#TroubleshootingThursday: Your borehole water could slowly become contaminated
The Wilbotsdal sewage spill could affect your borehole water.
Yet another sewage spill has occurred in Elandsvlei and a local councillor is concerned about the boreholes nearby.
The spill is located in Johanna Street, Wilbotsdal. It seems to originate from the Master informal settlement.
Peter Dick, DA Ward 9 councillor, said it comes from an open manhole in the area.
The sewage runs from a pipe in the settlement’s wall at the top of Johanna Street near Ventersdorp Road almost all the way down into Union Street.
“In the afternoons it’s hot and dry, so you can’t see the full extent of the stream of sewage, but you should see and smell this street in the morning,” he said.
Dick is greatly concerned about the health risk the sewage spill poses. Not only do children from the settlement play in and near the water, the spill is close enough to boreholes on private properties to contaminate the borehole water.
“Something needs to be done, otherwise residents in the area who have boreholes will soon find their water contaminated with sewage – and then we sit with an even bigger problem on our hands,” Dick explained.
The Herald visited the site with Dick during the afternoon, and even then, when it was supposed to be dried up, a pool of sewage was found near the source and the stench could turn the strongest of stomachs.
“This is also a problem. People in the area live with the constant smell of sewage. In the morning, people have to drive over it because it runs over driveways,” he said.
“People near the spill should be monitoring their water, but ultimately the problem needs to be resolved before drinking water is affected,” Dick said.
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