Clampdown on theft from the Berg River

THE Western Cape government is probing allegations that water is being stolen as it makes its way from the Berg River Dam in Franschhoek to the Misverstand weir.

Local Government MEC Anton Bredell said a coordinated law enforcement response had been put in place to catch anyone trying illegally to divert the water intended for the Saldanha area.

The Berg River Dam sluices have been opened to release 5 million m³ to the parched Misverstand Dam near Porterville, which is expected to run out of water later this week.

“We understand that there have been attempts by some to extract water irregularly as it heads towards Misverstand‚” he said.

This included attempts to channel water from the river to off-stream dams and using other extraction mechanisms.

He warned that anyone caught doing this would face harsh penalties.

He also called on the public to report any instances of illegal water extraction to their nearest municipality.

Earlier this year‚ City of Cape Town law enforcement spokesman Wayne Dyason said his department had received reports of rivers being diverted onto private property in the Constantia area.

Bakkies had been seen illegally pumping 1 000 litres of water at a time from Rietvlei at Milnerton.

In February, the Western Cape government put security in place to prevent water theft from public institutions after reports that schools and hospitals were being targeted.

“At one of our institutions people arrived in bakkies at night and filled up tanks from our hospital supplies‚’’ premier Helen Zille said at the time. – TimesLIVE