Probe into pollution cover-up
2007-09-03 09:52
Pretoria - The mayoral committee of the Tshwane metro council will investigate attempts to cover up a shocking report about chemical pollution in the Rietvlei dam and nature reserve near Pretoria.
Beeld revealed on Saturday that the Water Research Commission (WRC) was forced by an official of the Tshwane metro council to remove the name of the Rietvlei nature reserve from the report before publishing it. The report simply refers to "an urban nature reserve".
"We must find out who ordered this and why. "We are here to save lives, not destroy them," said Tessa Ernst, the ANC member of the mayoral committee for agriculture and environmental management in the Tshwane metro council, on Sunday.
She will order an investigation into the alleged irregularities surrounding the publication of the report.
Name of official is known
The name of the official, who pressurised the WRC to remove references to the Rietvlei dam and nature reserve from the report, is known to Beeld.
Meanwhile, a guard at the gate refused entrance to a reporter and photographer on Sunday, reported Eagan Williamson.
According to the guard, it was not in his power to allow Beeld access to the premises as a result of the newspaper report about the dam posing a serious health threat to people because of the high level of chemical pollution.
The guard referred Beeld to John Cooper of the Tshwane city council, who was apparently in charge of the dam. The phone just rang.
Yet several people still visited the area and a number of vehicles were parked next to the dam.
Matter of life and death
Ernst said the ANC in the metro council had nothing to hide. "It's a matter of life and death. We must find out who pressurised the WRC to remove the names and why it was done."
Geographical and road maps of the area published in the report, as well as a photograph downloaded from the internet, indicated that the research involved the Rietvlei dam and nature reserve.
According to the report titled "Endocrine disruptive activity and the potential health risk in an Urban Nature Reserve", the mixture of industrial and agricultural chemicals in the water led to oestrogenic deposits in the water, which feminised male animals.
Researchers found bi-sexual barbel, snails (which are naturally bi-sexual) with under-developed male sex organs, as well as early signs of cancer and calcification in the testes of eland and mice in the vicinity of the dam.
The analysed animals drank water from the Rietvlei dam.
Jan de Jager, chairperson of the Centurion canoe club, said he was aware of research being done at Rietvlei dam.
"We don't want to expose our members to health risks. Somebody must take responsibility for this and clean it up."
De Jager said "hundreds of kilograms" of yellow fish, barbel and carp were weekly caught in the dam and sold.
According to researchers the chemical substances may already have been included in the food chain.
Bob Denhing from the Gauteng Conservation Organisation, said all the affiliated conservation areas will hold an emergency meeting to discuss the pollution of the dam and its catchment area this week.