Morninghill residents are upset about the state of the Jukskei River which they claim contains material that appears to be sewage.
Ward 20 Clr Jill Humphreys believes the substance is not sewage.
Humphreys said the state of the river has gotten worse over time due to bioremediation which is happening up stream.
She said residents are furious due to the substance resembling faeces, but Humphreys the substance is sludge.
Humphreys added there is also a stench coming from the river.
“The City of Johannesburg is doing a major upgrade upstream. The sludge is due to sewerage lines and storm water lines crossing one another,” said Humphreys.
Humphreys said the contractors’ upgrade would vastly improve the state of the river.
She said she has bi-weekly meetings with Joburg Water on how to manage the river.
“There is a pipeline in Bertrams, which is 6m below the surface line, which is affecting the river. Although it is a difficult job, they are busy with it,” said Humphreys.
She said staff shortage has resulted in poor service delivery, this ending up in chaos.
“Residents of Morninghill are more than happy to help clean up the river. We have to do what we can do,” said Humphreys.
She added there has been a bio-remedial process which has been tried and tested, but not yet executed.
“The process has been successful in other neighbourhoods, but the local metro is reluctant to go through the process which is already working. It is very much difficult to push the process. As a councillor, I support the process, not the product,” said Humphreys.
Request for comment was sent to the City of Ekurhuleni on September 5 at 9.45am
Request for comment was sent to the City of Johannesburg also on September 5 at noon.
At the time of going to print, no comment had been received.
