20 November 2019
5
www.thevillagenews.co.za
Tyre dump planned for Tesselaarsdal Writer De Waal Steyn
R
esidents of Tesselaarsdal are up in arms over the proposed establishment of a storage and pre-processing facility for waste tyres in this peaceful hamlet across the mountain from Hermanus.
PHOTO: Kos Coronaios, Gansbaai & Pearly Beach Horse Trails
Uilkraals Estuary artificially breached Spectators from all over the Overstrand gathered on the beach at Uilkraals Estuary near Gansbaai last Friday to watch the water flow into the ocean after it was artificially breached by Overstrand District Municipality (ODM). According to the ODM, the artificial breaching took place after thorough consultations with key role-players and coastal management authorities, in order to gather enough motivation to support the breaching of the estuary mouth. According to David Beretti, ODM Municipal Manager, a breaching committee meeting was held on 1 November to discuss the criteria and the potential to breach. “Consultations took place with CapeNature and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) the next day. After motivations were gathered, the application to breach was submitted to the Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning, who in return gave a verbal directive to the ODM to proceed with the breaching on Friday 15 November 2019,” said Beretti. According to him, the Uilkraal Estuary system is an open system and therefore it is required that it be breached artificially. The window period to breach decreases after spring tide on 12 November, and while the authorities waited for both the spring tide and good rains to have an effect, the estuary unfortunately still did not breach naturally. “After the spring tide and the rain, the water in the system exceeded a depth of 2 metres. The normal breaching level is between 1.8 and 2 metres. Irrespective of the water level, natural breaching did not take place due to the berm
height (sand build up in the mouth area). The water level at 2.1 metres was ideal for breaching and it was recommended that it be done as soon as possible,” he said. The estuary has been closed for five consecutive months, which resulted in reduced salinity, a reduction in water quality and flooding of the lower reaches. It also impacted on the endemic salt marshes. “Considering the impacts, it was decided to proceed with the breaching of the estuary mouth in order to restore connectivity with the marine environment and to enhance and maintain estuary health and ecosystem functions. "These functions include maintaining connectivity and protecting the fish and invertebrate nursery functions, preventing further loss of and / or restoring conservation worthy salt marsh vegetation in the estuary, preventing macro algae and / or benthic microalgae blooms, restoring intertidal habitat, invertebrate and bird communities in the estuary and preventing further degradation in water quality of the estuary and as far as possible to restore it to what was like under referenced conditions.” The breaching was conducted under supervision of CapeNature, the Overberg District and Overstrand Municipalities. A local contractor was used and with the use of an excavator a channel was dug to allow for a good outflow. “The breaching was done on high tide to ensure maximum outflow and sufficient scouring of the estuary mouth. Authorities trust that the estuary will remain open to the benefit of the ecological processes and functioning of the system,” said Beretti.
According to Tesselaarsdal Action Group (TAG) chairperson, Frigga Graham-Parker, the establishment of a tyre dump anywhere on farm 811 (that constitutes the town), “never mind such a publicly visible portion, is an absolute contradiction and direct threat to our planned economic development path. A facility such as this shouldn’t even be under any kind of consideration. Tyre storage and processing is an industrial activity and has no place on land zoned for agriculture or as residential in an area earmarked for eco-tourism.” A press release from TAG states that the Department of Environmental Affairs’ Waste Bureau has recently awarded 30 tenders to businesses to store and process waste tyres around the country. A total of 25 of these tenders were awarded to Gauteng-based, Magogudi Construction Projects, who have applied for one of their facilities to be developed on Erf 54 of farm 811. “This erf is a 5.5-hectare portion of the original farm of settler, Johannes Tesselaar which he bequeathed to nine slave families on his death in 1810. The property is on the main road to the village of Tesselaarsdal, just 3 kilometres away. With a hilltop and steep slope that runs down to the Klein River, it is a highly visible portion of farm 811. A representative of the Theewaterskloof Municipality said an application for a departure from the current zoning of agricultural to industrial has been received and is being considered because it is a government contract. It is unclear whether a public participation process has begun or when the start or end date of such a process will be. According to Graham-Parker, the village is in a fight to protect its integrity as a scenic Overberg hamlet that welcomes weekenders and wedding goers, mountain bikers and eco-tourists to its greener pastures. “TAG was established ten years ago after Eskom proposed to erect massive overhead nuclear power lines across the town, and today the group is a fully-fledged non-profit organisation committed to upholding the area’s strategic development plan
(SDP) to promote sustainable agriculture, rural lifestyles and nature-based tourist activities. “We have a clear SDP in place that has been agreed upon with the Theewaterskloof Municipality,” said Graham-Parker. According to the draft EIA report, the business owner intends to clear all vegetation off approximately 3.5 hectares of the land for tyre storage. It is proposed that some 470 000 could be stored in stacks measuring 20 metres long X 3 metres wide. “It is astonishing that an enterprise such as this would be considered in a high-risk fire zone such as this, especially considering that we are in an area that lacks water for fire-fighting and has limited access to emergency fire services. Tesselaarsdal is in a low-rainfall region with a long dry season. The prevailing south-easterly and north-easterly winds can reach speeds of up to a 100 km/h. The high risk of tyre fires is well-known. They emit highly toxic smoke that necessitates mass evacuations. They are notoriously hard to extinguish, with the Heyope tyre fire in Wales burning for fifteen years. According to the draft EIA report, the business owner intends to employ only one on-site fire assistant, who will have no access to water during the dry season. The report does not detail the business owner’s liability should a tyre fire spread to the neighbouring barley, cattle, sheep and egg farms,” she said. In addition to the fire danger it would be difficult for the business owner to prevent toxins leached from the stored tyres, including an array of heavy metals and chemicals, from entering the Klein River system which traverses farm 811. This system runs into the Klein River Estuary that bypasses Stanford on the way to Hermanus’s Blue Flag Grotto Beach. Rob Fryer, chairperson of Whale Coast Conservation, said it is inconceivable that a development such as this can even be considered for this region. “Apart from the fact that the roads leading to the facility are gravel, which will cause a great deal of dust pollution, the area is totally unsuited for such activity. The environmental risk of something like this is simply too great and should something go wrong all the towns in the area will suffer the consequences. In short, it is a badly conceived proposal that should not be allowed to happen.” According to the Waste Bureau, Magogudi Construction Projects is set to earn R220 000 a month during its first year of operating the tyre storage facility in Tesselaarsdal.
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