CT shacks built on unstable dam wall
● A massive land invasion has turned into a public safety crisis in Cape Town where hundreds of shacks have been built on an unstable dam wall.
Government officials this week warned of a potential catastrophe at the Driftsands Nature Reserve, where between and 10,000 and 20,000 shacks have sprung up since the lockdown.
The occupied wall bisects a part of the new settlement, called “Covid”, and separates a flood-prone river from a township.
“Covid” is one of 58 new settlements in Cape Town.
Driftsands is not jut the invasion of a public nature reserve but could put lives at risk.
“The community has been urged to return to where they were eight months ago for their own safety,” said James-Brent Styan, spokesperson for Western Cape local government, environmental affairs & development planning MEC Anton Bredell.
“It is estimated that more than 10,000 structures have been erected illegally on the reserve land, which includes a critical water retention dam. Some of the illegally-erected structures have been erected within the dam, which is currently empty, and others on top of the dam wall. In addition, excavating below the wall poses further increased risk and danger to communities downstream.”
Winter storms are expected next month and rains are likely to start filling the dam.
After the first land invasion in June, the province obtained a high court interdict against further occupation but says it has been unable to enforce it because of national regulations prohibiting evictions during the pandemic. Officials also point to an apparent stalemate within law enforcement regarding illegal land invasions.
Confusion over land invasions coincides with public concerns that other nature reserves or public spaces could be targeted. Last year thousands of shacks were erected in and around the Tygerberg racetrack on
People of Driftsands find a home, but now fear the rains
City of Cape Town-owned land. This week more shacks went up on land awaiting housing development in former District Six, already a refuge for many homeless people.
But the new residents of the Covid settlement, many of them “backyarders” who rented shacks in adjoining Mfuleni township, say they have nowhere to go. Even the damwall occupiers and those living below it say they would rather stay in the reserve than return to their former homes. The area has its own quasi-government, with nine zones and a leadership structure.
The Sunday Times visited the area this week and found no visible ablution facilities. The area was flanked by a storm-water canal choked with rubbish. Shops have sprung up, and steps have been dug into the sides of the retaining wall.
“We are worried. They did demolish it a bit,” said Mandimphiwe Fatuse, gesturing to a groove in the retaining wall.
Residents were also worried about the winter rains, having watched the flooding of a river that runs through the reserve.
“It might look small but the river is vicious when it rains,” said Fatuse, a community leader.
Community chair Thembani Nikani said people were aware of CapeNature’s concerns about the environment and had proposed fencing off the river area.
“We understand their concerns but we have nowhere else to go,” Nikani said, adding that the residents could not afford rents in the townships. “There was no money for rent, and now everybody is an owner.”
CapeNature, which manages the Driftsands reserve, referred queries to the province. In a statement on its website, CapeNature CEO Razeena Omar said: “CapeNature is fully aware of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on people’s livelihoods and we do not stand unsympathetic towards the plight of the homeless during this strenuous time. On the other hand, we also have a responsibility to protect valuable ecological land for now and for future generations.”
Matlhodi Maseko, chair of the Western Cape parliamentary committee on human settlements, said the province had an average eight land invasions a day between 2019 and 2020 — a loss of about 350ha.
“This is a growing problem and one which the provincial government simply does not have the mandate nor resources to combat alone,” Maseko said, adding that the problem was aggravated by national delays in providing formal housing.
“There are no quick fixes and too often there is too little funding from national government to meet the housing needs in the province.”
The national department of human settlements referred queries to the province.
A provincial government source said police appeared confused over how or when to respond to land invasions.
“There’s no clarity or clean guidance, so police do nothing. Now we are sitting with a serious stuff-up. We need all organs of state to work together. But by the time they do that the [Driftsands] dam wall will have broken,” he said.