Johannesburg - The CIty of Ekurhuleni is monitoring the clean-up of the Swartspruit stream in Kempton Park following a major oil spill two weeks ago.
The stream, near the Festival Mall, became polluted after a fire at the premises of GUD Holdings (Pty) Ltd which resulted in a discharge of significant amounts of lubricating oils into the stormwater system, contaminating about a seven-kilometre stretch of the Swartspruit River.
“A major clean-up operation is currently underway on a polluted section of the Swartspruit between Isando and the CR Swart Bridge opposite shopping centre,” said Themba Gadebe, spokesperson for Ekurhuleni.
The city has also instructed GUD to comply with their obligations under the National Environmental Management Act to clean up the pollution, rehabilitate the affected area and submit a report to the environmental authorities on the cause of the incident.
“The company has appointed Drizit Environmental to conduct the clean-up operation which is expected to take several weeks. A report on the incident is expected in 14 days. Members of the public are requested to avoid contact with the polluted section of the river and to take care when passing the Drizit base of operations at the corner of CR Swart and Kelvin Streets in Kempton Park,” he said.
Should any member of the public find any wild birds or other animals that may have been affected by this incident they are requested to report this to the DRIZIT 24 hour toll-free number on 0800 202 202.
The city will continue to monitor the clean-up operation and will ensure that the company rehabilitates the affected environment to its original condition, concluded Gadebe.
Anthony Trickey (COR) divisional director group legal and human resources at GUD said a fire broke out on September 8 on the ground floor of the company’s Isando distribution centre.
The facility is the company’s Gauteng sales and marketing branch and the regional warehouse for its filter and oil lubricant products.
The site was evacuated and Kempton Park fire department was notified. “Unfortunately, despite the fire department’s best efforts, they were unable to contain the blaze. The warehouse and a number of vehicles parked on the premises were destroyed. Fortunately there was no loss of life or reported injuries,” he said.
The cause of the fire is not known at this stage, but a full investigation is in progress.
During the course of the fire, automotive and industrial oil stored on the premises was released on the premises and into the nearby stormwater drainage and waterways.
“When the extent of the spillage became apparent, Drizit Environmental were contacted to contain the spillage and facilitate the cleanup operation. They had a full team on site the next day,” he said.
It was established that the spillage had entered the Swartspruit and accordingly Drizit deployed a team to contain and clean up the area. Drizit remains on site at the warehouse premises and at the containment area on the river.
Trickey said the company has engaged experts including an aquatic scientist to :
Conduct an ecological assessment of the site - aquatic and wetland;
Derive an impact of the spill;
Conduct soil and water pollution assessments;
Make recommendations regarding pollution mitigation and rehabilitation from an ecological and soil chemistry perspective;
Monitor pollution plume and cleanup progress