THE REINSTATEMENT OF THE ‘MIDWAY RAILWAY LINE CROSSING THE KLIP RIVER’ LOCATED IN THE CITY OF JOHANNESBURG ON ERF RE/88/299-IQ, GAUTENG PROVINCE.
THE REINSTATEMENT OF THE ‘MIDWAY RAILWAY LINE CROSSING THE KLIP RIVER’ LOCATED IN THE CITY OF JOHANNESBURG ON ERF RE/88/299-IQ, GAUTENG PROVINCE (DFFE Reference 2025-03-0031).
The Information Sheet is a summary of the Basic Assessment Report and is available at the hyperlink.
INTRODUCTION
The Environmental Partnership was appointed by the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) to conduct a Basic Assessment Report (BAR) This has been compiled for the reinstatement of a portion of the railway line on erf RE/88/299-IQ located in Chiawelo, Johannesburg that was washed away during a flood event in December 2022. This site is situated at the culvert watercourse crossing. The purpose of the reinstatement of this portion of the railway line is to ensure operational efficiency and to restore the critical infrastructure required. The BAR will provide information to assess and evaluate the potential environmental impacts of the proposed reinstatement activities. The report outlines the project’s scope, including mitigation measures designed to minimise environmental harm and ensure compliance with the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA), Act No. 107 of 1998, and the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Regulations of 2014, as amended.
PROJECT PROPOSAL
The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) intends to undertake rehabilitation works on a portion of the railway line that was washed away with the December 2022 floods. The scope of work includes the removal of the old railway line and the construction of a new railway line. The Midway Railroad Reinstatement will involve the removal of debris and remnants of the damaged culvert structure, site preparation, and the installation of a new culvert system designed to improve water flow and enhance flood resilience.
The new culvert structure will span approximately 6.3m by 4m and will be constructed using reinforced concrete, ensuring durability and a design life of over 100 years. The project will include the removal and safeguarding of existing railway elements, such as rails, sleepers, clips, and pads, to facilitate seamless integration with the new culvert. The reinstatement will aim to restore the infrastructure to its original functionality and beyond, providing increased capacity for flood drainage and improved flow dynamics to mitigate the risk of future washaways.
The proposed Midway Railroad Reinstatement will result in a fully operational railway section, contributing to the regional transport network. This section is vital for maintaining rail connectivity, facilitating the efficient movement of passengers and freight, and supporting local economic growth. Environmental measures will be implemented to minimise potential impacts on the surrounding ecosystem and ensure compliance with the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA) and other relevant regulations.
PROJECT ALTERNATIVES
Alternatives are required for the proposed activity that must be considered by The National Environmental Management Act (NEMA, Section 24). Alternatives are different means of meeting the general purpose and need of a proposed activity.
Alternative 1: A skew 4-span reinforced concrete railway line on bundle (preferred)
This option includes a cast in-situ reinforced concrete railway line with a slab deck fixed at the end and free (simply supported) in the middle. The piers (end section) and abutments are founded on pile caps/piles. The superstructure will have a maximum depth of 1.1m. The design life for this type of sub-structure with pile caps 2m below finished/excavated natural ground line, augured piles, socketed 2m into unfractured, unjointed, medium hard rock would extend the serviceable design life to 100 years.
Alternative 2: In situ 12 cell: 3.6 X 3.6M BOX CULVERT (30-Degree Skew)
The in-situ culvert option comprises a 12-cell 30-degree skew, 3.6 m x 3.6 m box culvert(s), with demolishing of the existing culverts. The culvert strength option was determined using the height of the fill above the barrel and the load index based on the settlement and projection ratios. Initial geotechnical observations have shown poor founding conditions at shallow depths. This indicates the need for ground improvement by building suitable material layers to natural ground, to achieve enough lateral stability through doweling into harder material. The design life for this type of structure is 25 years or as little as 12 years under certain conditions.
Alternative 3: No-go Alternative
The No-go alternative implies that the proposed Midway Railway Reinstatement will not be realised. This would result in potential positive and the restoration of critical rail infrastructure and operational efficiency of the rail network not being realised. Similarly, the potential negative impacts of the Midway Railroad Reinstatement as identified in this BAR would be avoided should the No-go Alternative be preferred.
This BAR identified and assessed potential impacts that could occur due to the proposed Midway Railroad Reinstatement. Impacts were assessed for all three Alternatives, for the pre-construction, construction, operational and decommissioning phases of the proposed project. Recommendations for mitigation of negative impacts, or enhancement of positive impacts were made and included in the associated Environmental Management Programme to be implemented should the project be approved. A summary of the impacts, and their significance before and after mitigation/enhancement measures is provided in the table below.
LEGISLATIVE REQUIREMENTS
The 2014 NEMA Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations of 2014, as amended, apply to the proposed development and necessitate a Basic Assessment Process. The proposed development includes activities listed in GN 983 and GN 985 of the 2014 EIA Regulations, as amended. These are:
Listing Notice 1: Reg 983 Activity 19
The infilling or depositing of any material of more than 10 cubic metres into, or the dredging, excavation, removal or moving of soil, sand, shells, shell grit, pebbles or rock of more than 10 cubic metres from a watercourse.
but excluding where such infilling, depositing, dredging, excavation, removal or moving-
- will occur behind a development setback.
- is for maintenance purposes undertaken in accordance with a maintenance management plan.
- falls within the ambit of activity 21 in this Notice, in which case that activity applies.
