Proposed road to take traffic off congested N4 to Mozambique sparks worries

Despite calls for the government to come up with a better plan for the N4 highway to the Komatipoort border with Mozambique, developing a new road in the town will further disturb the peace, affect water quality and cause a major ecological disaster for the Kruger National Park (KNP), say locals.

The Logistics Company (Pty) Ltd is planning to upgrade an existing department of water and sanitation service road and construct a new link road to its Ressano Garcia Intermodal Terminal.

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“This project will take 300 trucks per day [off the main road] and release the pressure of the trucks passing the Lebombo border. All relevant approvals are already in place,” the Logistics Company’s Hennie Jooste said.

Misinformation

Jooste said the community was not open to the idea due to misinformation.

“It will ease the traffic, for anyone who uses, shares or is in close proximity to our terminal,” he said.

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“We’ve heard a lot of people saying we are going to drop coal on the road and in the river, but that’s really not the intent of this project.

“We just want to have an alternative for the often-impenetrable logjam of trucks on the N4.”

‘Great idea’

South African National Roads Agency spokesperson Vusi Mona said despite the few issues, there wasn’t any legislation preventing this. He also noted that if the road serviced many clients, “it was a great initiative”.

“This is an innovative idea, there are lots of people who will say no, but legislatively, I cannot think of any reason why it shouldn’t work,” he said.

The proposed development site will be southeast of Komatipoort, north of the N4 and borders the KNP and Inkomati River on the north and the railway line on the south.

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In a document explaining the background of the project, UmSinsi Environmental Specialists CC, which was appointed as the independent environmental assessment practitioner, said: “Vegetation will be removed in certain areas for a parking area”, especially with the road falling within 10 kilometres of the KNP.

However, residents and local business owners said this “will undoubtedly bring about severe devastation to our beloved community and have long-lasting negative repercussions on our environment, particularly our river system”.

‘No intentions’ to use road

Local business owner Richard Williams of River Hill Lodge, 15km away from the proposed road said the company was planning on privatising a community dirt road. It had no intentions of using the road to ease the increased traffic caused by coal trucks at the Komatipoort border with Mozambique.

“They will only use it for their own 300 trucks. Who does it help in that case? It doesn’t help the industry or the community with anything, instead it poses even greater harm to the local economy,” he noted.

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He said the residue left behind by the coal on the trucks would definitely find its way into the river and

“Komati River is home to numerous species of freshwater fish, the most famous of these is the tiger fish, which could go extinct (in the river).”

Kruger Allo B&B owner Michelle Goosen agreed with Williams and said the unavoidable contamination would ultimately find its way into the river, endangering aquatic life and rendering the waters unsuitable for irrigation by local farmers.

“Our town’s agricultural sector, the lifeblood of our community, is poised to suffer greatly,” she added.

“The contamination of soil and water will spread to local farms, leading to the destruction of crops and making it impossible for farmers to recover.

“This will result in job losses, reduced food production, and economic hardship for many families.”

Goosen said the negative repercussions will extend beyond just the environment and health, affecting the local economy.

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“As tourism is a significant driver of our town’s income, any harm to our environment and quality of life will inevitably deter tourists, jeopardising the livelihoods of those employed in the tourism industry,” she explained.

The Mpumalanga department of agriculture, rural development, land and environmental affairs is to decide on whether the project should go ahead and what conditions would apply if approved.

– reitumetsem@citizen.co.za