City councillor leads major Jukskei River clean-up drive

03 February 2017

 

City of Johannesburg Ward 93 councillor Candice James rolled up her sleeves and dirtied her hands as she and her team led a massive mid-morning clean-up campaign along the Jukskei River in Sunninghill, Region A, on Thursday February 2.

 

Rob Kimmings, a representative of the local ratepayers and property owners’ association, was among the throngs of people from all walks of life who took part in the joint operation.

Also in the frame were staff from City entities such as waste management company Pikitup, Johannesburg City Parks & Zoo and the Johannesburg Metro Police Department, officials from the Region A Inspectorate and Citizen Relationship and Urban Management, as well as members of the Community Workers Programme (CWP).

Dressed in bright-coloured overalls, knee-length protective boots and gloves, and using grass cutters of all shapes and sizes, shovels and rakes, they relentlessly raided the tall grass on the river banks, picking up litter and debris as they went along.

“The Jukskei River and Braamfontein Spruit are unhygienic, unsafe and environmentally disastrous. Today, being World Wetlands Day, my team and I decided that it was proper that we undertook this clean-up operation,” said Cllr James.

The river runs through Sunninghill, Paulshoff, Douglasdale and Rivonia.

“As you know, informal settlements have sprung up on the river banks. Many of the informal settlements do not have formal sanitation services and people discard sewage and refuse into the river,” said Cllr James.

She said residents living along the Jukskei River had been badly affected by its shocking state.

Kimmings said Sunninghill and Rivonia were very beautiful suburbs, rich with flora and fauna and a river that had the potential to complete a very scenic picture.

“Unfortunately, in its current state, the river is a poor advertisement and representation of our community. I believe the dire condition the Jukskei River is in is a result of rapid urbanisation,” he said.

Cllr James said she believed the operation only scratched the surface of the problem.