Raw sewage returns to Boipatong days after emergency repairs

Raw sewage returned to residents' properties in Boipatong days after contractors intervened to reroute the blocked sewer pipeline, raising questions. Raw sewage has returned to residents’ properties in Boipatong, days after contractors intervened to reroute a blocked sewer pipeline, raising fresh questions about the effectiveness of emergency measures and accountability for the long-running sanitation crisis. Modise Molefe, president of the Reliable Environmental Protection & Care Agency, has accused national government of relying on temporary interventions, instead of addressing the engineering failures behind the recurring sewage spills. Raw sewage returned in Boipatong days after contractors intervened However, according to Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation Jack Bloom, the crisis stems from years of mismanagement at the Gauteng’s Emfuleni local municipality. He added a proposed special purpose vehicle (SPV) offers the best hope of rehabilitating the area’s failing water and sanitation infrastructure. “The SPV is being set up because of the failure of the Section 63 intervention. I really feel for residents who suffer from endless sewage spills and water cuts. The whole sewage system needs to be rehabilitated which will, unfortunately, take time,” he said. Bloom said he was doing his best to ensure the SPV is launched successfully. He said “they need to take over the Emfuleni workers and rapidly hire more skilled staff as there is a 70% vacancy rate in the Emfuleni water and sanitation department”. More than 1000 active water leaks, 33 critical sewage pipe breakdowns “This is why there is a huge backlog of more than 1 000 active water leaks and 33 critical sewage pipe breakdowns,” said Bloom. He added the SPV was the best hope to modernise the sewage and water infrastructure, eliminate leaks and spills and restore the Vaal River for recreation, tourism, and job creation. The latest relapse has reignited the dispute over who is responsible for resolving the crisis in Boipatong, where residents have repeatedly complained about raw sewage entering their homes and streets. Molefe said the latest intervention had failed to address what he described as a fundamental mismatch between the volume of wastewater entering the system and the capacity of the residential sewer network. Molefe added a high volume wastewater flow originating from Cape Gate had been diverted into a fragile 110mm residential pipeline, triggering hydraulic pressure and causing sewage to erupt at the home of a resident, Masetumo Marago. Resident’s home flooded with raw sewage for about two years The Citizen has reported how Marago’s home has been flooded with raw sewage for about two years and that she was diagnosed with bronchitis linked to prolonged exposure to sewage odours. Molefe said the recurring failures required a comprehensive engineering overhaul rather than isolated emergency responses, adding political deadlines and the looming 4 November elections would not change the physical limitations of an overloaded sewer system. “The buck stops entirely with the [department],” he said. He added national government could not assume responsibility for the intervention and then shift accountability back to municipal officials when it failed. Bloom rejected Molefe’s assertion that he was directly responsible for the latest sewage relapse, saying he had been trying to assist residents since his appointment in July. Bloom trying to assist residents “I am not directly responsible in this matter but I have been trying to get involved in a positive way since I was appointed in July this year,” said Bloom. He added Emfuleni had a backlog of more than 1 000 active water leaks and 33 critical sewage pipe breakdowns. He said the scale of the infrastructure crisis was reflected in a 70% vacancy rate in Emfuleni’s water and sanitation department. But Molefe said national government must take responsibility as the intervention in Emfuleni places the national department of water and sanitation at the centre of efforts to resolve the crisis. He said the department appointed Rand Water as the implementing agent and therefore cannot distance itself from the results.