Tidy Towns quietly cleans up

Tidy Towns Buffalo City champions have been working hard to repair, rejuvenate and restore normalcy to beach amenities and put cleaning systems back in place.

The campaign’s chair, Dean Knox, provided an extensive list of achievements rendered significant mainly by their former neglect and abandonment.

On the list are toilet buildings being re-tiled and showers renovated.

They are regularly cleaned, secured and repaired.

He believes the difference Tidy Towns has made is like “chalk and cheese”.

Knox said Tidy Towns fell under the call-to-action section of the memorandum of understanding signed by Buffalo City and the Border-kei Chamber of Business.

“We have established clear channels of communication with the BCM departments that deal with beaches, solid waste, environment, law enforcement, sanitation and plumbing.

“We meet monthly with these departments and with Tidy Towns champions from Bonza Bay, Gonubie, Quigney, Vincent and Kidds Beach at the Borderkei Chamber of Business boardroom.”

His list of Tidy Towns Buffalo City’s improvements:

Ablutions fenced, repaired, working and regularly cleaned at Reef and Corner. BCM plumbers assisted to replace broken toilet pans with a new unit sponsored by CTM Amalinda;

● Public ablutions behind the EL Surf Lifesaving club are repaired and regularly cleaned, and were recently tiled. BCM cut a tree back that was overgrown and encroaching on ablutions;

● Stolen security gate at the gents public ablutions replaced by EL Surf Lifesaving Club;

● Outside showers at Lifesaving club were restored to working order with assistance from the BCM beach handyman;

● Public ablutions on the boardwalk at Nahoon river mouth were repaired and restored to working order. BCM contractors replaced sewerage pipeline which was blocked with sand, and replaced stolen shower taps;

● In Gonubie, Tristan Johnson repaired paving, removed garden and other refuse, built steps at the ablution block showers and repaired disabled toilets with assistance from BCM plumbers. They also cleaned rocks off the road after last year’s mega-swell;

● At Bonza Bay, Scott Roebert repaired decking at the public ablutions. BCM improved security and ablutions;

● In Quigney, Satish Nair and his team cleaned up a muchneglected Heroes’ Park —“a huge task”;

● Regular inspection of Ihlanza sewer line leaks and cutting bush to maintain access path;

● Weekly cleaning of litter at Batting Bridge Park;

● BCM solid waste department has provided extended public works programme teams to clean public ablutions at all city beaches because normal BCM beach teams don’t work at weekends;

● Fresh Properties has assisted with signage and design work by Jaqueline de Jongh. Iguana has also assisted with designs for signage;

● Granny Grommets and Beachbreak Cafe pay beach clean team volunteers at Nahoon for a day a week;

● There have also been a number of community beach cleanups by Pelagic, STBB, Stirling High; and

● The campaign’s clean team volunteers cleaned up daily at Nahoon Beach access roads, parking lots and beaches. This work was funded by supporting businesses: STBB, Leaderpack, Nvest Securities, GASSA, Halcyon, Hitec Packaging, Quarry Lake Inn, SA Homeloans, Current Consulting, On Point Plumbing, Roman’s Pizza, Origin Construction, EL Veterinary Hospital, H2O, World Waveski Surfing Titles, Amalinda Superspar and Food Lover’s Market.

“None off this would have been possible without Johnson, Kevin Harris, Andrew Stratford, Grant Sinclair, Scott Roebert, Alan Wild and Duma Maqubela, who all make valuable contributions, share the load and help strategic decisions to guide the Tidy Towns Buffalo City initiative.

“They give up their time freely and contribute in their own special way.”

None of this would have been possible without Tristan Johnson, Kevin Harris, Andrew Stratford, Grant Sinclair, Scott Rowbert, Alan Wild and Duma Maqubela