Land grab put Durban water at risk
AN ILLEGAL land occupation halted in the Midlands earlier this week was uncomfortably close to Durban’s main water supply, Midmar Dam.
This is according to Craig Millar, a DA councillor who is on the local uMngeni Municipality’s social and economic development portfolio committee.
“Any development needs to be part of an integrated development plan and the type of bulk infrastructure like sewerage and water needs to be provided for these developments,” he said. “We need to look at an integrated development plan and see where it is sustainable and does not jeopardise water quality.”
Millar said the failure to install infrastructure had led to six other local housing developments stalling.
Midmar Dam was a stone’s throw from the 42-hectare private property where the frames of shacks began to go up and some 400 people planted pegs to mark off properties.
“The lack of provision of housing and the stalling of housing projects under the ANC administration could lead to an illegal invasion of land,” he said. “A by-product is then, of course, pollution going into Midmar Dam and jeopardising the water safety for millions downstream.”
Millar said that while he sympathised with people who wanted to take the land, the law had to be respected.
“We have a local, provincial and national government whose mandate is to provide housing for people.
“That’s where the failure is here. They have allowed people to get that desperate that they take land someone else has paid money for, and plans are not developing.”
The relevant municipalities – uMngeni Local Municipality and uMgungundlovu District Municipality – and the provincial Department of Human Settlements and Public Works did not respond to requests for comment.
Meanwhile, Umgeni Water spokesperson Shami Harichunder said it was imperative that the raw water it received and which was held in dams as storage was of an acceptable quality.
“Poor-quality raw water, generally caused by a high degree of pollution or contamination, is costly to treat, although such treatment does occur and the final product meets SA National Standard requirements for drinking water quality that is fit for human consumption.”
He said Umgeni Water worked closely with the Department of Water and Sanitation, municipalities, communities and environmental groups in managing contamination.