More woes for Waterford bushbabies
WATERFORD – Joburg Water's plans to conduct emergency work on a stretch of land near Waterford Estate have local activists worried about the potential impact on the local bushbaby population.
A contentious piece of land near Waterford Estate faces another challenge as Joburg Water begins work replacing pipes on the site, which opponents say could be harmful to the resident bushbaby population.
The small area, which falls next to Waterford Estate, has been a point of contention for at least the past three years as developers want to build 13 housing units on the site.
Many residents and other interested parties have opposed this idea, as they are concerned that development will negatively impact a small group of bushbabies which currently live there, relying on the present acacia and other trees to move freely, provide habitat and as a source of food. Opponents have appealed the decision to approve development on the land twice, but after both attempts failed they plan to approach the high court about the matter. Adding to the area’s woes now is the fact that Joburg Water plans to do emergency work on the site to replace faulty piping.
On 12 February a meeting was planned on the grounds between Joburg Water and opponents to talk about issues and concerns, but was not as productive as participants had hoped it would be because the environmental specialist from Joburg Water who was meant to attend could not attend. “We are concerned about the environmental impact Joburg Water will have on the site, particularly with regard to their plan to cut down trees that the bushbabies need,” explained Surita Volland, who has worked to protect the site for years. “Why is this work happening now?”
The type and spacing between trees on the site is important as not only do bushbabies eat the gum from acacia trees, they also travel the area by jumping from tree to tree but are only capable of jumping a certain distance.
Joburg Water acknowledges that the work will have an impact on the ecosystem of the site and will involve the cutting down of trees, but said in response to Fourways Review’s questions that the emergency Section 30A Directive to do this work was approved by Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and that only trees along the pipe’s route would be affected.
“Johannesburg Water is implementing a project to replace approximately
ALSO READ: Joburg Water repairs major burst pipe in Fourways
4 700m of 450mm diameter of an existing deteriorated glass reinforced pipe sewer line,” said Isaac Dhludhlu, manager of communications and marketing.
“The pipe is to be replaced by a 450mm diameter mPVC pipe. The project was necessitated by the deteriorating condition of the existing pipeline that has resulted in numerous pipe bursts leading to constant river contamination by the sewage effluent.”
Dhludhlu added that although the pipe issues had been going on since at least 2011, a budget to address the matter was only assigned in 2019.
“If the project is not implemented, continuous spillage to the river and contamination will never stop.”
Opponents to the plan are not entirely convinced and have requested a number of documents from the entity on the matter, and hope to have another meeting soon with Joburg Water where they can once again discuss their concerns and ask questions about the work process.
Details: Save the Fourways Bushbabies Facebook page; Joburg Water
