WATCH: Urgent drainage needed at Pigeon Valley
Recent heavy rains over the festive period have further compounded the damage done to the nature reserve during the April floods in 2022.
DRAINAGE issues are wreaking havoc at Pigeon Valley Nature Reserve and possibly causing damage to surrounding infrastructure.
This according to Crispin Hemson, Glenwood resident and chairperson of community group Friends of Pigeon Valley. Berea Mail met Hemson at the nature reserve on January 6 to investigate.
According to Hemson, recent heavy rains over the festive period have further compounded the damage done to the nature reserve during the April floods in 2022.
“The heaviest of the rain was in early to mid-December, but it was also raining heavily over Christmas. Every time we have rain, there is erosion on a big scale. Part of the problem is that sand from Pigeon Valley has now blocked stormwater pipes, and water has charged down the Berea again, creating a sinkhole on the corner of Lena Ahrens Road and Rhodes Avenue,” said Hemson.
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This is despite a recent stormwater project implemented to address the issue.
“The stormwater project took 18 months to finish – it began in 2019 and was completed in 2021. That project could not handle the amount of water that goes through Pigeon Valley. We [Friends of Pigeon Valley] had no input at all. There were problems with the design of the project because the water flow ended up in a small damn and drained straight into the existing track, causing constant erosion near the entrance of Pigeon Valley,” said Hemson.
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“The heavy rainfall in the area is a result of local topography,” added Hemson.
“When there is mist in the air in Durban, if the wind pushes it up the hill, you get this downfall over Berea Ridge,” he explained.
Hemson has called for urgent attention from officials.
The eThekwini Municipality was not available for comment at the time this article was published.
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