AfriForum’s Margate branch submitted criminal charges against both the manager of the Ugu District Municipality and the manager responsible last week for the sewage treatment plant in Harding. This follows after serious sewage spillages took place at the plant next to the Umzimkuluwana River.
AfriForum executed various water tests in cooperation with members of the Harding community before and after the water purification plant. The results indicate a clear unacceptable high count of E. coli directly after the plant, which indicates that the plant isn’t being managed properly.
This led to the occurrence of cattle mortalities after the cattle drank water from the river. Bertie Strydom, a farmer in the Harding district, already lost six cattle and a calf, while six of his cows also suffered abortions. Veterinarian reports also show that some of the mortalities were as a result of contaminated drinking water.
“We regularly see that extreme sewage spillages take place in our community, which in turn have an utterly negative effect on our health and economy,” says Adolf Oosthuizen, Chairperson of AfriForum’s Margate branch.
“Municipalities are failing communities by not fulfilling their responsibilities regarding the preservation of water resources. We are hopeful of submitting further charges in KwaZulu-Natal where sewage spillages are taking place,” says Eugene van Aswegen, AfriForum’s District Coordinator for KwaZulu-Natal.
Join AfriForum today and become part of the difference: SMS “Margate” to 45267 (R1).
