2026: Report from Monty Roodt:
Bathurst Commonage Management Committee Report: 25/02/26
1. 12/02/26 — Meeting of the Provincial Disaster Management Committee. This meeting was called without inviting civil society members of the Ad Hoc Disaster Management Committee set up at the January 7 meeting. According to Mr Terra Mbunge, Ndlambe Municipality LED Acting Director, at this meeting, the following was discussed but he reports that very little in the way of action has materialised:
• Splitting the Joint Operation Committee on Drought Relief into two, ie:
– Drought Relief
– Foot and Mouth
The next meeting is on 26/02/26. I have asked Mr Mbunge to raise the issue of civil society participation as was originally envisaged.
2. Ndlambe Municipality received 500 bales of mixed silage (lucerne and molasses), of which 100 bales were given to Bathurst, not for individual farmers but for all animals. Some of the bales were also given to Ms Elmarie Ward.
3. The plan to decommission the Bathurst Landfill site/Rubbish Dump is going ahead but it is not clear when. In the meantime, Mphele Engineers, who manage the site, have agreed to cover the dump with sand and to compact it to contain the rubbish.
4. Ngaxangani Co-operative, the Bathurst Cattle Owners Co-op, have used fencing that was left behind by the Department of Agriculture to construct a fence to keep cattle out of the dump. The parts that follow existing fence lines will be permanent, while the parts are temporary until the dump issue is sorted.
5. Ndlambe Municipality have desilted and repaired the walls of two water sources/dams on the commonage: the old quarry and the big dam close to it. Work has halted because cattle owners have requested berms to direct water away from the cattle grid at Gate 1.
6. Ndlambe Municipality Alien Clearing Project:— the LED Dept is awaiting the go-ahead from SANPARKS who have made the application for funding.
7. Department of Agriculture Commonage Planning meeting at the Agriculture Research Station to discuss a management plan for the commonage – including demarcation of camps, fencing, water supply, placement of gates, hiking trails and horse riding trails. This meeting, which was conducted by Deputy Director Mthuthuzeli Madyakathe, Land Use Management Section of the Department of Agriculture and his staff, was well attended and constructive. Mr Khayalethu Sweli, Ms Evonne Ghemo and Prof Monty Roodt of BCMC attended and made inputs. Once again, Ndlambe Municipality failed to attend this meeting. This is becoming a serious issue and needs urgent attention
8. Bathurst Commonage Management Committee meeting at Freestone Sports Stadium. Date: Thursday 29 January. Time: 2.30 PM Notice: A lot has happened since our last meeting, and we need to report back, discuss and move forward on a range of issues. The agenda would include: 1) Report back on a number of meetings with the Dept of Agriculture, Ndlambe Municipality and the Provincial Disaster Management Committee on drought relief; the application for fencing to the Department of Agriculture by the Ngxangani Cattle Owners Co-op who are part of BCMC and the need for Ndlambe Municipality to grant them a Permission to Occupy Certificate; our recent meeting with the Department of Agriculture at the Research Station to discuss a management plan for the commonage – including demarcation of camps, fencing, water supply, placement of gates, hiking trails and horse riding trails. Once again, Ndlambe Municipality failed to attend this meeting. This is becoming a serious issue and needs urgent attention. The outstanding issue of the lease signing with Ndlambe has been ongoing since July last year. Meeting had to be cancelled. Follow up meeting on Tuesday February 3rd was also cancelled as on three people arrived and the hall was locked.
9. Commonage rubbish clearing project — this joint project between the BR&RA and the BCMC is going well. Carolyn Marston has used the funding provided by BRRA to employ three women, Ms Rozy Ndyana, Ms Joyce Peter, and Ms Nomama Marahna, to clear years of illegal dumping on the Eastern section of the commonage. Volunteers Patrick Grafton, Monty Roodt and Zandisile Hetula have been assisting with transporting the filled bags to the rubbish dump. Monty Roodt, Sarah Sephton and Zandisile Hetula have also begun clearing isolated spots of illegal dumping adjacent to the Southwell road.
2026: 12/01/2026 Monty Roodt reports: Maqabane, Colleagues, Committee Members – a number of meetings have been held to resolve primarily the disastrous drought and the need for urgent action on the part of government – local, district, provincial and national – assist emerging farmers, but also the subsidiary issues of the plastic poisoning of livestock from the rubbish dump and the lack of adequate fencing, as well as the now partially functioning water reticulation system on the commonage.
