The ongoing water crisis affecting the Rooiwal area will be driven to a head now that the Freedom Front Plus (VF Plus) has stepped in.
The party has undertaken to provide legal assistance to Mr Theuns Vogel, a local farmer, in order to compel the City of Tshwane to comply with a 2019 court order.
The lawsuit revolves around the Metro’s continued failure to comply with the 2019 court order instructing it to urgently upgrade the Rooiwal Waste Water Treatment Works, stop dumping untreated sewage into the Apies River and regularly report to the court on its progress with infrastructure projects.
Although the Metro had appointed a contractor to perform maintenance work following the ruling, the R291 million contract was cancelled in 2020 already, bringing the project to a standstill.
A recent oversight visit to the area revealed that there has been no improvement in the situation since 2019.
Currently, only 75% of the Rooiwal plant is operational, while untreated sewage spills into stagnant ponds and contaminates the groundwater.
This raw sewage flows directly into the Apies and Crocodile Rivers, with devastating consequences for the local agricultural sector. Vegetable farmers are forced to cease operations, while livestock farmers do not have access to enough safe water for their herds.
In addition to the ecological disaster, residents report that the persistent stench is affecting their health.
Farmers are also trapped financially, as they are unable to sell their land due to contaminated boreholes, which make it impossible to obtain the required water certificates for banks or prospective buyers.
In the meantime, the community depends on a limited and inadequate supply of potable water provided by the Metro.
The Freedom Front Plus will not stand idly by while the Rooiwal community and farmers bear the brunt of the Tshwane Metro’s maladministration.
This is a crucial step in compelling the Metro to fulfil its obligations, repair the waste water treatment works, ensure that agricultural activities can continue and residents have access to enough clean water.
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