Tulbagh residents say water pollution in the picturesque town is "worse than ever", with sewage "popping up" through manhole covers and the Klip River being strewn with feminine toiletry products and human waste.
This river feeds into the Voëlvlei Dam, which provides the City of Cape Town with drinking water. In March, Democratic Alliance MPL Gareth Morgan said the city council was spending R400 000 a month more than it should on treating the highly polluted water from the Voëlvlei Dam.
Niel de Jager, chair of the Tulbagh Ratepayers/Inwoners Forum, said the area had been grappling with the problem for more than two years.
"The municipality put in a new pipe (from the sewerage plant), but after all the rains the amount of sewage coming down has lifted up the manholes."
De Jager said the polluted water also ran into the trenches that fed into the Berg River and eventually into the Voëlvlei Dam.
Resident Graham Hunter said: "I drive through this daily to get home and have complained for months to the council in Tulbagh. All we get is lip service."
The new pipeline had done little to ease the problem.
Witzenberg's manager, David Nasson, said on Wednesday that the municipality had appointed a service provider to clear the blockages.
The saga of the polluted river is not new, and in correspondence between Nasson and the forum in 2006, the pollution was blamed on debris clogging the river.
Residents said then that Tulbagh's sewerage plant was unable to cope with the volume of sewage.
Nasson rejected claims that the plant was the problem. "There is ample capacity and (the plant) is inspected regularly by the Department of Water Affairs."
The department could not be reached for comment.
Although the Voëlvlei Dam is managed by the department, the city said there had been concerns about the quality of the dam's water.
Nasson said the Witzenberg municipality would meet the World Development Bank and engineers soon about finding permanent solutions.
De Jager confirmed that the Witzenberg municipality had sent a machine to clean the pipe that was said to be filled with sand.
For many of the people of Tulbagh, the latest sewage overflow is the final straw.
De Jager said there were plans to declare a dispute with the municipality and to withhold rates payments.
The forum would vote on this issue at its next annual meeting, he said. If a dispute was declared, it would be one of more than 170 cases nationwide in which residents had or were declaring a dispute with their municipalities.
De Jager said the National Taxpayers' Union would meet tomorrow in De Aar to discuss ways of getting local government to improve its service.
- Cape Times
This river feeds into the Voëlvlei Dam, which provides the City of Cape Town with drinking water. In March, Democratic Alliance MPL Gareth Morgan said the city council was spending R400 000 a month more than it should on treating the highly polluted water from the Voëlvlei Dam.
Niel de Jager, chair of the Tulbagh Ratepayers/Inwoners Forum, said the area had been grappling with the problem for more than two years.
"The municipality put in a new pipe (from the sewerage plant), but after all the rains the amount of sewage coming down has lifted up the manholes."
De Jager said the polluted water also ran into the trenches that fed into the Berg River and eventually into the Voëlvlei Dam.
Resident Graham Hunter said: "I drive through this daily to get home and have complained for months to the council in Tulbagh. All we get is lip service."
The new pipeline had done little to ease the problem.
Witzenberg's manager, David Nasson, said on Wednesday that the municipality had appointed a service provider to clear the blockages.
The saga of the polluted river is not new, and in correspondence between Nasson and the forum in 2006, the pollution was blamed on debris clogging the river.
Residents said then that Tulbagh's sewerage plant was unable to cope with the volume of sewage.
Nasson rejected claims that the plant was the problem. "There is ample capacity and (the plant) is inspected regularly by the Department of Water Affairs."
The department could not be reached for comment.
Although the Voëlvlei Dam is managed by the department, the city said there had been concerns about the quality of the dam's water.
Nasson said the Witzenberg municipality would meet the World Development Bank and engineers soon about finding permanent solutions.
De Jager confirmed that the Witzenberg municipality had sent a machine to clean the pipe that was said to be filled with sand.
For many of the people of Tulbagh, the latest sewage overflow is the final straw.
De Jager said there were plans to declare a dispute with the municipality and to withhold rates payments.
The forum would vote on this issue at its next annual meeting, he said. If a dispute was declared, it would be one of more than 170 cases nationwide in which residents had or were declaring a dispute with their municipalities.
De Jager said the National Taxpayers' Union would meet tomorrow in De Aar to discuss ways of getting local government to improve its service.
- Cape Times
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