Wednesday, January 7th meeting – where once again disappointment was voiced because little tangible help had been forthcoming from the Department of Agriculture or any other government department, it was stated that the community of Bathurst Village and other private citizens had done more to help the Nolukhanyo cattle owners than the government had. A major issue was the fact that two scientists from the Dept of Agriculture had conducted a study and confirmed all the issues that the BCMC had been writing to the authorities about, namely that there is nothing for the cattle to eat, there is no water, that cattle are wandering onto the R67 and into peoples gardens in the village in a desperate search for food. It concluded that the farmers were in urgent need of assistance with feed, the fencing of the rubbish dump and water to prevent further cattle from dying. The main complaint was that the Department of Agriculture had not made the report available to stakeholders. The Dept of Agriculture agreed that they need to improve their performance, and Dr Rozani the Dept of Agriculture Director of the Sarah Baartman District office promised that urgent action would be taken. To action this promise, an ad hoc committee was set up consisting of the Department of Agriculture, the Ward Councillor, Ndlambe officials and Prof Roodt, the BCMC chair. Ms Kataza of the Makhanda Dept of Agriculture office also gave Mr Khylethu Sweli of the Cattle Owners Coop and a member of our committee a form to fill in and submit by today Monday to apply for fencing and other assistance. In addition, the Ndlambe (while the lease issue with BCMC is being sorted out) agreed to give the Cattle Owners Co-op a Permission to Occupy (PTO) so that they can make the fencing application. A meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee with the Chair of the Provincial Disaster Management Committee was mooted for Friday afternoon at 2 pm.
Friday January 9, online Teams meeting of Ad Hoc Committee with Mr Vusumzi Mgobasi of the Provincial Disaster Management Committee (PDMC). It was claimed that the reason no tangible benefits have accrued as a result of the report (see above: BTOR for Ndlambe Farmers) and earlier meetings held between the Bathurst Cattle Owners and the Dept of Agriculture and a request/letter from Ndlambe Municipality received by PDMC on January 1, was because of the Christmas/New Year holiday shutdown. Prof Roodt then informed the meeting that the BCMC had been writing letters setting out exactly the same problems as the report from the beginning of November and had received very little acknowledgement, let alone a positive response. Mr. Mgobosi apologized on behalf of the government if this was the case. On the positive side, Mr. Mgobosi said that in order to access funds for disaster management from the Provincial Contingency Fund, a provincial disaster had to be declared. He suggested that Ndlambe Municipality request Sarah Baartman to declare a disaster for the district and that a meeting be held on Monday, January 12, @2.00pm of Provincial technocrats to decide what steps are needed to declare a provincial disaster. Mr. Mgobosi invited the Department of Agriculture and Mr Terra Mbunge, LED director and the Municipal Manager, Adv Roli Dumezweni, to present at that meeting, as well as affected emerging farmers/cattle owners. Members of the Ad Hoc committee urged the Dept of Agriculture and the PDMC to act and stop delaying as cattle were dying while they followed the bureaucratic procedures of declaring a disaster. The Department of Agriculture assured the meeting that they were doing everything, including liaising with the Gift of the Givers and other private donors to obtain assistance. We await the outcome of today’s meeting.
2025: A move to establish a quarry about the size of 10 football fields in the unique 3000ha natural resource at the heart of the small rural community. See talk of the town articles about this threat to our commonage here (8th May) and here (15th May).
There are many unanswered questions around the commonage – 
starting with who owns it. The community (both the Village and Nolukhanyo) think the municipality holds it in custodianship for the community. What are the municipality’s plans regarding the rubbish dump, sand mine, cattle farm, housing, hunting?
The Commonage is a vital resource to the people of Bathurst and a balanced and sustainable manner of effective utilization must be found so that all residents may benefit.
A group of Environmental Science students from Rhodes was busy wit
h a study of Bathurst commonage.
Parts of the Commonage remain under threat from the poorly managed landfill site and the possibility of a sand/gravel mine opening in the same proximity. Also, it seems that Ndlambe intend to continue with plans to abstract water from the Lushington River.
In 2024 a fence was being erected along the Southwell road.
Cattle are using it for gazing and some people enjoy walking in the commonage.
– How do we manage its various uses sustainably?
– History of the Bathurst Commonage.
– What is the Commonage and what does it do?
For full information, please click here
Report of Commonage Management Volunteer
2025 A commonage management meeting was held on 9 April 2025 and the following Exco was elected:
– Chair Khayalethu Sweli
– Deputy Chair Monty Roodt
– Secretary Pam Elliot
– Treasurer Lucy Gradwell
2024: The priorities for the Bathurst Commonage management are as follows:
- Establishment of a representative and accountable Commonage Management Committee;
- To engage with the Ndlambe Municipality to embark on a process of effective management of the landfill/municipal dump;
- To engage with private landowners and governmental institutions responsible for the ownership and management of land adjacent to the commonage to ascertain areas of common interest and threats to the commonage’s integrity and ensure that the interests of Bathurst residents are preserved and maximised.
- To actively promote the commonage’s environmental integrity and explore economic and social opportunities for the benefit of the residents beyond those already practised.
To this end, members of BR&RA committee communicated with an adjacent landowner, met with Eastern Cape Nature Conservation, Bushman’s River Rate Payer’s Association, attended a SANParks Biodiversity Economy Node Workshop, met with Nolukhanyo Cattle Owners Association amongst various other initiatives.
In addition, the executive committee has submitted several Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) applications to the Ndlambe Municipality, seeking information and clarity on issues affecting the landfill and commonage.
DES Report on the Bathurst commonage cultural ecosystem services June 2024 – the product of a Rhodes University Environmental Science 3rd Year student research project, which was conducted in collaboration with residents of Bathurst and Nolukhanyo in 2023. See the full report by clicking here .