The Sunday News
IN an ironic twist to the unfolding revelations of massive water pollution, an Environmental Management Agency (Ema) survey has revealed that municipalities are the main culprits compromising the quality of drinking water across the country.
In terms of the Urban Councils Act and Rural District Councils Act, local authorities are mandated to provide consumable water to residents in their respective jurisdictions.
However, it turns out councils are, in fact, largely behind pollution of the water.
Harare City Council — whose jurisdiction expands to Chitungwiza, Ruwa and Norton — tops the list as it discharges 3 885 megalitres of raw sewage per day into water sources.
Second is Bulawayo City Council, which discharges 13 megalitres of effluent daily into Mazai River, which, in turn, feeds into Umguza River.
Also on the list are Mutare, Masvingo, Gweru, Chegutu and Norton, although their pollution contribution could not be immediately determined.
Other culprits include funeral parlours, food outlets, filling stations and industries.
Ema spokesperson Mr Steady Kangata said that raw sewage continued to leak through old and dilapidated pipe networks and, subsequently, flowed into water sources.
Most water treatment plants across the country lack the capacity to eliminate such huge volumes of contaminants, meaning unsafe drinking water eventually reaches the consumer. It is because of this failure to contain sewage flow that councils top the list.
The survey, Mr Kangata said, revealed that Harare City Council’s pollution mainly affected Lake Chivero as well as Mukuvisi, Marimba, Ruwa and Nyatsime rivers, all of which are in the Manyame catchment area.
Ironically, the pollution takes place upstream and yet the city draws its water downstream.
In Bulawayo, it was established that effluent comprises chemical discharged by industries and council’s raw sewage.
A total of US$13,3 million is required to purify Mazai and Phekiwe rivers as well as fix the pipes spilling raw sewage into the water bodies.
During the survey, red flags were also raised in Chinhoyi where major sewage treatment plants such as Mpata, Hospital and Chaedza are not fully operational.
Mr Kangata said organisations should install waste interceptors and pre-treatment plants to curb water pollution.
“We have held several board hearings with Ruwa, Chinhoyi, Harare, Chitungwiza, Chegutu and Norton on allegations of pollution because we do not want a situation similar to the 2008 cholera outbreak.”
Responding to the findings, Bulawayo Mayor Martin Moyo attributed the situation to the bad state of sewer and water treatment infrastructure, which was installed 60 years ago. He said council was working to mobilise funds to rehabilitate the equipment.
Harare Town Clerk Dr Tendai Mahachi said part of the US$144,4 million loan obtained from China Export Import Bank would help address water pollution in the capital.
The funds will cover the refurbishment of Morton Jaffray and Prince Edward water works as well as Firle and Crowborough sewage treatment plants.
