Weltevreden Park’s water woes

Weltevreden Park’s water articulation system upgrade has made the news again – but this time for all the negative things.

The suburb is currently undergoing an entire water articulation system upgrade that will see all of the old concrete asbestos pipes being replaced by modern plastic pipes that are 110mm in diameter.

Ward 126 councillor Mike Tonkin said, “Water bursts used to occur on a weekly basis in the suburb due to the pipes that were not able to handle the growing pressure, so we are extremely grateful for the project but we feel that a couple of points need attention during this project that residents are not happy with.”

This caused the councillor to arrange an onsite meeting that took place on 5 June; various stakeholders in the community and people involved with the project were present to answer questions raised by the community.

The first question was raised by the Welridge Resident’s Association chairperson Sharm Bauchoo who wanted to find out how the pavements will be re-instated after workers from Johannesburg Water dig them up to access the water pipes. Region C site overseer Zethu Morebane responded to Bauchoo’s question, ensuring a neat operation. “The JW teams will take photos of the pavements before they dig it up and we will try our best to reinstate the pavements to their previous state after we are done with replacing the pipes.”

Safety officer Isaac Mokwena, who works on the site in Rooihout Avenue, was also inundated with questions about safety in the area. Bauchoo said, “We have received complaints about workers who sleep at the base camp located next to the road. This is not allowed as workers are not permitted to sleep over at all.” Mokwena reassured him that workers will not sleep over at the camps again, and added that they have sent in a request to beef up security in the area with three guards who will patrol the sites after hours.

When asked about the duration of the project Morebane said, it should be completed by September and added that the workers are currently behind schedule but will be on schedule from August.

Site engineer Jeffrey Matwa said the entire area will also receive new water hydrants. “Currently most of the hydrants are located underground and we are planning to install new hydrants every 60 meters and this will add to the safety aspect in the area as fire engines will be able to gain access to these hydrants easier.”

In closing, Tonkin said, “We will all have to grind our teeth and just bear with it as this project will make a big difference in the suburb’s water articulation system”.