The upgrade of the Mark Street Pump Station in Bethal will play a major role in ensuring sewerage flows and the bad smell in the air are a thing of the past.

The Private Public Partnership (PPP) between the Department of Water and Sanitation, Govan Mbeki Local Municipality and Anglo American has ensured that the Mark Street Pump Station is refurbished and restored to full functionality.

Anglo Coal provided funding for the project and appointed a contractor for the refurbishment of the Mark Street Pump Station with the construction of a new manhole chamber and diversion of a new inlet pipeline into the pump station.

The project also includes the replacement of asbestos pipes along the delivery pipeline of 300mm diameter with the length of about 4 kilometres; this pipeline connects the Mark Street Pump Station and the Bethal Wastewater Plant.

All this work is done under the guidance and watchful eye of the Department of Water and Sanitation.

The malfunctioning of the Mark Street Pump Station had a negative effect on the community and the environment as the streets and open area around the pump station were usually flooded with sewage.

The sewage also used to end up in the Blesbok River, with a negative effect on water quality in the river.

The department has encouraged the community to take ownership of and care for the refurbished infrastructure.

“Community members must protect the infrastructure from vandalism and avoid throwing foreign objects into the systems as this is usually the main source of blockages,” says Themba Khoza, DWS spokesperson.

“The community must also ensure that they report any blockages in the system so that they can be quickly attended to and damage minimised to the system and the environment.”