After years of living next to mountains of waste, residents of Ha Tšosane in Maseru have reached an agreement that will see the dump site, which has bedevilled the community for decades, permanently closed.
Residents led by applicants Taole Mangope, Mampolokeng Thamae and six others filed a court application in 2022, arguing that the Maseru City Council’s continued dumping at the site violated their constitutional rights to a clean and healthy environment.
Court papers detailed how families were being “literally choked” by plumes of smoke, had to endure bad odours, and live at constant risk of airborne, waterborne and soilborne diseases.
Recent fires, which left villagers choking on smoke in September, spurred on the settlement reached last week.
The City and key government ministries will see the site shut down, stabilised, and rehabilitated. A new sanitary landfill will be built elsewhere. The government has already committed M20-million (M1 = R1) to fund the work.
The project – formally titled the Tšosane Dumpsite Stabilisation, Rehabilitation and Closure and Tšoeneng Sanitary Landfill First Phase Design and Construction – will run until October 2028. Plans include recreational facilities and a biogas plant.
The City is required to implement immediate interim measures to reduce health risks. These include daily covering of waste with soil to reduce odour and vermin, a documented pest-control programme, and strict fire-prevention controls.
To monitor progress and ensure accountability, a Ha Tšosane rehabilitation oversight committee will be established. It will include three representatives chosen by the community, alongside officials from the City and key ministries. The City must report to both the committee and the court every four months.
The settlement also mandates a full environmental and health impact assessment. Government-appointed experts, paid by the state, will examine the extent of pollution-related damage.
Residents have been assured they may seek medical evaluation at public or private health centres to assess the effects of their long-term exposure to contaminated air, water and soil.
In another win for the community, the project must offer Ha Tšosane residents priority access to jobs created during construction, especially those requiring minimal or no specialised skills.
The agreement further obliges the state to ensure uninterrupted funding throughout the multi-phase project.
All parties have signed the agreement, and it being made an order of the court is now pending.
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Inadequate healthcare: Limited access to quality healthcare services.
gullyway
A baby was born in South Africa. The village was very poor, and the makeshift hospital didn\’t have some necessary equipment.. such as scales.
The father however, was desperate to know the newborn baby\’s weight. After quite a bit of asking around, the hospital\’s chairman came up with an idea.
\”Five miles west, there\’s a butcher shop. The owner deals with meat, he should have a rather precise scale. You could just put your baby on the meat scale, and the weight reading you\’ll get should be pretty accurate.\”
And so the father departed westward. After much walking, with his newborn child cardled safely in his arms, he finally arrived at the butcher shop. He explained his dilemma to the shop owner, to witch the latter replied:
\”Don\’t worry, friend. It\’s not even a problem, I\’ll check it for you, free of charge.\” And so he took the child to the back, where the scale was located.
The father heard rumbling noises, and some scraping.. About a minute later the butcher came back.
\”About three pounds boneless\” He said.
Frosty Sunshine
Italy: You have two cows. The northern one produces all the milk. The southern one sleeps all day.