WATCH: Sewage spill runs into Rietspruit
The manhole has leaked and spilt sewage into the Rietspruit on and off since before the Covid-19 pandemic.
On August 24, the Brakpan Herald and Wayne Hinde, a resident who often cycles in the area, visited a remote spot on the Rietspruit between Witpoortjie and Rooikraal.
Hinde brought to the Herald’s attention the massive sewage leak contaminating the Rietspruit and local wetland. The flood of raw sewage leaks from a concrete manhole and creates a pond.
By the time the Herald inspected the site, the flood had slowed to a trickle, but not because it had been fixed. It was suspected that sewage had so blocked the manhole cover that the water could not escape.
This manhole had been a problem for years, leaking raw sewage on and off since before the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Two weeks ago, I went there on my bicycle and saw it overflowing like crazy. That is hundreds of litres per minute of raw sewage. You can even see the birds flocking to it. It is an ecological disaster,” Hinde told the Herald.
“It will take billions of rands to restore the sewerage system and the area. I don’t know how they got permission to put a sewerage line in the middle of a flood plain like that.”
On top of the frequent sewage spills, Hinde reckoned the mining heaps that were cleaned up for further refining also contaminated the Rietspruit because a lot of water was used to clean the heaps and ran off into the stream.
“Fifteen, 20 years ago, there was so much wildlife here. There were jackals, duikers, rabbits and mice. I don’t see that anymore,” Hinde said.
“Everything living here gets sick or hunted out. There are flamingoes, but not a lot. The entire valley is basically just sewage.”
According to the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries website, studies show that 35% to 60% of SA’s wetlands are lost or severely degraded.
Working for Wetlands is a joint initiative between the departments of Environmental Affairs, Water and Sanitation and Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries to rehabilitate and protect wetlands and flood plains because of their importance to the ecosystem.
“The SA government policy recognises that, to be truly effective, strategies for wetland conservation need to include a combination of proactive measures for maintaining healthy wetlands, together with actions to reverse past degradation,” the website reads.
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Section 24 of the Constitution of SA states, “Everyone has the right to an environment that is not harmful to their health or well-being; and to have the environment protected, for the benefit of present and future generations, through reasonable legislative and other measures that prevent pollution and ecological degradation; promote conservation; and secure ecologically sustainable development and use of natural resources while promoting justifiable economic and social development.”
As such, it is beyond understanding why such an ecological threat can continue when the government is supposedly working so hard to rehabilitate and protect wetlands. The Herald asked for comment from the CoE, but none was received when going to print.
