Alberton – At a public meeting held at the Alberton Civic Centre on August 14, the majority of participating residents mandated Ward Councillors Bruna Haipel (Ward 37), Estelle Visser (Ward 38) and Michael Bash (Ward 94) to inform Eskom that the proposed alignment of the power lines through the Alberton CBD and residential area of Alberton North were not acceptable .
The main reasons underpinning this argument are as follows:
The proposed alignment does not meet the conditions contained in Sec 24 of the Constitution (Act 108 of 1996);
The proposed alignment contradicts Ekurhuleni Metro Municipality regional and local planning policy;
The Alberton CBD was not identified or referred to in any public notices on the proposed project;
There are no existing Eskom servitudes or power lines in the Alberton CBD as contemplated in documentation on the public participation process done in 2010 and the “Reason for Decision” par 3(d) dated 6 April 2011;
The proposed alignment will create a health and safety risk in a congested urban area;
The proposed alignment will impact negatively on the business sector, CBD property values, the rates and tax basis and communication systems in the area;
The proposed alignment will devalue strategic council-owned land earmarked for future extension of the Alberton CBD;
The “Authorisation ito the National Environmental Management Act, 1998” (NEMA) issued by the Department of Environmental Affairs dated April 6, 2011 does not refer to the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Area and is incomplete;
In addition to the above there is concern that the following conditions in the “Authorisation ito NEMA” have not been met:
Condition 7: “This activity must commence within a period of three (3) years from the date of issue;”
Condition 12: “Every registered and affected party” must be notified in writing on the authorisation.
”The process followed to communicate the proposed project and to involve local stakeholders in the public participation process was flawed and the participation was inadequate. The alignment through the CBD area should be reviewed. I have communicated with Eskom representatives on the matter since June 12, 2014 without any progress.
”The public and rate payers of Alberton demand that Eskom should provide us with an alternative alignment that addresses the concerns raised above, within 30 days from the date of this letter. Should this not happen, the community will consider further options.”
