Port St Johns on a rocky road to despair

ONCE considered the jewel in the Wild Coast tourism crown, Port St Johns today is rundown, dirty, polluted and offers very little to tourists.

A recent visit by a Daily Dispatch team to the town found that:

• Cattle and goats freely roam the streets eating from dustbins;

The main road into town is riddled with potholes;

Hawkers clog the sidewalks while taxis cause congestion;

Effluent had pooled outside the local tourism office and was flowing into the Mzimvubu River;

An influx of people is placing strain on the town’s already overburdened services; and

The destruction of environmentally sensitive forests by squatters around the town is widespread.

Locals have attributed the decay mainly to an increase in the number of people moving to Port St Johns.

Dries van der Merwe, chairman of the 350-odd strong local ratepayers association, said Port St Johns had changed from a laid-back residential town to a commercial centre.

“The town’s infrastructure is not enough to cope with the massive influx,” he said.

It’s a view shared by local businessman, conservationist and author, John Costello, who has lived in Port St Johns since 1967.

“Due to transport costs and the demise of trading stores, it works out cheaper for people getting their social grants to move to the town and squat,” he said.

Costello said the streets of Port St Johns were degraded by litter which included refuse, animal and human waste.

“Stray animals, unregulated livestock trading and hawkers butchering meat on the sidewalks are just some of the problems adding to the unhygienic conditions,” he said.

Acknowledging the town faced a number of challenges, Port St Johns mayor Mnyamezeli Mangqo said the municipality was addressing them. “An animal pound will be built and its operations will be drawn and accounted to the bylaws,” said Mangqo, adding that the department of public works had agreed to help with fixing the roads and work was expected to start soon.

The sewerage problem presented a different challenge. Mangqo said the town still used a sceptic tank system but a “high water table” interfered with it, resulting in the pool of sewage outside the tourism office. Population growth placed additional strain on the system, however the municipality is in talks with OR Tambo District Municipality to develop a wastewater treatment plant for the town.

In an effort to stop deforestation, the municipality has engaged the department of agriculture, forestry and fisheries (Daff) to assist. “The future plan is Daff must issue permits that will confirm the appropriateness of this activity which will then be communicated to the whole community as a means of raising awareness,” said Mangqo. Daff had not responded to questions from the Daily Dispatch at the time of going to print.

Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism CEO Luxolo Rubushe said while the agency was concerned at the state of Port St Johns, there were plans in the pipeline to turn things around.

He said the town had been earmarked as a beneficiary of the Wild Coast Development programme which aimed to revitalise small towns.

Not everyone believes that things can be turned around though. Sun Lof bed and breakfast owner Margaret Floyd said the town’s condition had been deteriorating since 2008.

“The general state of the roads and the town itself – the dirtiness of the place – is a cause for concern,” she said. “Visitors to my bed and breakfast often ask why it’s so filthy.” — andrews@dispatch.co.za and bonganif@dispatch.co.za

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