Nelson Mandela Bay Metro welcomes approval to relocate Lapland residents after floods
Published: July 23, 2024<< BACK TO NEWS
The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality welcomes the approval by the Eastern Cape
Department of Economic Development, Environmental Affairs and Tourism
(DEDEAT) to develop ERF 17639 in Kariega, to allow the relocation of more than
100 families from Lapland informal settlement to the Van Rooyen Avenue site, after
floods ravaged Kariega over a month ago.
This comes after the Metro assessed the land and applied to the Department
following the tragic flood disaster that hit Kariega in June, which threatened the lives
of Lapland residents.
DEDEAT together with the Department of Water and Sanitation recommended the
removal of the families considering that the informal settlement is situated on a flood
plain and downstream of the Tiryville dam and "may be adversely affected by high
flow conditions or floods in the event of high rainfall in the catchment of the river or
stream”.
NMBM Executive Mayor, Cllr Gary van Niekerk said the approval would allow the
Metro to clear the site in preparation for the important work of relocating the families.
"We are ecstatic to have received the approval on Monday, 22 July 2023 getting us
closer to relocating the community affected by the floods. We have noted the
conditions attached to the approval and our teams are already working on them. We
will provide basic services to the sites and then construct temporary shelters. The
long-term plan is to build proper houses in that area,” the Mayor said, adding that
DEDEAT has also instructed the Metro to:
• Appoint a competent, suitably qualified, and experienced Environmental Control
Officer (ECO) to oversee the implementation of the proposed development:
Construction of 183 TRUs on Erf 17639 Uitenhage (Van Rooyen Avenue).
• Install and place temporary water and sanitation facilities
• Place waste-management facilities within a fenced-off area with skips as an
interim measure until the site is serviced by the waste management removal unit
of NMBM and
• Demolish and remove the informal structure at the Lapland site.
"We appeal to our communities to work with us to ensure that no one else builds a
shack and lives in the Lapland site and other flood-prone areas within the Metro, as
they pose a safety risk and hazard to human lives. Once we relocate these affected
residents, we shall demolish the structures according to the approved application
and no resident will be permitted to build and live in the area again.”
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