Locate dump near elite area

I’VE followed with interest the controversy over the Shongweni landfill and the attempts by pressure groups to close it.

The residents of Clare Estate have put up with the Bisasar Road landfill, known as the Springfield Dump, for over four decades and pressure from the community to close it was to no avail.

The then Durban City Council used the site to dump foodstuff and toxic waste.

The dump was a health hazard. The residents living nearby could not dry their washing outside or leave their doors and windows open because dust from the dump settled on their clothes and entered their buildings. People lived like prisoners in their homes. The stench was unbearable. The dump also had a negative impact on property values in the area and homeowners battled to sell their properties.

The late Sajida Khan, an environmental activist who lived opposite the dump, spent most of her adult life campaigning to have the site closed. Sadly, she died without achieving her dream.

The Springfield Dump has now been converted to a landfill gas-toelectricity project.

My greatest concern is, because of pressure from the community near Shongweni, the municipality will look for another site which may not be in the vicinity of an elite area.

I would not be surprised if another site was identified close to a former Indian area.

JAYRAJ BACHU Clare Estate