Dozens of fish die in lake, lack of oxygen cited
Parts of the Boksburg CBD and some of the surrounding suburbs have been subjected to a mysterious, foul smell in recent days.
This has triggered a wave of complaints from residents staying in the immediate vicinity of the Boksburg Lake.
After many people voiced their concerns over swarms of flies and a pungent fishy smell lingering in the air, the Advertiser, along with ward councillor Johan Hendricks, visited the lake to investigate the source of the odour.
It then emerged that the strong smell comes from dead fish in the water.
Dozens of decomposing fish were found piled up along the edges of the lake.
Municipal workers were seen removing some of the dead fish from the shore, putting them in a big metal yellow waste container next to the lake.
Hendricks said the fish were likely to have died from a lack of oxygen.
“Fish need enough oxygen to survive, but oxygen levels in the water, in some cases, measure less than required,” he explained.
“I have reported this problem to the relevant departments, including water and sanitation, and they have emailed me a report detailing what needs to be done to address the problem.
“However, residents are, in the meantime, being forced to live with the foul smell from a once-popular dam that has now become a health hazard.”
Hendricks accused the metro’s management of gambling with people’s lives over the past couple of years, by allegedly allowing the condition of the lake to deteriorate.
“This place was so beautiful in the past; it had the best view and thousands of people used to visit the recreational area.
“But now people hate it, all because the metro has failed to act in time.
“Resident have told me me they cannot even open their widows or sit in the garden, because the smell is unbearable. It’s torture,’ said Hendricks.
Metro spokesperson Themba Gadebe recently told the Advertiser the smell is due a build-up of silt, sand, sludge and debris deposits in the lake and very badly polluted urban run-off.
He said the low flow entering the lake is not sufficient to supply fresh, oxygenated water to the lake and this enhances the anaerobic conditions in the water, disrupting the ecosystem and causing the water quality to deteriorate, resulting in a foul odour. -@FanieFLK
There’s something fishy at Boksburg Lake
The lake saga: Horrible stench lingers over Boksburg
