Rooiwal sewage works: Settlement made an order of court

After a three-year-long court battle, the Tshwane Metro had no other choice but to reach a settlement agreement with AfriForum regarding maintenance and repair work at the Rooiwal sewage works. The Metro will also need to carry the legal costs of this battle, while the court order includes a maintenance schedule according to which the maintenance and repair work at the Rooiwal sewage works must be done – linked with specific dates.

The demise of the Rooiwal sewage works was brought to the Metro’s attention by AfriForum members, after which the civil rights organisation launched an urgent court application in October 2016. The Metro made an undertaking to report the progress with regard to the maintenance and repair work of the sewage works to the court, but failed to do so. AfriForum subsequently had to place the application on the court roll once again to enable the order to be made final.

“AfriForum is grateful for the information received from our member, Theunis Vogel, during the past few years.

“It is extremely urgent that the Rooiwal sewage works be repaired as soon as possible. The tempo at which pollution is taking place is busy taking on disastrous proportions. The polluted river flows into, among others, the Crocodile River, which illustrates the extensiveness of the problem,” says Lambert de Klerk, AfriForum’s District Coordinator for Greater Pretoria South.

Communities next to the Apies River ought to experience relief within the next three months should the Metro respect the court order. Should the Metro however not obey the order, they will face contempt of a court order that will result in either a fine or criminal proceedings.