The multi-million rand Geelsloot flood-alleviation project has effectively been put on hold following the withdrawal of its Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) application.
The move comes amid a heated standoff between the City of Cape Town and locals, who demand that “systemic” sewage contamination be resolved before any new stormwater infrastructure is built (“First fix sewage issues“, DistrictMail & Helderberg Gazette, 17 September).
The City’s Water and Sanitation Directorate confirmed that the Basic Assessment application was formally withdrawn on Friday 17 October. While officials describe this as a procedural postponement, residents and the Cape Independence Party (Capexit) are claiming it as a victory for community pressure.
Councillor Karl Bodin of Capexit, who lodged complaints with the Provincial Green Scorpions and the national Department of Water and Sanitation in April, argues that the project pause is a direct result of the unresolved sewage crisis.
“For over eight years, the City has been receiving complaints from the public of sewage overflows into the Geelsloot waterway,” Bodin stated. “The City has never resolved the issue… [resulting in] systemic contamination that impacts environmental degradation and residents’ enjoyment within the leafy suburbs.”
Bodin requested the project be halted pending a resolution to the sewage leaks, which residents fear would turn the proposed new attenuation ponds into “reservoirs of untreated sewage”.
According to correspondence from the Western Cape Government, the withdrawal was requested by the appointed environmental assessment practitioner.
The correspondence further noted that “allegations regarding sewage spills in the area require an investigation by the Directorate: Environmental Law Enforcement,” confirming that a probe into the contamination is moving forward.
Zahid Badroodien, Mayoral Committee member for Water and Sanitation, denied that the project has been scrapped.
He attributed the withdrawal to strict legislative timelines for the EIA process, which the current application could not meet due to missing information.
“The project has not been halted, rather the process has been postponed,” Badroodien explained. “The team have therefore withdrawn the application and will re-submit in 2026.”
Badroodien also pushed back against the severity of the sewage claims, stating that the City had received “only four service requests” for sewer-related complaints around Geelsloot in 2025.
“The (minor) sewer-related challenges currently experienced in this area do not justify any major upgrades,” Badroodien said, adding that maintenance continues.
The City intends to re-initiate the Basic Assessment process in early next year.
Once approvals are eventually secured, the tender and procurement process is expected to take another 18 months.
For now, however, the Helderberg Ratepayers’ Association and local environmentalists see the delay as a critical window to force the City to address the water quality issues that threaten the Lourens River catchment and the downstream recreational waters at Strand Beach.
“As we understand, the withdrawal of the Geelsloot Flood Alleviation Project EIA is a temporary provision awaiting additional clarity about sewage pollution and any remedial action which was excluded in the 87-page report,” said Jamii Hamlin, the environmental representative for the Helderberg Ratepayers’ Association.
“There remains an ongoing investigation with a new application with environment law enforcement, which indicates the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment as well as Department of Water and Sanitation to investigate and furnish their findings.
“This is a lethargic process hampered by limited political will and seemingly limited resources to investigate, but we as ratepayers must continue to pursue the matter for the sake of environmental custodianship and the well-being of our community.”
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