A plea has been sent to environmental organisations to rally to the aid of the Hippos in the Krugersdorp Nature Reserve.  EWT, WWF and  WESSA have specifically been approached to intercede in the plight of the hippo.

No, it is not mud in a hippo pool.  It is sludge containing toxic and radioactive heavy metals.

The hippos' habitat includes this dam in the Krugersdorp Nature Reserve.  The dam is also the first receptor on the Tweelopiespruit after the mines.  The Hippo Dam receives mine water, sometimes untreated, or presently the end-product of the lime treatment of uncontrolled Acid Mine Drainage (AMD).

The lime treatment has resulted in the deposition of sludge.  The sludge contains toxic and radioactive heavy metals, and in the photograph the sludge coating the hippos can clearly be seen.

The lime is used to alter the pH of the water, and the pH shock causes the heavy metals to be mobilized and solubilised.

The photograph below shows the precipitated heavy metals on the bottom of the Tweelopiespruit. The combination of oxidising and acidic conditions is ideal for the release of metals trapped in the sediment of the Tweelopiespruit.

Mariette Liefferink of the Federation for a Sustainable Environment in her plea to the environmental organisations has said "It can logically be inferred that, on this matter, we cannot, we must not, trifle."

Should only the environmental organisations be concerned?

The Tweelopiespruit is part of the Crocodile River System and Limpopo Catchment. The heavy metals and toxins are not confined to the Hippo Pool, and it is not only the hippos being affected.  Ecosystems are affected by the introduction of new elements, whether biotic or abiotic.  These elements tend to have a disruptive effect, and in some cases can lead to d to have a disruptive effect. In some cases, this can lead to ecological collapse or "trophic cascading" and the death of many species within the ecosystem.

The last photograph show the water leaving the Hippo Pool, flowing into a wider environment.