Heritage Cases

The installation of a 900 mm water pipeline is being planned by the Drakenstein Municipality, between the Leliefontein (Paarl) and Conmarine (Wellington) reservoirs. The new pipeline is to upgrade the water supply capacity for Paarl and Wellington and will replace an existing 500 mm pipeline already in place. The existing pipeline will not be removed. The new pipeline will be laid in an existing, declared pipeline servitude, which on SAHRA's Daljosafat properties lies just inside the eastern boundary of Farm 1341, adjacent to the Bo Dal Road. The geotechnical investigation will take place along the route to test ground conditions, and three proposed test holes are located on Farm 1341. The geotechnical testing will take place within the existing pipeline servitude using a tracked excavator. The test pits will be excavated to a depth of approximately -3.5 m. An archaeological survey of the pipeline route conducted by ACO Associates in November 2019 identified two Early Stone Age artefacts near irrigation ditches on the route alignment on Farm 1341 and it is possible that the geotechnical ground investigations will encounter further, similar material. ESA lithics are ubiquitous in valley floor situations, among river gravels, across the Boland but this material is of limited archaeological value given its context and the general lack of any other types of archaeological material accompanying it. The value of such material lies principally in the recording of its presence, which contributes to our understanding of the spatial spread of this material within the landscape. Advice received from SAHRA's Built Environment Unit and Property Manager indicated that the geotechnical investigation required a permit application both a) in case such archaeological material is encountered and disturbed, and b) because Farm 1341 is formally protected as a cultural landscape under the National Heritage Resources Act. It suggested that an archaeologist monitors the three proposed test holes to record the presence of ESA lithics, although the collection of such material is not recommended.