Durban — The eThekwini Municipality has a dedicated technical team that meets regularly to analyse the water quality reports from their beaches.
This was according to mayor Mxolisi Kaunda who held a post-council meeting media briefing on Thursday morning.
He said that the city’s leadership has made it a norm that after every council meeting, they will convene a media briefing to communicate the decisions taken at the council as well as to discuss the latest developments in the municipality.
Kaunda gave an update on beaches and how pump stations impact them.
He updated the media on the progress made in repairing some of the sewer pump stations that have been responsible for polluting beaches.
Kaunda said the City has a dedicated technical team that meets regularly to analyse the water quality reports from their beaches.
“The team also constantly monitors our pump stations and ensures that all pending technical glitches are identified and resolved speedily. We are pleased that the Ohlange, Kingsway and Warnerdoone pump stations are now fully operational which has resulted in most beaches in the north and south being opened for swimming,” Kaunda said.
On the re-opening of beaches, Kaunda said 22 of the City’s beaches are open and safe for swimming. Only Warner Beach remains closed.
“As you may be aware, we recently closed beaches after the Natal Sharks Board advised the City to do so. This was because of murky water full of logs and unsafe objects due to recent heavy rains that resulted in severe flooding. The downpour caused shark nets at most beaches to break, making beaches unsafe for bathing. In addition to this, the public is reminded that the municipality is constantly monitoring the water quality at all beaches to ensure the safety of residents and tourists,” Kaunda explained.
He added that the municipality started the process of joint sampling of beach water quality with Adopt-a-River. This is a non-profit organisation whose samples are tested by an independent laboratory, Talbot.
The joint sampling is to enable credible comparison of test results in the interests of transparency and public safety.
“We would like to assure residents and visitors that when they visit Durban during the festive season, they will find our beaches open and safe for swimming,” Kaunda said.
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Daily News