After a months-long struggle to get Phokwane municipality to attend to the old sewerage pump station in Jan Kempdorp, theft and suspected sabotage are nullifying progress made, with growing sewage spillages stretching into pecan nut farmland, causing trees to die. The Democratic Alliance (DA) is therefore calling for improved security measures and intensified criminal investigations, to protect municipal investments in infrastructure.
An oversight inspection and engagements with farmers yesterday, by myself and Dirk Stubbe, Diamond North Constituency Head, exposed the extent of the environmental damage that has engulfed Jan Kempdorp.
There is much unhappiness amongst residents, as well as businesses in the industrial area, who have to put up with the stench of the sewage every day and whose client base is affected. Farmers are also experiencing devastating losses in their pecan nut tree plantations.
Sewage is spilling from the old pump station, in close vicinity of Vaalharts High School, and has spread along the R378 road, past the town and all the way to the pecan nut plantations. It also directly affects the community of Valspan, Tlhwahalang Secondary School and the silos, where at least two dead bodies have been found in the sewage water.
The situation is a health, safety environmental and economic crisis, given the impact on business and farmers in the area.
The DA has been fighting for the municipality to repair and upgrade the old pumpstation, which rusted through, and the whole asbestos pipeline from Jan Kempdorp to Ganspan.
Numerous sewage -related complaints were lodged with the municipality for the past five years. The DA, together with farmers and other stakeholders, also had engagements with the municipality, to no avail.
Finally, work on the old pump station began, after the DA presented the municipality with an ultimatum in August last year, whereby we threatened the then Municipal Manager to urgently repair sewerage infrastructure in Jan Kempdorp or else face the wrath of the law.
The work and investment in the sewerage system, however, is now under attack and the situation is progressively worsening due to theft and suspected sabotage. This has been aggravated during times of loadshedding, whereby perpetrators have capitalised on the power outages, managing to steel all four pumps on the line.
The DA has reported the environmental pollution to the Green Scorpions. We are especially concerned about how the massive tract of affected land will be rehabilitated, following significant sewage contamination and we are awaiting their site visit, hopefully in the near future.
We will further be pushing municipal management to institute additional security measures and will ourselves engage with SAPS, to secure greater police involvement towards addressing the criminal actions that are soaking Jan Kempdorp in sewage.
Jan Kempdorp is an agricultural hub and sewage must urgently be contained and infrastructure protected, to safeguard one of the province’s most valuable agricultural gems.