The ongoing illegal harvesting of sand along some of province’s major routes and reserves has come under scrutiny as the practice continues to put lives in danger.
“Those doing illegal sand mining have destroyed numerous bridges, road shoulders and medians across Cape Town. Of greater concern however, is the danger this activity poses to residents and communities. Illegal mining undermines the integrity of our road infrastructure, meaning the infrastructure can collapse,” said Rob Quintas, Mayco member for Transport and Road Infrastructure Management.
He spoke following his visit to some of the hotspots in Khayelitsha and Gugulethu.
The hotspots include:
- Pama bridge in Khayelitsha
- Lindela Road bridge – the footway and guardrail collapsed in Khayelitsha
- Bridge at Govan Mbeki across railway line – the footway and guardrail collapse in Brown’s Farm Philippi close to the Fezeka municipal building
- Footway bridge at Lower crossroads – total collapse in Lower Crossroads, off Ngqwangi drive Philippi
- Steve Biko Drive in Gugulethu
- Klipfontein Road in Tambo Village
- Waterberg Road, Heideveld – Footbridge across the railway line.
Quintas urged perpetrators to refrain. He said the City has been struggling to deal with the problem for some time now. The bridge in Waterberg Road in Heideveld was severely affected by this illicit practice multiple times.
“In 2017, the illegal sand miners dug under the bridge and created a dangerous hollow. The City built a supporting wall and backfilled with compacted sand.
“In 2021, we received another notification of illegal sand mining at the bridge. Again, we backfilled all areas and included a concrete layer on the top to prevent further sand mining. Extra milling material was placed against the embankments to prevent easy access to the sand we used for backfilling,” said Quintas. He urged the community to refrain from destroying infrastructure.
“On 8 February 2021 children were trapped when the embankment on the N2 in the Borchards Quarry area close to the airport collapsed. This tragedy should never have happened.
“We need our communities to work with us. The City, on its own, cannot prevent this activity as we cannot monitor and safeguard all of our infrastructure, 24/7,” he stated.
Quintas said he was shocked with the state of the infrastructure in Khayelitsha, saying that the perpetrators are robbing the City and its residents.
Quintas stated that the money that the City spends on constant repairs is money that could be redirected to other services.
He said the illegal sand mining also damages underground services like cables, pipes, water and sewer mains. “It undermines road verges close to road edges which causes footways to collapse. This poses a serious danger to all road users and pedestrians,” he stated.
Commenting on the problem Gugulethu Development Forum (GDF) secretary Vincent Domingo said it is unfortunate that the community didn’t learn anything from the previous incidents in many areas because of illegal sand mining. He said the perpetrators are not just destroying the infrastructure but are also damaging the environment.
“We understand that some people can’t afford to buy sand for building their houses and resort to digging it on the open public space. And they leave the holes uncovered,” said Domingo. Referring to one of the incidents that happened early last year where four children from Nyanga died after the sand dunes collapsed while they were playing near the N2 , Domingo said often the children are the victims of their parent’s deeds.
“Our children are playing there because there are not enough facilities for them to play in our communities. And they are in danger. We need to be responsible about whatever we are doing. If that’s the case someone happens to dig the sand on the open space that person must close it after he or she has done,” said Domingo.
Khayelitsha Development Forum deputy chair Thandi Msutu reiterated Domingo’s sentiments that it is time for people to take responsibility and look after the community and environment.
“The illegal sand mining has a negative impact in our societies in many ways because there are those who also illegally dump the rubbish in the open holes. And digging the sand near the edges of the road is dangerous to the motorists because the road can collapse and cause accidents,” she said.
- People can report illegal sand mining to the police and the Transport Information Centre on 0800 65 64 63.
