The civil rights organization AfriForum says it has laid a criminal complaint against April Ntuli, the municipal manager of the Emfuleni Local Municipality for the dumping of raw sewage in the Vaal River.
The civil rights organization is insisting that Ntuli be prosecuted in his personal capacity.
AfriForum says that this large-scale spill provides, among other things, a favorable breeding ground for various invasive plant species, including water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes), whose occurrence has increased alarmingly since the end of last year.
AfriForum also criticized the government for their absence in tackling this critical problem.
The civil rights group and several other organizations and members of the community have already been working hard for months to limit the spread of this invasive species and thereby protect the sensitive Vaal River ecosystem.
According to Jaco Grobbelaar, AfriForum’s regional head for the Central region, the government has been dragging its feet with the water lettuce crisis for months.
“Although the government has already convened numerous meetings with the community, they are taking months to approve specific actions to tackle the problem. In the end, it always comes down to the community to put their hands in their pockets and jump to work themselves to fight this natural disaster,” says Grobbelaar.
During a recent public meeting, government officials argued that the government only has R2 million available to spend on the Vaal River crisis. This despite the fact that Barbara Creecy, Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, in November last year launched a R2.6 billion programme, “Working for Water”, for the control of alien invasive species and the restoration of natural habitats.
Grobbelaar emphasizes that the financing for the removal of water lettuce in the Vaal River has so far only come from the pockets of the community. “Meanwhile, the government is loading their pockets monthly with tax money that is supposed to be allocated for the use of this project,” he explains. “Although the spraying of herbicide on water lettuce in the Vaal River is done under the supervision of Rand Water, we would like to see the government also start doing something concrete to remove these invasive plants from the river.”
Moreover, according to Grobbelaar, the decay of sewage plants in the Emfuleni Local Municipality is at the heart of the current problems in the Vaal River system. “Large-scale pollution takes place on a daily basis in the Vaal River and is the primary cause of the uncontrolled growth of water lettuce here. We will continue to put pressure on the authorities to properly manage sewage plants. In this way we will be able to tackle the secondary problem, namely the growth of water lettuce. The community is currently dealing with the secondary problem, but the government must also urgently fulfill its duty regarding the primary cause.”
AfriForum also encourages the public to submit complaints regarding the dumping of untreated sewage to the Human Rights Commission (HRC). “Citizens have the right to a clean and safe environment. At the moment, the government is violating that right and must be called to account to correct it,” concludes Grobbelaar.
