" ... a rose by any other name would smell as sweet ..." This well-known phrase from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet may very fittingly be adapted to read "Our town by any other name would smell as bad ..."

Makhado, formerly known as Louis Trichardt, currently smells like a sewerage farm. In certain areas, the stench is so bad that residents prefer to stay away from home. Even businesses are affected and some complain that they have lost a large number of clients who are simply not prepared to visit because of the smell.

All over town and in the industrial area, sewage spillages could be seen over the past week. Some of these have literally been continuing for years, causing lush vegetation to grow around these sewage "swamps". Adjacent to town, the residents of Tshikota have also been affected, with the sewage flowing through several streets.

With the help of residents, archive articles and the Soutpansberg Ratepayers Association (SRPA), the Zoutpansberger was able to identify a few of the bigger sewage swamps over the past two weeks. These were documented on a map of the town (see map below).

The biggest reason for concern, however, is the indigenous tree park, or so-called Green Belt, that stretches along the N1 and borders on Stubbs and River Street. Almost in the middle of the tree park, a river of sewerage has formed. This is only a stone’s throw away from a newly drilled municipal water borehole in President Street.

A couple of metres from this borehole, the sewage overflows next to Smart Fitness Gym. This has had a particularly negative effect on clients, especially because the overflow peaks in the mornings and evenings, the busiest times for the gym.

“People around here don’t even smell it anymore,” says gym owner Mr Sean Brennan. The reality is that the stench affects the whole area. Lately, one cannot even drive down Stubbs Street with open windows because the smell is so bad.

A quick overview of reported sewage spills paints a very dark, smelly picture. Photos from 2007 have been compared with the present-day situation and although some improvements can be seen, they remain few and far between. Some of the sewerage pumps that were reported broken seem to be up and running again. This was evident during on-site visits a fortnight ago. During this impromptu inspection, a lot of new sewerage spillages were also spotted.

The Makhado Municipality was asked about the state of the town’s sewage system. Their response was a vague one. By Tuesday, Mr Peter Muthambi from the Makhado Municipality had answered on behalf of the municipal spokesperson, Mr Louis Bobodi, and said that the “identified areas have been attended to by municipal teams.”

The newspaper visited Smart Fitness Gym shortly after speaking to Muthambi. No municipal teams were spotted.