Cape Town - The Save the Zandvlei petitioners have cast doubts over the expected delivery of a new weed harvester in June to help clear the algae in the vlei.
This follows a response from the City that apparently indicated that the service provider had hit a snag “on available working capital” in December, and was engaging bankers.
This happened while the old weed harvester had allegedly broken down again and was only brought back into operation on Monday.
One of the Save the Zandvlei petitioners, Mike Ryder, said that initially the new weed harvester delivery was expected in August last year, then December, and was later postponed to early this year.
Ryder said the City’s references to “snags on working capital and engaging bankers for positive resolve” did not provide any level of confidence in the June delivery date.
Ryder said it was reasonable to assume the construction of the weed harvester had not commenced, hence yard visits and pictures were denied.
Muizenberg resident Vincent Bristow said the issue of procuring a replacement for the weed harvester was of great concern, as the current one was seldom in working order.
“This harms the quality of the water. The lack of aeration leads to an increase in the growth of algae. This has led to a decrease in the fish and bird populations, and recreation has to be halted. In the longer term, it leads to the lowering of the value of properties.”
He said the City wasn’t working with the necessary urgency to deliver the weed harvester.
“Covid-19 as the reason for us not being able to visit was a red herring. The City was playing for time, which is fast running out. The most important issue is to do maintenance on the sewerage pump stations to prevent further inflows into Zandvlei.
“I, along with other residents, am sending an email to head of Water and Sanitation, Dr Zahid Badroodien, and the mayor, asking about the new weed eater and if there is a plan B should the vendor not deliver on time,” said Bristow.
Corporate services mayco member Theresa Uys said the construction of the weed harvester was scheduled to commence during the course of this month.
Uys said the service provider’s project plan was still on schedule to deliver by June, and that the City was ensuring regular engagements with the vendor to manage progress accordingly.