- occurs within existing ports or harbours that will not increase the development footprint of the port or harbour; or
- where such development is related to the development of a port or harbour, in which case activity 26 in Listing Notice 2 of 2014 applies.
Listing Notice 3: Reg 985 Activity 23
The expansion of-
(i) dams or weirs where the dam or weir is expanded by 10 square metres or more; or (ii) infrastructure or structures where the physical footprint is expanded by 10 square metres or more;
where such expansion occurs-
- within a watercourse;
- in front of a development setback adopted in the prescribed manner; or
- if no development setback has been adopted, within 32 metres of a watercourse, measured from the edge of a watercourse, excluding the expansion of infrastructure or structures within existing ports or harbours that will not increase the development footprint of the port or harbour.
(c) Gauteng
(i) A protected area identified in terms of NEMPAA, excluding conservancies; (ii) National Protected Area Expansion Strategy Focus Areas; (iii) Gauteng Protected Area Expansion Priority Areas; (iv) Sites identified as Critical Biodiversity Areas (C BAs) or Ecological Support Areas (ESAs) in the Gauteng Conservation Plan or in bioregional plans; (v) Sites identified within threatened ecosystems listed in terms of the National Environmental Management Act: Biodiversity Act (Act 10 of 2004); (vi) Sensitive areas identified in an environmental management framework adopted by the relevant environmental authority; (vii) Sites or areas identified in terms of an international convention; (viii) Sites managed as protected areas by provincial authorities, or declared as nature reserves in terms of the Nature Conservation Ordinance (Ordinance 12 of 1983) or the NEMPAA: or (ix) Sites designated as nature reserves in terms of municipal Spatial Development Frameworks; or (x) Sites zoned for conservation use or public open space or equivalent zoning.
The following legislation also applies to the proposed activity:
- National Water Act (Act no. 36 of 1998).
- National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act, 2004 (Act No. 10 of 2004) (NEMBA).
- National Environmental Management Protected Areas Act, 2003 (Act No 57 of 2003) (NEMPAA).
FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The EAP is of the opinion that there are no fatal flaws to the proposed project and that the proposed Midway Railway Reinstatement should be approved with the implementation of the Environmental Management Programme. The proposed project is much needed to reinstate rail services for personal transportation and ensure the region’s ongoing socio-economic development.
Based on the findings of this impact assessment, Alternative 1: A skew 4-span reinforced concrete bridge on piles has been identified as the preferred alternative. This is due to the shorter construction period compared to Alternative 2, the potential environmental impacts being lower than Alternative 2 and the design life being 100 years, compared to 2-25 years for Alternative 2. Despite the cost of Alternative 1 being the highest, it is still considered the most favourable from the socio-economic and environmental perspectives.
All mitigation measures recommended in this report should be implemented to avoid impacts on the wetland, watercourse, ecosystem services, and other environmental features. Implementing the recommendations made by the specialist and captured in this report can effectively mitigate all potential impacts to acceptable levels. All recommendations are captured in the EMPr.
The Environmental Partnership submits that this Draft BAR to obtain further the environmental issues and concerns raised by I&APs, organs of state, authorities and the project team during the first phase of the project.
Recommendation: Overall, while there are potential negative impacts associated with the railway reinstatement, careful planning and mitigation strategies can help to minimize negative outcomes and enhance the positive effects on the community and environment.
The Wetland Specialist Study confirmed that no High risks are expected for the proposed project. The upgrade of the crossing will incur a short-term (construction phase) risk, with the significance of the long-term (operational phase) risks expected being negligible. The upgrade has the potential to improve the hydrology of the affected reach with improved designs. The improved hydrology is also expected to improve the connectivity across the reach.
It is recommended that the proposed Alternative 1 A skew 4-span reinforced concrete bridge on piles be approved, on condition that the recommended mitigation measures are applied.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PROCESS
Public participation is a key component of the environmental assessment process as it introduces the proposed activity to the public and provides an opportunity for comments and concerns to be raised and addressed. Public participation will be undertaken in terms of Section 41 of the 2014 NEMA: EIA Regulations, as amended. Below is an outline of what was undertaken:
This information sheet which summarises the draft Basic Assessment Report is being distributed to all identified, Interested and Affected Parties. A copy of the report will be placed on the Environmental Partnership’s website at www.enviropart.co.za and will be distributed to the Protea Glen Library. A media notice has been put into the local Rising Sun community newspaper and has been put up in the form of posters in various locations around the proposed site and in the adjacent communities.
The Bar will be distributed to all relevant Organs of State. A 30-day comment period will end on 9 May 2025 where all interested and affected parties are invited to submit their comments regarding the proposed development.
WAY FORWARD
Comments received for this Draft BAR will be incorporated, addressed and included in the final BAR.
An information sheet summarizing the Draft Bar will be distributed to key identified I&APs and Organs of State and they will be informed that the full report is available on the Environmental Partnership’s website.
During the 30-day commenting Period, all I&APs are invited to submit their comments on or before 9 May 2025. Comments may be submitted to the Environmental Partnership via email at: comments@enviropart.co.za / 021 422 0999.
Basic Assessment Report (BAR)
Midway Railway Basic Assessment Report.
Appendices:
Appendix A: Midway Locality Map
Appendix B: Midway Site Photos
Appendix C: Midway Sensitivity Screening
Appendix D: Midway Freshwater Specialist Report