MILNERTON
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Woensdag, 18 Desember 2019 | Tel: 021 910 6500 | e-pos: nuus@tygerburger.co.za
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MILNERTON LAGOON: ‘CITY IS KILLING ITS PEOPLE’
‘Clean the Lagoon now’ TIYESE JERANJI @jeranji
T
he official opening of the Woodbridge Island Bridge was disrupted by protesters who demanded the City of Cape Town cleanse the polluted lagoon as a matter of urgency. Different ratepayers’ associations are calling the City to do the right thing for the water and the environment (“Residents tackle City over dirty lagoon”, TygerBurger, 11 December). Recently, Milnerton Central Residents’ Association (MCRA) has been vocal about the state of the lagoon and their neighbouring ratepayers’ associations, including Camps Bay, Milnerton, Summer Greens, Milnerton Ridge and Table View, have thrown in their weight to get the lagoon cleaned. The Table View Ratepayers’ Association chair, Mandy Da Matta, says they support the MCRA in their efforts to ensure water safety for all. “The clarion call to act responsibly by Cleeve Robertson, the Camps Bay Residents’ Association and the Milnerton Central Residents’ Association, requires immediate action by the City of Cape Town. The City is not releasing the water results. These results are detrimental to the safety of the residents. Raw sewage is being dumped into our rivers without being pretreated. We are contaminating our food sources and the City is killing its people by not doing things right,” she says, adding the City is not fulfilling its basic mandate. Richard Allen, chair of Milnerton Canoe Club, says the pollution at the lagoon is the worst yet. “The E coli count result for November is 210 000 parts per 100ml at the canoe club; October, 1 000 000 parts at Bayside canal and 920 000 parts at Theo Marais canal. These are all way off the charts. National health
‘Mitigation plans outlined by the City ... has never been followed through’
and safety guidelines state smaller than 1 000 parts required for partial contact spots,” he says. Allen adds, in the summer months, when there is little flow down the Diep River, combined with a semi-blocked lagoon mouth, the entire waterway becomes a stagnant cesspool. “We haven’t seen a fish in two years – they used to routinely jump into our canoes. There have been mitigation plans outlined by the City to reduce the amount of effluent entering the lagoon since 2011, but the
plans have never been followed through. This can only be due to mismanagement as water and sanitation only spent 65% of their budget,” he says. The state of the lagoon is also affecting the club. “It is impossible to start any beginner or development programmes due to the fear of illnesses after capsizes. The water quality is also not gaining us any new memberships. In recent weeks, the Milnerton residents have been up in arms about the stench from the lagoon,” says Allen.
Mayco member for water and waste services, Xanthea Limberg, says the City has implemented multiple infrastructure projects to improve water quality in the Milnerton Lagoon. “The City has upheld its commitments of providing the community with water quality test results as frequently as possible. Also to work to identify projects that could be fast-tracked, which will be communicated to the community members in due course,” she says. V To page 2
Children call for a clean lagoon.