The Democratic Alliance (DA) has requested the Green Scorpions to urgently give attention to what can only be described as a miniature “grand canyon” of sewage, with ravines and waterfalls, discovered in the area surrounding the Gogga Pump Station in Kimberley.
I inspected the plant last week, after noticing that the water levels of the lake alongside the R31, more commonly known as Lake Zamani, were again rising. This was in addition to receiving varying reports in relation to the functionality of the Gogga Pump Station.
The plant, which remains highly dysfunctional, was out of order again, after the only operational skewer broke, collapsing the housing below. The second skewer had not yet been operationalized. It is believed that the contractor appointed for this job, was not paid by Sol Plaatje municipality and withdrew his operations from the site.
The above confirmed why the water levels of the lake had risen to about one meter below the already lifted road surface on the R31, sparking fears that the city is at risk of a repeat of the disruptive road closures experienced between Kimberley and Barkly-West in 2022.
On further investigation of the area surrounding the pump station, the state of the wrecked landscape surrounding the pump station caught me off guard. Plains of green grass, fertilized by sewage water, were being cut up by entrepreneurs, to be sold to homeowners. The area is also filled with a myriad of open trenches and strong flowing sewage rivers culminating in a steep ravine like canyon. If these were natural features, with fresh water, it would have been an inspiring discovery. Unfortunately, the channels have been carved out to carry grey water and sewage overflow that cannot be handled by Kimberley’s broken sewerage system.
I have reported my findings to the municipal manager, from whom I am still awaiting a response. I have also written to the Green Scorpions, asking them to urgently accompany me on a fact-finding mission to the area.
Sol Plaatje municipality must be held accountable for its ongoing failure to act on the increasingly dire sewerage situation in Kimberley, which is slowly encircling and contaminating the outskirts of the city.