The small spring, supplying the pond beside the Duisburgsesteenweg, mysteriously ran dry this week, endangering fauna and flora alike. It remains unclear whether, and how much, the pond, and Tervuren’s fauna, suffered from construction works for Panquin’s.
Workers have been constantly pumping water away on the other side of the Duisburgsesteenweg. One theory is that constant pumping, for the basement of the luxury apartments, has pushed down the water level below that of the pond’s natural spring.
The pond is a unique natural element and source of biodiversity close to the center of Tervuren.
“As soon as the town hall was notified, we went to investigate. And we then contacted the contractor and appointed Interleuven for enforcement,” says mobility alderman Bram Peters, also responsible for urban planning, environment, and animal welfare. “This problem is most likely caused by the soil de-watering by [Ed. property developer] ION. Any potential consequences will therefore be their responsibility,” he tells Tervuren+.
Panquin foundation works may well end up holding up the reopening of Duisburgsesteenweg until well into 2025. And there are also thorny legal questions of where, or if, Tervuren should chip in for repair costs.
“The sewer pipes show clear signs of cracks and fissures and need to be replaced. The gas pipes need replacing,” Werner Aerts, alderman for public works recently told the town council. Town hall appears adamant that if ever it has to pay anything, it won’t be for new utility pipes.
To test the compactness of the underground to the Duisburgsesteenweeg, town hall has ordered tests on 22-23 April, between 9:00-3:30. Motorized traffic won’t be possible that day between Duisburgsesteenweg between Hertenbergstraat and Kasteelstraat. But a detour is foreseen via Hertenbergstraat and Lindeboomstraat.
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Photos and article: © 2024 by Tervuren+ under the Creative Commons license Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International.
