WATCH: Newcastle laundromat linked to Amcor Dam, Ncandu River contamination
Newcastle municipal officials have been left fuming following what's believed to have been the intentional contamination of the Amcor Dam and Ncandu River.
Manager Vish Govender says they were made aware of the contamination when a video was posted online showing 'magical foam' flowing into the Amcor Dam waterfall.
He says they were able to link the chemical pollutants to a local laundry shop.
"It took us about two days until we tracked it back to a laundry in Newcastle and when we got to the laundry we were shocked, effluent flowing into the storm water drain and from that drain going to the river.
"We also discovered that the laundry in question had their storm water connected to into the municipal sewer and what they are going is they disposing the effluent into the sewer without permission or permit from the municipality."
Govender says samples were taken and the final results should be out next week. He says while they've concluded that the water is safe for consumption, the environment has suffered.
"So there is a group of fishermen that approached my office through the office of the mayor last week, and were complaining about the fish and the crabs jumping out of the water.
"So that as well raised the alarm that there's definitely something wrong going on in the water in terms of contamination and that is when we received on Friday morning that a farmer who is working downstream two of his cows died and that when we received a formal complaint and we escalated that to the environmental affairs, EDTEA"
Meanwhile, legal action's been taken against the laundry owner and a politician who allegedly filmed the footage.
