).
FF Plus provincial leader Marcelle Maritz said in a media release that the party insisted that the situation at the respective dumping sites should be addressed urgently seeing that it posed a health risk for both humans and animals.
According to Maritz, an informal settlement developed at the southern entrance to the city on vacant land next to the N1 near the Lawton Street intersection. “The area is also being used as an illegal dumping site, which poses serious environmental and health risks to the residents of the surrounding areas. Furthermore, it creates a very poor impression of the city with visitors and prospective investors,” Maritz said.
“At the Thabazimbi dumping site, rubbish is dumped at the entrance and even in the road leading to the dumping site. Local abattoirs also dump carcasses at the site. Three years ago, the Green Scorpions intervened at this very dumping site with a court order, but the situation did not improve at all,” Maritz added.
“The FF Plus will continue to put pressure on the relevant municipalities to stop the illegal dumping of rubbish and to crack down on the offenders,” Maritz concluded.
Communications and Marketing Manager of Polokwane Municipality, Matshidiso Mothapo said that the municipality will await engagement from the authority reported to (The Green Scorpions) and provide facts.
“Illegal dumping areas are not created by the municipality, but by the community and in this case also by developers. According to a report on this enquiry, the municipality continuously clears the illegal dump and often embarks on major operations to clear the dump. However, the challenge is that the dumping is done at night.
The no dumping signs that were planted there were removed. The municipality implements a weekly waste collection schedule in the area, but the illegal dumping continues,” Mothapo said and appealed to residents to assist the municipality as illegal dumps are a health risk to the nearby communities. “Where possible the residents can assist by taking pictures of drivers of vehicles dumping (rubbish) with registration numbers and report them to the municipality’s community services. The municipality will track the owner and impose applicable fines or open a case with the police as illegal dumping is a criminal offence,” Mothapo said.
Regarding the possibility of a squatter camp that is in progress, Mothapo confirmed that the site has been visited and that it appears that the shacks that were constructed are outbuildings of a farm house that seems to be on a private property. “The municipality will investigate whether there are any contraventions of legislation on the premises and act accordingly. Be assured that the municipality will not hesitate to act if it seems that illegal occupation of land takes place,” Mothapo said.
At time of going to print, comment from spokesperson for Thabazimbi Municipality, Joshua Motsomane was being awaited. An official of the Green Scorpions in Polokwane could not confirm that the complaint had been received.

Story: BARRY VILJOEN
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