WATCH: Freeway Park again besieged by sewage

The residents of Freeway Park and the surrounding suburbs are forced to endure the smell of sewage as the metro battles to fix a recurring blockage and overflow of a sewerage pump station in the area.

The obnoxious odour comes from the ‘problematic’ wastewater pump station in the open space next to the wetland and stream between Terhon Road near the N17 in Freeway Park.
Before the latest overflow, the Boksburg Advertiser ran an extensive article on the state of the facility earlier this year when it became dysfunctional, resulting in raw sewage from the pump flowing into the open veld and wetland before seeping into a nearby stream, which flows into the Vaal Dam.

Following complaints from residents, we revisited the site this week to find the system has again stopped working.

One of the residents, Kerry Lainis, who lives near the pump, said the problem has gone on far too long, and residents have reached the stage where “enough is enough”.

She said besides taking longer than residents would like for the pump to be fixed, the issue is compounded by people believed to be municipal workers who have turned the wetland next to the pump station into a wastewater dumping ground.

According to Lainis, residents caught a truck discharging raw sewage, which they believe was sucked from the overflowing pump station, directly into the nearby vlei. They described the vehicle driver as a man wearing Ekurhuleni metro blue overalls.

The residents took a video of the culprit, sent it to the metro and requested they investigate the health and environmental hazard.
Some residents on the Freeway Park community WhatsApp group claimed that illegal sewage dumping happens regularly.
Residents also fear that the prolonged period to fix the pump is poisoning biodiversity, threatening water quality and could lead to a cholera outbreak.

Resident Derick Schafer is despondent about the issue.
“I’m an asthmatic, and our health is in grave danger by the repeated spills,” he said.

Resident Tisu Gumbi, who also lives near the pump station, said their family is “trapped” indoors because of the smell.
“When it’s windy and hot, the smell gets really bad. You can’t even open a window.”

Lasting solution
The ward councillor for the area, Carolana Marais, said this is a long-running problem the city did not seem to have a lasting solution to.

She said many areas in her ward are plagued by recurring sewage spills because the metro fails to find long-term solutions.
She believes the answer to these reoccurrences is bio-remediation – the process of using micro-organisms to remove or degrade pollutants from the environment.

“I have escalated all these issues to the department, and as a ward councillor with vast knowledge of the natural environment, I have also advised that bio-remediation would be the best answer to the problem.
“We need a buy-in from council to apply this process after upgrading the sewerage system. Otherwise, overflows will continue if we continuously only repair and clear blocked sewers.”

Metro is tackling the issues
Metro spokesperson Zweli Dlamini said the department’s investigations show that the root cause of the recurring blockages is foreign objects that should not have been in the sewer pipeline in the first place.

He said the metro has taken several measures to tackle the issues in the area.
“The station has experienced interruptions repeatedly due to pumps being clogged and damaged by foreign objects, such as rugs and towels.
“It is so bad that pumps get clogged and damaged again within three hours after they were repaired or replaced,” said Dlamini.

He, however, explained that the department will be installing a screen to trap and block foreign objects, which will help ensure the station has far fewer interruptions.
“The screen was ordered and will be installed by October 31. In the meantime, level control is being conducted through a vacuum truck to lower the sump level.”

Dlamini confirmed that the department is investigating the illegal dumping reports, and those responsible will be dealt with accordingly.
The metro said cleaning the illegally discharged sewage in the veld will be the responsibility of the dumpers.
However, if the sewer is from the city’s infrastructure, the department will be responsible for the cleaning.

While the metro declined to respond to questions about the impact this might have on drinking water quality, as water treatment and purification is the competency of Rand Water, according to an email (attributed to a municipal official) responding to residents about the matter, a water quality officer from the metro told residents water testing was conducted after receiving complaints from residents.

“The results proved that the water quality is still within the SANS 241 standard for drinking water quality. No brown water was detected when sampling was done,” reads the email.
The official said they are monitoring the situation and doing monthly water testing at a tap point at the filling station on Kingfisher Avenue, Freeway Park.
The metro calls on residents not to dispose of foreign items in the sewerage line.

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