Cape Town - An incident at the Raapkraal Sewer Pump caused untreated effluent to run into the Westlake River which leads to the ecologically troubled Zandvlei water body, resulting in calls for residents not to flush their toilets until the problem has been resolved.
Spatial planning and environment Mayco member Eddie Andrews said the untreated effluent would likely have short-, mid- and long-term effects on the Zandvlei estuary which could potentially affect marine life and pose health risks to residents and users of the system, should they come into direct contact with the polluted water.
City crews worked around the clock to resolve the problem but ward councillor Carolynne Franklin said the incident would have a long-lasting impact on residents as well as fish, leopard toads, geese and all animals that use the waterway.
Water and sanitation Mayco member Zahid Badroodien said the spill occurred during the installation of a long-awaited second pump at the station; it is currently operating with one pump but plans are in place to replace these pumps with two new ones.
“On Friday, Water and Sanitation operations were alerted to a sewer spill occurring at the Raapkraal Pump Station. It was established that a non-return valve bonnet was partially open but submerged.
“The Engineering and Asset Management (EAM) maintenance team was on-site immediately and arranged for a diver to attend to the malfunctioned valve,” Badroodien said.
Franklin said the pump station was restored and functioning and that the teams implemented some remedial actions, including the use of several tankers to take sewage out of the station to an alternative discharge point which prevented tens of thousands of litres of sewage from being pumped into the water body.
However, a significant amount of sewage did flow into the Westlake River. To address this, the City put in bio-enzymes to assist in the breakdown of the sewerage and restoration of the water quality.
Andrews said depending on the results of subsequent microbial samples taken in the system, the water body may be partially or fully closed to recreation in the interests of public health.
Resident Mark Hackney thanked the crews for resolving the problem but said the City must be held responsible for this disaster as this problem had been ongoing for years, yet no permanent solution had been found.
“One just has to go down to the estuary to see the extent of the damage. The dead fish, toads, frogs, ducklings, goslings and even mature water-birds tell the true story here,” Hackney said.
“The City is conducting various studies to establish appropriate means to rehabilitate the Zandvlei water body as well as other recreational water bodies across the city,” Andrews said.