THE South Durban Community Environmental Alliance (SDCEA) held a public community
meeting at the Merebank Community Hall on August 24 to engage residents on Engen’s future plans for its former refinery site, now being converted into a storage facility.

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Community mobilisation, youth and media project officer at SDCEA, Mvuzo Ntombela said, “No representative from the company arrived, leaving residents and community leaders who had gathered to raise their concerns without the engagement they anticipated.”

Among the key issues on the agenda discussed were:

• The impact of the recent demolition of a tower/stack at the Engen site,
• Part of ongoing work to dismantle sections of the old refinery.

Ntombela said Merebank and Wentworth residents have reported that their properties sustained damage
during the demolition.

“A meeting was intended to be a platform for those affected to raise these concerns directly with Engen and seek answers and remedial action. Their absence meant that residents were unable to get the direct answers they had hoped for on the property damage claims, as well as on the company’s broader plans for the site and their implications for the surrounding community,” said Ntombela.

Some of the community members expressed disappointment and frustration

“Residents living alongside this facility deserve transparency and respect, especially when their homes and safety are directly affected,” Ntombela added.

SDCEA said in a statement the meeting nonetheless gave residents an opportunity to express their concerns.

SDCEA is calling on Engen to reschedule a meeting with the affected communities as a matter of urgency, and to provide a clear process through which residents can lodge and have their damage claims assessed.

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