13 March 2025
One of the Kruger National Park gates close to the Thutshi River where raw sewage flows from Phalaborwa. The local community has laid criminal charges against the two local municipalities for not resolving the sewerage problems. Photos: Bernard Chiguvare
Raw sewage has been flowing into the Kruger National Park for the past 27 years because of broken and failing infrastructure in neighbouring Phalaborwa.
The sewage, which spills from manholes due to blockages in the system and collapsed infrastructure, flows into the Tshutshi River, which flows through the world-renowned park before joining the Olifants River.
“This has been ongoing for 27 years, during which time SANParks has engaged on numerous occasions with the Ba-Phalaborwa local municipality to try and put a stop to this,” said Jacques Venter, biotechnician at the Kruger National Park.
Let’s Change Ba-Phalaborwa Community Forum, a community-based organisation, in 2022 laid charges against the Ba-Phalaborwa and Mopani District municipalities.
The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) Compliance Monitoring Enforcement unit (Blue and Green Scorpions)had investigated, said DWS spokesperson Wisane Mavasa.
Mavasa said the DWS “finalised administrative enforcement action” against both municipalities. He said the docket was submitted to the Director of Public Prosecution in Polokwane on 6 January 2025 and DWS was awaiting a decision from the National Prosecuting Authority.
Forum vice-chairperson Trevor Van Rooyen said the sewage spills had been ongoing since 1998. He said they laid separate charges against both municipal managers and the water and sanitation manager of Ba-Phalaborwa municipalities. They were all charged in their personal capacities for dereliction of duties, he said.
“We participated in several marches, handing memorandums and petitions to both municipalities, but it was all empty promises,” said Van Rooyen.
He said after “numerous attempts” to engage with the district and local municipalities, the organisation sought relief from higher authorities. They approached the Limpopo Premier, the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Limpopo Economic Development Environment and Tourism, Department of Water and Sanitation, the Public Protector, and the South African Human Rights Commission, Van Rooyen told GroundUp.
The Tshutshi river which runs through the national park is polluted by sewage spillages from Phalaborwa, as evidenced by its dark colour and excessive algal growth.
Venter said the sewage is a risk to tourism developments at the Phalaborwa Wild Activity Hub, which includes recreational activities and accommodation on the banks of the Tshutshi river.
“Unfortunately, raw sewage flowing right through the middle of this development is going to have a negative influence on it,” said Venter.
He said the pathogens (disease-causing bacteria), viruses, and parasites contained in raw sewage pose a health risk to humans.
Sewage also destroys riverine ecosystems, such as the Olifants River. The Department of Water and Sanitation’s Integrated Regulatory Information System, shows that in addition to sewage spills from blocked and broken infrastructure, all three sewage treatment plants in Phalaborwa run by the Mopani District Municipality are failing to treat the sewage they receive to minimum acceptable standards. The plants release about 17-million litres of untreated or partially treated sewage into the Ga-Selati River every day. Like the Thutshi River, this flows through the Kruger National Park to the Olifants River.
Venter said sewage released into rivers contains high amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus.
Although plants require these nutrients for growth, too high a concentration of nutrients stimulates the growth of algae, which blocks out the light other plants need for photosynthesis. When these plants and fast-growing algae dies, the process of decomposition removed oxygen from the water, which resulted in fish and other aquatic organisms dying off, he said.
Venter said algal blooms caused by excessive nitrogen and phosphorus had “huge human health consequences, especially to the receiving environments of Mozambique”, into which rivers on the east of Limpopo flow.
When GroundUp visited Phalaborwa last week, there was no sewage flow, but signs of recent sewage spills in several streets were evident, with the accompanying stench.
Erika Froneman, who runs Action Auto business, a car dealership, told GroundUp that she sometimes loses business when she has to close due to sewage flowing onto the property.
“This has been going on for a long time. The sewage at times flows into the yard,” said Froneman.
Mopani District Municipality, which is the water authority, admitted that the entire water and sanitation network is old, but said it is being upgraded. Odas Ngobeni, Mopani District Municipality spokesperson, said old asbestos pipes and manholes were being replaced, and three pump stations had been refurbished.
The Ba-Phalaborwa municipality referred us to to the Mopani District Municipality.