Illegal dumping and vandalism rife in Kliptown
'Scrap yards gain, the community suffers'
For many years the Greater Eldorado Park community has had to bear the brunt of illegal dumping and vandalism. Billy Petersen who is an elected Ward 17 committee member resides in Ngubane, one of the 10 informal settlements within the Kliptown community.
“Our community has suffered and deteriorated a great deal. Over the years, we have watched parks turn into dumping sites, we have watched soccer fields and open velds turn into havens for addicts to smoke their drugs. Our children are suffering more than anything and our scrap yards are thriving,” said Petersen.
Petersen said that he encourages residents to start taking responsibility. He confirmed that drains in the area remain blocked because residents are dumping in the streets.
“Beacon Road and Future Road are very problematic because these streets are constantly flooded with water. Our communal taps are of no use to residents because our taps are being stolen and sold to scrap yards. Our parks are without fences because the fences are being sold to scrap yards as well,” said Petersen.
“It is such a sad cycle, youngsters who are addicts will do anything to get their next fix, and ultimately, our community suffers. Our infrastructure is left destroyed,” he added.
A scrap yard owner in Kliptown, who wishes to remain anonymous admitted to buying materials from residents.
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“This is my business, my way of making money so I can feed my family. I do not know where my customers are getting their materials from and often when I ask them they attack me. They tell me all they want is their money, so I give it to them,” he said.
In previous discussions with Ward councillor Peter Rafferty, he said that scrap yards in the community are a serious concern.
“It is no secret that they are buying stolen goods from the community. It is something we have to look into,” said Rafferty.
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