Summer has arrived and families, who want to spend a day next to the Vaal River, have to look elsewhere.
According to residents of Standerton conditions at the River Park are shocking.
“The state of our park is disgusting and the municipality is doing nothing about it,” Mr Pierre Schnetler, Ward 10 councillor, said.
Mr Thys Swart of Bethal, who enjoyed a round of golf at the Standerton Country Club on 12 October, said all you smell is rotting fish.
“Dead fish can be seen everywhere you look in the river.”
AfriForum opened a case of dumping of illegal waste at the Standerton Police Station against Mr Linda Tshabalala, Municipal Manager of the Lekwa Municipality, on 13 October.
“This pollution is the direct result of the negligence of Mr Tshabalala while performing his personal duties as Municipal Manager of the Lekwa Municipality, which resulted in the contamination of surface and groundwater resources, which poses severe health risks to the community and the environment,” Mr Hillel Coetzer, chairman of the Standerton branch of AfriForum, said.
A water sample was taken by AfriForum in the river, which was tested by a SANAS (South African Accreditation System) accredited laboratory (Waterlab) and indicated that the effluent running from the municipal infrastructure into the natural water resources has highly toxic E.coli levels of more than 1 000 000 per 100ml of water.
The accepted volume of E.coli bacteria per 100ml of water is 1 000 E.coli.
Anything more than 1 000 E.coli per 100ml is pollution.
“Mr Tshabalala, while performing his duties as the Municipal Manager, was personally aware of the very high possibility of pollution occurring at several sites in Standerton.
“Various promises were provided, but no action was taken to date,” Mr Coetzer also said.
Mr Tshabalala said: “I will have to investigate the report myself, but AfriForum is well within their right to open a case.”
