Years of sewage problems plaguing Ellisras, one of the province’s largest mining towns, have apparently gone unnoticed by the Lephalale Local Municipality and so, the FF Plus lodged a complaint about it with the Human Rights Commission (HRC).
There are two sewage treatment plants in Lephalale: Paarl and Marapong.
The Paarl sewage treatment plant was upgraded five years ago, however, a lack of relevant skills and training to manage the plant effectively means that it is unable to treat the waste of Ellisras, Onverwacht and Marapong.
In addition to that, most pump stations are out of order and as a result, sewage is backing up into residential areas.
The original design required each pump station to have extra pumps should one break down. At present, that is not the case.
A lack of adequate knowledge to operate the pump systems effectively also exacerbates the sewage problem.
Another related problem, the pollution of rivers and the environment, has also gotten worse in the meantime.
As soon as the pressure on the plant becomes too much, raw sewage starts running into a local resident’s land.
From there it runs to one of the province’s largest rivers, the Mogol River, which in turn, flows into the Limpopo River.
A pump station at the Palm Park Hotel frequently breaks down and consequently, sewage spills straight into the Mogol River that runs past the Hotel.
Various settlements, like Marapong, are also affected by sewage problems.
It appears as if the Marapong sewage plant has never been fully operational.
Sewage is simply diverted into a dam where it is separated from solids and then pumped directly into the Sand River, a tributary of the Limpopo River.
Rivers in this municipal area are being polluted with untreated sewage and it affects settlements, tourism and agricultural enterprises that depend on the water from these rivers.
Clearly, drastic intervention is needed to avert an ecological and health disaster.
But it seems that the Lephalale Municipality is not at all fazed by the looming crisis.
That is why the party has asked the HRC to look into the matter.
The FF Plus will continue to put pressure on the Municipality to address the sewage problem, and will frequently make contact with the HRC to monitor any progress with the matter.
Limpopo is a water-scarce province, so, the unbridled pollution of water sources causing an unhealthy living environment must not be tolerated.
Lephalale deserves better than the ANC.
Read the original article in Afrikaans by Marcelle Maritz on FF Plus
