MAKHADO (LOUIS TRICHARDT) – Shabby workmanship is being blamed for the massive fuel leak, which resulted in an estimated 15 million litres of jet fuel going to waste at Air Force Base Louis Trichardt. This was the Department of Defence's official response amidst allegations of negligence on the part of the South African Air Force.

The Department of Defence's Corporate Communications Department this week admitted that a poorly constructed welding joint in the fuel pipeline caused the leak. The leak occurred over many years, but the exact date has not yet been determined. The leak was detected after implementing the departmental repair and maintenance contract for the fuel system in 2000. It was identified after monitoring the fuel capacity with a newly installed volume control system. News of the leak almost immediately gave rise to fears that water pumped from the Air Force Base's boreholes was not fit for human consumption. Five boreholes were drilled between March 19 and 23, 2001 and a further six between April 30 and May 3, 2001. Water samples were taken from each of the boreholes and tested for fuel pollution. The water supply boreholes within the base were also tested for pollution and ground water and fuel level samples were taken on a regular basis.

Following these tests, it was found that the boreholes around the leakage point were polluted. In addition, the water supply from other boreholes within the base was found to contain low levels of pollution. Due to the toxic nature of the pollution, the Air Force decided to discontinue the use of the boreholes. An investigation was then launched into the matter. The Department of Water Affairs and Forestry required that two different laboratories test the water. To delineate the plume of free fuel pollution on ground water, more boreholes were required but further away from the leakage point. The services of the Council for Geoscience were also employed to do a detailed airborne geophysical survey to determine the presence of any geological features that might influence the migration of the fuel. A Time Domain Electro-Magnetic (TDEM) geophysical investigation was then done over a large area to determine the possible presence of fuel on top of the ground water table. In addition, a further twelve bore holes were drilled over the period April 2 to 8, to investigate pollution of the water used for domestic purposes. None of these boreholes was affected by the leak. The Department of Defence stated that similar occurrences would largely be prevented with the newly installed volume control system, which monitors the base's fuel capacity on a 24-hour basis. The work undertaken to date regarding the rehabilitation of the affected areas is in compliance with legislation administered by the Departments of Water Affairs and Environmental Affairs.

Further tests on the water and borehole permeability and pump tests must still be done. The original cause of the problem, the poorly constructed welded joint in the fuel pipeline, was repaired two weeks ago.