Westlake residents unite to restore children's park from dumping ground

Mea Lashbrooke, Bergvliet

Westlake Village community was fed up.

For a year, villagers have used a children’s park as a rubbish dump. In places, it was knee deep, noxious and unhealthy. The area was covered by mattresses, suitcases, rubble, metal, plastic, glass and organic matter.

Helpers from several village organisations responded to the call to end this atrocity, including (Westlake Development Forum) WDF, sports clubs, neighbourhood watch, Westlake River Friends Group and even students from Muizenberg. In just one day, they cleared most of the park.

They brought tools, gloves and bags. More supplies came from the Westlake United Churches Trust (WUCT), Sand River Catchment Forum (Westlake River forms part of this catchment, flowing into Zandvlei), and the ward 71 councillor, Carolynne Franklin.

Council trucks removed 150 bags and are returning to make several trips with a giant grabber to remove untouchable waste and rubble.

At the end of the day, the return of gloves and tools, along with hand sanitising, was followed by refreshments. 

“The hot dogs and cold drinks for volunteers were donated by Tokai and Constantia neighbours,” said Cecile Antonie, a Tokai resident, who encourages and coordinates donations in kind and ongoing upliftment efforts in Westlake.

“Teamwork is the heart of success,” said Ms Antonie. “I would like to see bridges built across the Constantia Valley, including Westlake. It’s team spirit that achieves. That’s evident here today, but it’s also necessary on a wider scale. To see the vibrancy and engagement here is uplifting. Tami Mahashe, leader of this initiative, has shown individuals the benefit of working together.”

“It’s encouraging,” said Pieter Greyling, general manager of WUCT community centre, home to the many invaluable Westlake community programmes, “to see the community looking after their own spaces. WUCT supports all local initiatives that create a healthy environment for residents.”

Now the challenge for this community-led initiative is to continue. “Stopping dumpers, who are paid by residents, from dumping in the park at night is a priority,” said Tami Mahashe, member of WDF and leader of the clean-up. “We would like to lock the gates at night and even think of security by day. Not only to stop dumping, but to ensure the area is safe for children.”

“It’s wonderful to see the community working together,” said Jenny Louw, chair of Zandvlei Catchment Management Forum.

“The forum is here to support collaboration of all stakeholders in addressing pollution in the catchment. This community initiative has been supported by various stakeholders. What happens in this Upper Westlake River area directly affects the local community, communities downstream and the health of Zandvlei itself, so this work is really important, and very appreciated.”

Councillor Franklin was also heartened to see constructive community action and has faith that this will jump start a responsible approach to litter, refuse, and recycling in the area.