Flora Park Dam’s fauna and flora is slowly choking to death thanks to all the refuse left behind by the very residents who the park is meant to benefit.
Dead fish, a bottle of petrol, an empty brake fluid container and a lot of plastic refuse were just some of the items found during a clean-up campaign organised by Polokwane Municipality DA ward councillor Mariette Pretorius who was joined by Ralefatane Mariri, Speaker of Polokwane Council and Matshidiso Mothapo, Polokwane Municipality communications and marketing manager as well as learners from Northern Academy.
Pretorius expressed her disgust at the state of the park, where debris could be seen strewn all over the grass in spite of refuse bins being available and in clear sight. “As if this isn’t bad enough, there is a lot of refuse in the water itself, which is killing off the fish and other creatures,” she said.
Two youngsters Yvette Masemola and Kamogelo Makgetlaneng found several small dead fish tangled up in the debris while another learner discovered a two-litre bottle of petrol and Mariri pointed out a place alongside the water where someone dumped building refuse. “This sort of thing is totally unacceptable and the municipality will renew its efforts to stop such activities,” Mariri said. He said this area would be considered a hotspot for littering. “More noticeboards warning that littering will carry a stiff fine will be erected here and we will monitor the area closely in order to implement these warnings,” he added.
Mothapo said the municipality appreciated such clean-up initiatives between ward councillors and the community and encouraged more people to follow in their footsteps. “Ensuring a clean environment is everyone’s responsibility, not just the municipality’s,” he added.
Story & photos: KAREN VENTER
>>karen@observer.co.za
