Of all the issues that are being ignored by the Randfontein Local Municipality, the natural beauty – or lack thereof – of the town must rank as one of the top problems in my book.
Recent visits to the Riebeeck Lake Park, the Tweedeboats Dam as well as the Greenhills Stream has once again highlighted that all the natural resources in Randfontein (save for the precious metals of course) are sadly being polluted, abused or simply ignored.
The Riebeeck Lake Park was once the jewel in the crown of Randfontein.
It was a place where couples would take romantic sunset strolls around the lake, where families would frequent the old Train Restaurant, and where one could go to get in a relaxing day of fishing.
On weekends, the water park was packed to capacity with people driving in from far and wide to enjoy a fun-filled day in the sun.
Sadly, this is no more.
The park, and especially the lake itself, is polluted to the point where they might as well declare it a dumping site.
This despite the fact that the park has been closed to the public for years now. It begs the question: Where is all the pollution coming from if the park is supposed to be closed?
It has gotten so bad that at some points in the lake, bottles, plastic wrappers, and even pieces of concrete seem to be lying on top of the water, unable to sink to the bottom.
The local municipality’s promises to rehabilitate the park has come to nothing.
At one stage they even had a set of plans drawn up and a budget worked out.
An environmental impact assessment was done and that was that. No-one ever heard anything about the rehabilitation of the Riebeeck Lake Park again.
The once popular Tweedeboats Dam and the Greenhills Stream has suffered similar fates.
These once beautiful spots have turned into polluted and dying wastelands. despite many newspaper articles and complaints from residents.
When will the municipality do something about this?
My guess?
Never.
