A number of residents and prospective contractors met in the dark at the Johannesburg Zoo on the evening of 28 August to discuss the Saxonwold Water Pipe Replacement Project set to begin mid-September.
Despite their efforts to secure a venue at the Rhino Room at the zoo, community members and Ward 117 councillor Tim Truluck found the venue locked on the evening and proceeded to hold the meeting outside, using light from cell phone torches.
Stakeholder relations officer at Joburg Water Sindisiwe Buthelezi said, “This project has been implemented due to the number of pipe bursts experienced by local residents. We want to change the infrastructure in order to improve service delivery.”
The project is set to have a major impact on the suburb, with 10kms of new piping to be laid on 21 Saxonwold roads.
The project is estimated to cost R38.5 million and will take approximately four months to complete. The work will be done under the Expanded Public Works Contractor Learnership Programme Vuku’phile, who also worked on the Greenside pipe replacement project.
Two community liaison officers (CLO) (at R9 500 per month), two labour officers (at R7 000 per month) and 260 labourers will be needed for the project, ideally sourced from Ward 117 or the surrounding Region B Wards.
Joburg Water project engineer Tshilidzi Tshikovhi said that the scope of the work is mainly to replace infrastructure which currently has a two-year lifespan remaining. The project will first locate, expose and protect existing services, then excavate and replace existing pipes and finally replace water meters, isolation valves and fire hydrants.
Members of the public expressed their concerns regarding the health and safety of workers and residents during this project. Design engineer at Joburg Water Tshepo Ramatlo said that labourers will be allocated name tags during the process, open trenches will be barricaded and safety inspections conducted. Ramatlo said safety notices would be issued to all residents in the area.
Other concerns included the reinstatement of pavements, to which Tshikovhi replied that photographs would be taken before the project. “Residents can be rest-assured that pavements will be reinstated properly,” he said.
For further information, email Pinky Tladi on pinkyt@joburg.org.za
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