Summer Greens residents are unhappy with the condition of their neighbourhood’s biggest and busiest park after it was swamped by a sewage spill.
Emerald Park is overgrown and there have been several such spills there in recent years when load shedding causes a nearby sewage pump station to fail (“Summer Greens fumes over park sewage spill,” Tabletalk, April 5).
The park is a symbol of much else that is wrong in the community, according to resident Catherine Dell.
“It’s not just the park. I mean that park is in a terrible shape, I will admit. Many residents avoid that place at all costs. But other places in the community, like certain streets, are often hit hard by sewer spills too. Soldier Way being one of those streets. And then we have the canals and greenbelts in the area which have been taken over by vagrants. I don’t want my family coming over to my place. It’s embarrassing how the state of this area has fallen in the last couple of years.”
Sandy Maluwa, who lives near the park, said there were often bad smells coming from it.
“You can tell that the place is filled with sewage. It gets worse when there are heavy rains in the area. Our kids can’t even play there anymore. It’s sad because it’s the holidays now. The City must fix this.”
Mayoral committee member for water and sanitation Dr Zahid Badroodien said the City had installed an uninterrupted power supply at the pump station to prevent it from failing during load shedding.
“However, there are other factors that contribute to these sewer spills. Some residents misuse the sewer system by discarding diapers, sanitary towels, builders’ rubble, cooking fats and other items that hinder the system. We urge residents not to dump these kinds of materials into drains.”
Only human waste and toilet paper should be flushed down a toilet – anything else would block the pipes, he said.
To report blocked sewers, pump station failures and vandalism, WhatsApp 060 018 1505, visit the City’s website or SMS 31373.
