Emfuleni commits to sewage infrastructure repairs following AfriForum’s urgent court action
AfriForum welcomes the Emfuleni Local Municipality steps to address the ongoing sewage problems at pump stations 8 and 10 in Drie Riviere, Vereeniging. This follows AfriForum’s urgent legal intervention to stop the thousands of litres of raw sewage flowing into the Vaal River. AfriForum’s legal team has confirmed that work is now underway to address the problems at the two pump stations. As a result, AfriForum has achieved the immediate objective of its urgent application without having to proceed with the urgent interdict that was set to be heard on 25 August.
“AfriForum appreciates the cooperation shown by the Municipality and its willingness to engage with the civil rights organisation’s legal team to address the crisis. This development demonstrates that legal and public pressure can bring about meaningful action,” says Jaco Grobbelaar, AfriForum’s Central Region Head.
“This is a massive victory for AfriForum and, more importantly, for the Vaal River and the communities that depend on it. We hope that in the future it won’t be necessary to bring a court application to get the Municipality to spring into action, but that we can rather work together to fix the sewage infrastructure and stop the pollution of the Vaal River.”
AfriForum will, however, continue with the second part of its court application. The purpose of this is to ensure that the civil rights organisation receives proper information and ongoing accountability from the Municipality regarding the operation and maintenance of the affected sewage infrastructure. AfriForum is seeking, amongst other things, access to plans and timelines from the Municipality regarding the complete repair and rehabilitation of pump stations 8 and 10, including when the Municipality expects the infrastructure to be fully operational and capable of preventing further sewage pollution. AfriForum also wants the Municipality to keep the organisation informed when problems occur in the future at the relevant infrastructure.
“We do not want to discover after a month that there has been another sewage spill. We want to know when the problem arises, what caused it, what the Municipality is doing about it and when it will be fixed. Part B of the court application gives AfriForum an important mechanism to keep an eye on these systems and to ensure that problems receive immediate attention,” says Grobbelaar.
AfriForum also retain the ability to approach the court on an urgent basis in the future should further sewage spills occur and the Municipality fail to take the necessary steps to address the problem.
“The community wants functioning sewage infrastructure, clean water and a Municipality that responds immediately when something goes wrong. AfriForum’s objective from the start was to protect the Vaal River and the people who live around it. If the Municipality is prepared to work with us and take responsibility, AfriForum is prepared to work with them,” Grobbelaar concludes.
AfriForum expects pump stations 8 and 10 to be fully operational after 22 September, in accordance with the current undertaking and plans. The civil rights organisation will continue to monitor the situation and act accordingly.
