Today the DA in Tzaneen laid criminal charges against the Municipal Manager of Tzaneen Local Municipality (GTM) for failure to address continuous sewage spills across Tzaneen town.
GTM is the responsible authority for the sewerage system in Tzaneen Town. The plant receives approximately 5 million litres of sewerage daily.
There are more than 22 000 people living in town, which comprises of ward 15 and parts of ward 14.
The sewerage system has been plagued with numerous challenges for years now and sewage is running into the Tzaneen Dam daily, thereby exposing thousands of residents to serious health hazards.
Some of the major incidents of sewage leaks across the municipality include:
- Riverside – sewerage has been running into the dam for approximately three (3) years;
- Billy Maritz Street – in town, where sewerage is overflowing whenever there is loadshedding, to such an extent that the GTM has had to re-tar the road surface;
- Jetty 3- raw sewage persistently flows into the Tzaneen Dam;
- Golden acres – sewerage running into the Tzaneen Dam on a weekly basis; and
- Two pump stations in town are without generators and operational pumps and have not been operating for the last 6 years with sewage running directly into the river. (See photos here, here, here, here and here)
While residents report overflowing sewage almost daily on various water-related groups on several social media platforms, including reporting to the municipality, it has spectacularly failed to address the challenges and find long-term solutions.
Recent samples taken from local water sources indicate the presence of significant and dangerous levels of E. coli which is a serious health risk to the community of Tzaneen.
The daily foul stench of sewage resulting from these spills greatly impacts the quality of life for residents.
The DA will leave no stone unturned in holding the Greater Tzaneen Municipality to account to fulfil its constitutional obligation to provide clean drinkable water and a healthy environment for residents to live in.