Gautrain Management Agency to purse legal action against body corporate over drilling incident

The Gautrain Management Agency confirmed to the publication on February 20, that it has a strong case to pursue against a body corporate after the illegal drilling of a borehole in Killarney that resulted in the suspension of train operations between Rosebank and Park stations.

Gautrain Management Agency’s spokesperson Albi Modise confirmed that the agency was able to identify the owners of the property, which is a complex of flats, registered as Hillside Village Body Corporate.

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Modise explained that the illegal drilling flouted the key principles of the Gauteng Infrastructure Transport Act (GITA), which protects the integrity of public transport infrastructure.

“Anyone that fails to comply with any laws of the Republic faces censure.”

The spokesperson highlighted that the railway’s engineers continued to work around the clock to identify any other damages, while they also repaired the structure to ensure that normal operations would continue soon.

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“We urge all stakeholders to follow due process when any land use changes or construction activities are planned in the vicinity of transport infrastructure in Gauteng, so that such occurrences are prevented in the future,” said Modise.

He added that the Gautrain has announced a significant scale-up of its bus services between Rosebank and Park stations, as a contingency measure, and believed that the service was sufficient to cater to the current demand.

The City of Johannesburg (CoJ) urged residents to abide by rules before drilling for water

The CoJ released a media statement on February 18 urging residents to follow the correct channels before drilling boreholes. The CoJ’s Department of Development Planning confirmed the drilling of boreholes on residential property is subject to certain provisions of the city’s land use scheme (LUS) of 2018.

According to the department, the following must be obtained:

1. Written consent from the CoJ before drilling a borehole. This is stipulated in section 14(1) of the city’s land use scheme (2018). As part of the application process, comments from the city`s Engineering Department and Environmental Infrastructure Services Department (EISD) are required to ascertain that the proposed borehole will not have any detrimental impact on the existing infrastructure. However, the city does not consider, or approve, borehole applications in areas that are dolomitic, as enlisted in the LUS (2018).
2. You must provide the municipality with 14 days written notice of your intention to drill a borehole, as required by section 41 of the city’s Public Health by-laws.
3. The National Water Act 36 of 1998 outlines that you may need a licence to use water from the borehole, depending on the amount of water abstracted. For reasonable domestic use, a license may not be necessary.
4. The borehole must be adequately covered to prevent injuries, and a noticeable sign indicating the presence of the borehole should be affixed to the property.

These regulations ensure that borehole drilling is conducted safely and sustainably. The digging of a borehole could result in damage to hidden infrastructure, or even result in a sinkhole appearing.

In South Africa, boreholes are regulated by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) under the National Water Act.

The regulations related to boreholes in South Africa include:

1. A permit is required from the DWS, and the city’s approval is also required before drilling a borehole, especially for boreholes used for commercial purposes. Concerning boreholes utilised for domestic use, the city’s approval alone suffices. These permits must be obtained before any drilling work can begin.
2. The city requires that written consent applications for long-existing boreholes must be submitted to the city for registration purposes by the EISD Water Services Section.
3. In some cases, a hydrogeological study must be conducted by a registered hydrogeologist before drilling a borehole. This study is used to determine the water potential in the area and to assess the potential impact of the borehole on the surrounding environment.
4. Boreholes can only be used for specific purposes, as defined by the DWS, such as domestic use, commercial use, and monitoring purposes (eg filling station boreholes). The city condones the use of boreholes for alternative (non-portable) use, such as flushing of toilets, irrigation, etc.
5. The DWS requires regular monitoring of boreholes and the submission of reports on water levels, water quality, and borehole maintenance.
6. When a borehole is no longer in use, it must be properly rehabilitated to prevent contamination of the surrounding groundwater.
7. The DWS and the CoJ may impose restrictions on the drilling and use of boreholes in certain areas to protect the environment and preserve the water resources.

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