Welverdiend’s sewerage problems worsen

Residents living in the lower part of the town have complained about worsening sewage problems for months. Hardly a fortnight has gone by without a leak in either 24th or 26th Avenue, or both.
On 7 August, for instance, one of the residents, Mr Russell Smith, took a video of sewage flowing from the maintenance hole opposite No. 9 26th Avenue into the veld and to the Wonderfonteinspruit.
The Herald also photographed the same leak on several occasions.
“The blockage was resolved,” the municipality said when asked about it last week.
By Monday morning, however, sewage still streamed from the hole and into the river.
To make matters worse, sewage also streamed over the railway tracks at the entrance to Welverdiend.
Large pools of sewage had dammed up in the veld next to the palisade fence at the tracks.
“It has been like this for a month but motorists did not always see it as the sewage did not leak into the road,” said a passer-by.
Although the sewage looks and smells ghastly, many residents are especially concerned about the pollution of the Wonderfonteinspruit. This river later joins the Mooi Rivier that flows into the Boskop Dam, which supplies Potchefstroom with its drinking water.
According to information, at least some of the issues were caused by cable theft at the municipality’s sewerage pump station next to the Wonderfonteinspruit. This pump station is within sight of the leak on 26th Avenue.
The newspaper took the issues to the municipality on Tuesday.